| Mormon Crickets Wreak Havoc Across the West
Mormon Crickets Wreak Havoc Across the West The Mormon cricket is a large, wingless, cricket-like katydid. During population booms, these insects make mass migrations across the arid parts of the western United States, devouring everything in their path, destroying farmland and causing hazardous driving conditions along the way. In this week’s video, Patrick Lorch, assistant professor of biological sciences, reveals the motivating factors behind the Mormon crickets’ seasonal mass migrations, including hunger and fear of cannibalism. Watch the Mormon cricket video in Windows Media Player or watch the Mormon cricket video in QuickTime. For more information about Lorch’s research or these fascinating insects, read "Study Reveals Mass Migration of Mormon Crickets Driven by Hunger, Fear." Lorch and his research were also recently featured in "Strange Behavior Turns Crickets into Cannibals" from ABCNews.com. Learn more about Lorch on the Department of Biological Sciences Patrick Lorch Web page. (You'll need Windows Media Player 9.0 or QuickTime 7 to view these clips. Upgrade or download Windows Media Player. The media player is also available for Macintosh users. Upgrade or download QuickTime.)  |
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