With the recent weather we've had, it doesn't seem like we should be talking about Mormon crickets, but this is the time of the year that we start examining the bug outlook for 2026.  In Owyhee County, every spring and summe r, they have infestations of Mormon crickets. So, what will it be like this year?"The reports are starting to come in across Owyhee County as Mormon crickets start hatching for the season.See what this spring and summer have in store in terms of Mormon crickets Idaho Department of Agriculture are on the lookout for Mormon CricketsLloyd Knight, the Deputy Director with the Idaho Department of Agriculture, says get ready: "Our folks have already been out this year, scouting, trying to get ahead of whatever activity happens this year. But yeah, this time every year, especially after a mild winter with the temperatures as warm as they've been."Knight says the Idaho Department of Agriculture's Grasshopper and Mormon Cricket Control Program offers help to farmers and ranchers trying to fight off those pesky and hungry insects."[The crickets] go through range land, they'll go through some different crops, you'll hear stories of them getting into barley or getting into sugar beets or getting into potatoes," said Knight. "They're not that picky, really; theyll pick at everything." Mormon crickets may not pose any health issues for people, but they can pose safety issues on the road for drivers, as we saw years ago right here on Horseshoe Bend Hill.It got so bad in the early 2000s that Idaho Transportation Department crews had to warn motorists traveling on Highway 55 between Eagle and Horseshoe Bend to slow down because of the slick conditions caused by thousands of Mormon crickets squished while crossing the highway."Folks most commonly will see them and have issues with them on Ag land, range land, and then certainly on roadways," added Knight.If you start seeing swaths of crickets in your fields or on the road, give the Grasshopper and Mormon Cricket Control Program a heads up. ...read more read less