infestation

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A Section of Nevada Is Basically Just Gross Right Now

Thanks to the invasion of foul-smelling Mormon crickets

(Newser) - Elko, Nevada, is home to about 20,000 people—and, currently, millions of Mormon crickets. It's a migratory population so overwhelming that Department of Transportation crews have been using plows to clear the roads of the insects' squashed bodies. A DOT tweet last week had photos of the guts-slicked...

Family Dollar's Rat Problem Just Got Bigger

Arkansas is suing the chain over yearslong infestation at distribution warehouse

(Newser) - Earlier this year it emerged that Family Dollar had a problem with rats . Now the discount chain has a related problem with a bigger foe—the attorney general of Arkansas. The state's Leslie Rutledge filed suit against Family Dollar last week over the previously revealed rat infestation at a...

'Unacceptable' Visitors at Family Dollar Site Lead to Closures, Recall

Rat infestation at Ark. distribution center forces 400-plus stores to close in South, product recall

(Newser) - Bad news if you're a regular at Family Dollar and you're in the South: Chances are, a location near you may be shuttered temporarily after a rat infestation at an Arkansas distribution warehouse. The Washington Post reports that 404 stores in six states—Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri,...

'Unchecked Groping' Alleged at Calif. Homeless Shelters

ACLU sues cities, operators of 3 Orange County shelters

(Newser) - In March 2019, the American Civil Liberties Union issued a report that suggested it was better to spend time in jail than in dirty, overcrowded Orange County homeless shelters. Residents at Anaheim's Bridges at Kraemer Place and Santa Ana's Courtyard Transitional Center and SAFEPlace shelters described feces covering...

Live Bedbugs Released in Pennsylvania Walmart

State police are seeking the culprit

(Newser) - Walmart managers may not be sleeping tight tonight: Somebody released live bedbugs in a Pennsylvania store and police are now investigating. State police say they were contacted by the manager of the Edinboro store Thursday after staff members found a pill bottle in a boy's jacket with live bedbugs...

These Little Insects Are Europe's New Plague
Millions of Insects Are
Spreading Toxin-Filled Hairs
in case you missed it
Jul 13, 2019 12:30 PM CDT

Millions of Insects Are Spreading Toxin-Filled Hairs

And European officials are trying to cope

(Newser) - First came the heat . Now Europeans are battling a nasty caterpillar infestation that spreads everything from allergic reactions to rashes to asthma attacks. Millions of the little creatures have made life harder for people in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and Denmark, thanks to the insects' toxin-filled hairs—which can ride...

Cops in the West Issue Warning on Oddly Moving Roads

Swarms of Mormon crickets are plaguing a bunch of states

(Newser) - Farmers in the US West face a creepy scourge every eight years or so: swarms of ravenous insects that can decimate crops and cause slippery, bug-slick car crashes as they march across highways and roads. Per the AP , experts say this year could be a banner one for Mormon crickets—...

Washington Town's Woe: Bunnies and Their Feces

Hundreds of rabbits are wreaking havoc on this island hamlet

(Newser) - Apparently the rabbits on Washington state's Whidbey Island are going at it like, well, rabbits. The population in the town of Langley, home to barely more than 1,000 humans, is now numbering into the hundreds, reports NBC News , with residents saying "we've never seen it like...

Burning Man Is Crawling With Big, Biting Bugs

In the days leading up to the desert event, early arriving Burners find an infestation

(Newser) - There's a burning question in the days leading up to this year's Burning Man: Who let the bugs out? And while that may seem like an ordinary question at the start of any Burning Man, this year it's particularly literal as early-arriving Burners photograph an apparent infestation...

Chicago: America's Bedbug Capital

City gets dubious honor for 2nd year in a row

(Newser) - Don't expect the tourist board to brag about it, but Chicago has been named the most popular city in America—for bedbugs. Pest control company Orkin has awarded the city the distinction for the second year in a row, despite the city council's efforts to boost detection and...

