Grasshoppers Invade W. Idaho

CASCADE, Idaho (AP) — Officials with the Idaho Department of Agriculture say a grasshopper infestation is damaging crops and fields in Valley County. Mike Cooper with the department's Plant Industries division told KTVB that the hot, dry weather is providing perfect conditions for grasshoppers to multiply, and the population has exploded since the Fourth of July.

Cooper says more than 37 square miles around Cascade, Donnelly, Round Valley and Lake Fork have been hit hardest by the infestation. State workers began spraying for the critters last Thursday, and they hope to complete the task this week. State standards say a grasshopper outbreak reaches damaging levels when there are eight grasshoppers per square yard. Cooper says there are more than 200 grasshoppers per square yard in parts of Valley County.