Las Vegas is hit by huge swarm of grasshoppers, sickening local residents frightened of the creepy crawlies

Las Vegas residents have reported sightings of grasshoppers flying around the city which has sent many into a massive fright. 

Locals have said that they have seen 'swarms' of the flying insects around town - a reminiscent of the massive grasshopper invasion of 2019. 

Asher Lewis, a Vegas native who spotted the buzzing creepy crawlies said: 'I see them all over the place. I don't know how often they come or how long it has been happening. But this is the third time I've seen them.

'2019 was nasty. So when I saw those for a few days I thought they were coming back.' 

While Jeff Knight, a Nevada Department of Agriculture entomologist has previously confirmed in an interview that the bugs do not carry any diseases or even bite people, many remain terrified after the pre-pandemic infestation

He told 8NewsNow that the insects tend to catch him off guard when he drives around town and saw hundreds of them on his way home late at night in the central valley. 

Another Vegas native who goes by @gottagosoon on X said that he noticed that the grasshoppers had moved in closer to the city while he he was out with his dog last night. 

'Oh Gawd. I went barefoot outside tonight to let my dog pee. Turns out the grasshoppers moved in over the last hour. I can't bear to describe the sounds/feelings. I love #lasvegas summers.'

While Jeff Knight, a Nevada Department of Agriculture entomologist has previously confirmed in an interview that the bugs do not carry any diseases or even bite people, many remain terrified after the pre-pandemic infestation. 

In the middle of July 2019, people in Las Vegas began to notice grasshoppers filling the air at night.

Las Vegas residents have reported sightings of grasshoppers flying around the city which has sent many into a massive fright 

Each day, the numbers grew, peaking on July 27 to a baffling size that locals named it 'the great grasshopper invasion of 2019'. 

To learn more about the night of the grasshoppers, researchers obtained data from weather stations around Las Vegas and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration archives. 

They observed a cloud resembling a thunderstorm that appeared on radar screens around and over the city of Las Vegas.

The data from the radar (the size and density of the clouds) and grasshopper data (their average size and weight) was then used to calculate the number of grasshoppers that appeared that night.

Residents have noticed the insects along the strip and in other parts of the Nevada city, but experts claimed that people should not be alarmed by their presence

Asher Lewis, a Vegas native who spotted the buzzing creepy crawlies said: 'I see them all over the place. I don't know how often they come or how long it has been happening

The data showed that on the peak night, the number of grasshoppers was approximately 46 million, which, the researchers note, would weigh approximately 30 tons.

It also showed that the densest clouds of grasshoppers were centered over the most brightly lit parts of the city.

Las Vegas is known for its huge, bright neon signs, which attract visitors and their money. In this instance, however, it appears the bright lights attracted the grasshoppers.

It is still not clear why the insects amassed into such numbers on that fateful night, but local weather reporters noted that the prior winter had been unusually wet.

The researchers noted that the bugs appeared to arrive into the city during daylight hours, landing and settling on every available surface—it was only after the sun set and the bright lights came on that the grasshoppers took to the sky.

They concluded that such behavior by the grasshoppers is ample evidence of the impact artificial lighting can have on insect behavior.