Cricket Invasion

         Sooners no longer have to watch where they step. The crickets have died and left many wondering why they came and why were there so many. 
         A few crickets in your house and around the neighborhood doesn’t bother most, but what happens when a swarm of crickets are attacking you and there’s nothing you can do.  
       Sooners along with everyone living in the sooner state were in dismay last week as they witnessed an overwhelming amount of crickets in massive packs hanging out in drive ways, front yards, walkways, parking lots, and any other place where there was a light source.         Students at OU were not able to enjoy a nice walk around campus while gazing at the moonlight without being bothered by crickets. 
       “A cricket almost flew inside my eye and then it flew in my ice-cream while I was eating it,” said OU student Jae Hornbeak. “I wasn't even able to enjoy my ice-cream that I just bought.” 
      “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing when I saw how many crickets were on campus,” said Justin Williams. “I really hate those things.” 
         The crickets laid their eggs last year, which are usually in large numbers, but many of the eggs don’t survive if the weather conditions aren't right.
        Oklahoma’s weather was the main culprit in the cricket invasion. Heat and drought was the source for fueling and bringing life to these crickets. 
          By late spring of this year the eggs hatched, and the crickets were roaming campus unnoticed as nymphs. They all reached adulthood at the same time, which explains why there were a multitude of them roaming every corner of Oklahoma. 
          A few days after the cricket boom, the chirping sound that echoed loudly through campus started to fade as each cricket began to die one after another. 
         As OU students walked to their classes, it was hard not to notice the pool of dead crickets scattered on campus. 
        “Dead crickets are creepy too,” said Hornbeak. “I feel like I still have to run from them.” 
        The OU facilities management team is responsible for cleaning up the lifeless crickets on campus. They don’t use pesticides to kill the crickets. Facilities management waits for the crickets to die before they do a clean sweep of them on campus. 
         This cricket problem happens often on campus, but Sooners are wishing that when the crickets do come back, they find a new nest, and hope that an invasion like this never happens again.