locus bugs?

Question

I just got finished watching the exorcist: the heredity, and I was wondering. I heard that locus bugs only come out every 7 years, and ever sicne that movie I have been terrified of them. Does anyone know the next date for the locus bugs to come out?

Answer 1

I found this information on locusts and their "plagues" at www.almanac.com:

"Locust swarms occur when this grasshopper-type species (there are more than 1,500 varieties) are in "marginal regions" that don't offer them suitable habitat. This can occur when they've spent too much time in nice places and their numbers have outgrown the space. Locusts can migrate long distances and their swarms can be extremely destructive. The species in Kentucky was probably the Rocky Mountain locust or the migratory grasshopper, responsible for destroying many prairie farms in Canada and the United States. A locust swarm, or plague, is almost impossible to stop or control."

The locust article on Wikipedia says that these locusts have now gone extinct. "The last major swarms of rocky mountain locust were at their peak between 1873 and 1877, when the locust caused $200 million in crop damage in Colorado, Nebraska and other states. The cause of their extinction is disputed. Maybe the plowing and irrigation of settlers disrupted the natural life cycle of the insects. Some say that the beginning of the end for the Rocky Mountain locust can be traced to its pattern of swarming for a period, then retreating to sandy river beds to breed. It was at that moment, when its population had collapsed back into its habitat, that farmers began digging up that same ground to plant crops. There are stories of plows bringing up thousands of eggs."

I've only seen an over-population locusts/grasshoppers once in my 50 years on earth, and it was about 30 years ago and only lasted for about a week. It also was not real wide-spread - it was pretty much confined to one city that I happened to have to drive through.

I'm pretty sure you don't have to worry about them - at least not in this country.

Answer 2

Locus Bugs

Answer 3

Not to worry. Yes, locusts do come out on seven-year (and sometimes longer) cycles, but the times of their emergence, and their locations, are known a long time in advance. If you haven't heard it all over the news then you don't have any in your area. Also, in real life, they're not that big a deal. They only live a couple of days, as I recall, before dying.

Answer 4

They're were supposed to come out this summer but I haven't seen any.