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June 4, 2000
Frustration is building in Tooele County, for ranchers and homeowners alike, as hordes of hungry bugs continue their march through Utah's western valleys.
Environment Specialist John Hollenhorst explains why these critters are bugging residents.
How would you like to have a few dozen or a few thousand of the beautiful creatures clinging to your house? That's been happening, on and off, at the Miller household in the tiny town of Terra. Just call it the terror of Terra.
KYLE MILLER/TERRA: "YOU OPEN THE DOOR AND THEY FALL ON YOU. SO YOU GET A GOOD CARDIOVASCULAR WORKOUT. THEY'RE SCARY."
This was a good day. Only a few hundred Mormon Crickets. But they've been coming in waves for days, which means the Millers often won't set foot in their own yard.
DEBBY MILLER/TERRA: "THERE'S A VERY BIG YUCK FACTOR HERE. YES, THEY'RE GROSS. THEY'RE ABSOLUTELY GROSS. IN THE YEAR 2000, I CAN'T BELIEVE WE CAN'T DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS BUG."
That frustration is even greater out on the ranches, where big money is at stake. Joe Thackaray says crickets and grasshoppers have eaten most of his first hay cutting.
JOE THACKARAY/RANCH FOREMAN: "AND SO THAT'S ABOUT 300 TONS OF HAY THAT WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET PUT UP THIS YEAR."
At 65 bucks a ton, that's serious money being gobbled up.
Nature has arranged a counter-attack. Hordes of seagulls have descended to do some gobbling of their own. But it's not enough of a miracle to solve the problem.
Thackary has spent $4,000 spraying for bugs, but they keep coming back from neighboring federal land.
JOE THACKARAY/RANCH FOREMAN: "YOU KNOW WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH THEM SOMEHOW. THE PRIVATE LANDOWNER CAN ONLY DO SO MUCH. "
Back on the home front, they're spraying with carburetor cleaner, which seems to do the job on a small scale. But they say a large scale effort is needed on nearby federal land.
DEBBY MILLER/TERRA: "THEY'RE ADULTS, THEY'RE LAYING EGGS. NEXT YEAR THERE'S GOING TO BE TWICE AS BIG A PROBLEM. IT'S JUST GONNA KEEP GROWING UNTIL THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OR WHOEVER HELPS US, BEGINS SPRAYING THEIR AREA ALSO."
Last week, concerned residents and officials from several western Utah counties held an emergency meeting.
Federal officials promised a larger effort to control bugs on federal land.
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