Grasshoppers threaten to devour Alberta crops following extreme heat
CBC
Driven by drought, heat-loving grasshoppers are thriving in Alberta, threatening to devour crops in central and southern parts of the province.
Pest species of grasshoppers are taking wing early this year — and swarming in greater numbers.
Robert Badry, who operates his family's cereal farm near Heisler, 160 kilometres southeast of Edmonton, said half an acre of his wheat crop was devoured in a matter of days.
"The ground was literally moving with them," he said. "It was bare, you could see the soil. They just eat it to nothing."
Grasshoppers have been long been a menace to agricultural producers. Like locusts, the insects are incredibly destructive. Even a moderate infestation — 10 grasshoppers per square metre — can consume up to 60 per cent of available vegetation.
This year, the hot and dry weather that fuelled historic wildfires in Alberta has contributed to a scourge of grasshoppers now threatening to strip already stunted crops.
Experts warn the infestations increase the risk of future outbreaks and serve as a reminder of the need to better monitor the pests.
Recent rains may have slowed down the grasshoppers — but only temporarily, as populations have been booming for years.
On his farm, Badry is concerned about the prospect of persistent outbreaks.
He expects grasshoppers will move in again when arid weather returns. His crops are already suffering from lack of moisture, leaving them to susceptible to poor yields and pests.
"Once the drought hits and then you see the grasshoppers, you can't be surprised, they go hand in hand," he said. "They flourish in the drought and the dry.
"If it's not one thing it's another this year."
The Alberta government monitors grasshopper outbreaks and tracks populations through an annual count conducted each August.
Last year's survey warned of the ongoing risk of outbreaks in southern Alberta and along the border with Saskatchewan. Infestations were found in isolated pockets in the Peace River region. In the south and east, numbers have been expanding since 2021, the survey found.
The Rachel Notley government's consumer carbon tax wound up becoming a weapon the UCP wielded to drum the Alberta NDP out of office. But that levy-and-repayment program, and the wide-ranging "climate leadership plan" around it, also stood as the NDP's boldest, provincial-reputation-altering move in their single-term tenure.