Large Wave Of Insects Swarming The Desert This Summer
INDIO- Bug exterminators say this year is different from previous years. Scorpions, roaches, and spiders all seem to be hitting at once.
Pest control seems to be one of the only growth industries in the Valley. Each employee at Rudy’s Pest Control responds to around 10 to 15 calls a day.
“This has been an unusual summer only because it seemed like the insects all came at once,” Brijilio Rodriguez of Rudy’s Pest Control observes. “Normally, we’ll get one type of insect that shows itself and, then, later in the summer, other insects. This time, they all came out at the same time.”
There are plenty of creepy crawlies coming out. Some of them just annoying crickets, others downright dangerous spiders.
Sue Carpenter has seen too many bugs at her home.
“I think they’re here worse than before. And there’s beetles. I had a bug the size of Cleveland on a screen door that I emptied an entire spray can on, because it was four inches, easy.”
“Little teeny weeny ants or something,” adds Gail Carver. “They’re just like a dot. Little teeny ones.”
Exterminators realize that this summer bug invasion is keeping them employed in these tough times.
“There’s a level of confidence that I wake up to every morning,” Rodriguez says. “I know I’m going to be busy.”
Local pest control companies add one particular type of roach that can cause a lot of plumbing damage and is flooding the desert this summer.
A scientist studying insects at the Living Desert Wildlife Park says one reason why the insects all came at once this year is because of mild spring temperatures. They’re expected to stick around until November.
