Insane Grasshopper Invasion Hits Albuquerque

Albuquerque is dealing with so many grasshoppers that their swarms look like rain on weather radar, ABC News reports. "We have actually been noticing the insects on radar since about Memorial Day," says a National Weather Service rep. At first, the service couldn't figure out what the radar was showing. "We actually thought the radar was broke, so we had our technicians go out there a couple times," says a forecaster. Radar experts in Oklahoma ultimately explained what was going on, KRQE reports.

The city is facing volumes of the creatures not seen since the 1990s, a local official says. "They fly into people’s faces while walking, running, and biking. They are hopping into people’s homes and garages, they splatter the windshield and car grill while driving, and they will eat people’s plants," he adds. The infestation is a result of drought, a researcher explains: "Because of the dry winter, the (grasshopper) eggs survived." Insecticides won't help much; any grasshoppers killed will just be replaced by others, the official notes. All locals can do is "wait it out… As with everything, this too shall pass." (More Grasshopper stories.)