Grasshoppers level crops as colonizers destroy native species that eat them

Today in Science History: In 1931, a swarm of grasshoppers descended upon Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota and destroyed thousands of acres of crops. There were so many of them that they could be scooped with shovels and ate corn stalks down to the ground. pic.twitter.com/CnA5m2TxiI

— Maryland Science Ctr (@MDScienceCenter) July 27, 2021

The introduction of the Chinese ring-necked pheasant to South Dakota and other northern plains states is one of most destructive examples of ecoterrorism in US history. Pheasants don't eat grasshoppers but native grouse, woodpeckers, wild geese and turkeys sure do. 

While the pesticide industry that greases Republican politicos don't give a shit about anything but profit native species are being driven from historic habitat by European colonizers. Desertification driven by agricultural practices, overgrazing, concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and urban sprawl have turned much of the United States into scorched earth. 

Add the absence of cultural fire, the extirpation of apex predators, the resulting rise of mesopredators, increasing numbers of domestic dogs and cats then stir in a melange of industrial chemicals with climate change and voila: red state collapse on parade!

Learn more at the Billings Gazette.