Las Vegas has seen a swarm of grasshoppers, locusts, in the last few days and residents are asking why they can’t even go out without being attacked
A rainier season and warm weather may induce migration and mass gathering of grasshoppers, but scientists suggest an additional cause: they are horny and having a fun time.
In 2009, researchers from Oxford and Cambrige Universities revealed that the hormone serotonin may be responsible for desert locusts to swarm. Anstey et al found elevated serotonin levels 3X higher in those grasshoppers who were swarming as opposed to less sociable, solitary ones.
They also found the stimulation of the hind legs by locusts crawling over eachother as well as the sight and smell of other locusts helped create more of a gathering of the gregarious insects.
In other words, it’s a party.