World's Most Rodent-Packed Island Has Just 2 Options

Blanket island in poison, or deal with the 60K mice

(Newser) - Those suffering from musophobia would be wise to steer clear of the South Farallon Islands. The archipelago, which sits just 27 miles off San Francisco, is the most rodent-dense island in the world, with an average of 500 Eurasian house mice occupying each of its 120 acres (that's 60,...

NYC Woman Sets Off Bug Bombs, Blows Up Building

Apparently, one should shut off pilot lights before setting off 2 dozen

(Newser) - You're actually supposed to try this at home, but apparently it's not for everyone: A New York City woman apparently battling a heck of an infestation in her hair salon set off 20 bug foggers in the Chinatown building last week, which was great. A day later she...

Balkan Folk Remedy Beats Bedbugs
 Balkan Folk Remedy 
 Beats Bedbugs 
STUDY SAYS
Apr 10, 2013 3:12 AM CDT

Balkan Folk Remedy Beats Bedbugs

Bean leaves make effective traps, researchers find

(Newser) - Scientists looking for new ways to combat bedbug infestations have found that Eastern European housewives hit on a pretty good strategy centuries ago. Researchers found that leaving kidney bean leaves near beds and burning them the next day, as was long done in Bulgaria and Serbia, is remarkably effective because...

'A Thousand Roaches' Infest Greyhound Bus Ride

Passengers freak after leaving Atlantic City

(Newser) - Talk about nasty: A bus full of Greyhound travelers suddenly found roaches dropping from the ceiling and scurrying up their clothes yesterday, CNN reports. "There's like a thousand roaches," said a passenger on the ill-fated trip. "And when I say infested, I mean infested. People were...

Miami Battles Giant Snail Invasion

'I had never seen anything like it,' resident says

(Newser) - Miami authorities are struggling to wipe out an invasion of Giant African Snails that are munching on plants and proliferating wildly, the Miami Herald reports. Last week, a pair of sisters tipped off officials to the slimy creatures, which can grow up to 10 inches long by 4 inches wide,...

Dreadful Beetle Sneaks Into US From India in Rice

And if it establishes itself here, we're in trouble

(Newser) - Finally, an airline inspection process we can all give the thumbs up to: US Customs and Border Patrol intercepted damaging khapra beetle larvae at O'Hare last week, which had traveled from India in bags of rice. It's an event that's been happening much more frequently, reports the...

Rabid Bats Plague Los Angeles
 Rabid Bats Plague Los Angeles 
Jul 22, 2011 12:14 PM CDT

Rabid Bats Plague Los Angeles

Infestation hitting one Ventura County man harder than everyone else

(Newser) - It's probably only a matter of time before someone writes a screenplay about this: Rabid bats have been invading Los Angeles in increasing numbers this summer. The city public health department says 12 have already been found, up from the eight to 10 typically discovered over a full year,...

City-Loving Mosquitoes Invade the US

Asian invaders like metro areas and bite during the day

(Newser) - Apparently mosquitos have big-city dreams, too. American cities are under siege by so-called "urban mosquitos" that are attracted to metropolitan areas, are ferocious, and bite during daytime. One big offender is the Asian tiger mosquito, which first arrived in the US in 1985 via eggs hidden in a shipment...

Spider Infestations Trigger Mazda Recall

Toxic spiders found dwelling in fuel lines

(Newser) - If you're not already an arachnophobe, a bizarre recall from Mazda might be enough to turn you into one. The Japanese automaker is recalling 65,000 vehicles in North America because of infestations of poisonous spiders, the BBC reports. The yellow sac spider—which has a mildly toxic bite—has...

Bedbugs Invade NYC Cinemas
 Bedbugs Invade NYC Cinemas 
Horror Show
Aug 19, 2010 9:02 AM CDT

Bedbugs Invade NYC Cinemas

Times Square theater temporarily shuttered

(Newser) - Popcorn isn't the only thing getting eaten at cinemas in New York City. The AMC Empire 25 in Times Square was temporarily shuttered Tuesday night while a team of exterminators tried to rid the place of blood-sucking bedbugs —two weeks after it had initially been treated for the pests....

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