LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Grasshoppers have made their way back to the Las Vegas Valley earlier than expected.
Geoffrey Perez with Pestivities Pest Control says this year's grasshopper season is arriving earlier than usual. He says the early season is driven by the valley's early heat up.
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"The last week, I'd say about maybe like 10 times, but it's a lot of people, they're, they're having, they named grasshoppers," Perez said.
"It's definitely like the weather that we're getting right now is June, July weather, but at the same time, for some reason, it's every other year that these grasshoppers come," Perez said.
Experts I spoke to say grasshopper infestations can destroy gardens and crops, especially in warm, dry weather. For the most part, they are harmless, but locals I spoke to say that doesn't stop them from being annoying.
"I don't think nobody likes grasshoppers," one local said.
Eric Johnson has lived in Las Vegas for 22 years. He says right now they like to gather nightly near his front door.
"When I go home, they're all around the door, so I gotta hit the lock and I gotta run in real quick because they'll jump on me and I try to get in so I won't have grasshoppers in my house," Johnson said.
Although unsettling, the Nevada Department of Agriculture says this isn't abnormal. They sent me this statement:
"Grasshoppers are common and native to the general Las Vegas and southern Nevada area. Like most insects, they are drawn to bright lights, and displays like this are not uncommon."
Perez says what is common is what grasshoppers bring with them.
"The only thing that's really bad about them is it attracts, if we're getting those guys now, there's gonna be a lot of scorpions. Um, that's what they eat," Perez said.
Whether they are here to stay or not, Perez says there are things you can do to get them to go away.
"There's some items that you can get from like Amazon that are generic, but they work the same as like any other pest control chemical. You just have to do a lot of research and be precise with how much ounce you put of chemical with the water," Perez said.
The mixture cannot be too strong or too weak; it has to be just right.
Perez says the life expectancy of grasshoppers is about 30 to 90 days, meaning the current wave of pesky hoppers is expected to last only a few more weeks.
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