KOTA Territory NewsRanchers turn to government for help with hoppers

Grasshoppers are nothing new in KOTA Territory.  But, this year ranchers say the pests are reaching ridiculous proportions.  To help get rid of the hoppers, ranchers are turning to something they don't want to, but must; the government.

What was green, is now brown.

"They're eating everything but cactus," Mark Tubbs, a rancher said.

What were grasses, are now stems.

"I was surprised at how bad it was," said Joe Falkenburg, a Fall River County commissioner.

All because of grasshoppers.

"They've done counts anything from 20 to 60 grasshoppers per square yard," Mark Tubbs, a rancher said.

Grasshoppers are everywhere. Start walking through a field like this and they jump up all around you. 

"I've never seen so many," Bill Paulton, a rancher said.

About 20 grasshoppers can eat 30 pounds of grass a day.  The same amount as a 600-pound steer.

"The grasshoppers chewed it off," Tubbs said.

At this rate, these ranchers in Edgemont say they won't have enough grass, or the money for hay to feed their cattle.

"I'm going to have to sell a bunch of cows," Tubbs said.

"It just takes the lifeblood out of our business," Paulton said.

"This is pretty devastating to people," Falkenburg said.

Devastation that's reached biblical proportions.

"We have a disaster declaration that we've made," Falkenburg said.

"I don't see the problem getting any better. Unless we can do something to get rid of them and break the cycle some how," Paulton said.

To do that, ranchers take Fall River County commissioners and representatives from Sen. John Thune's office to a ranch near Edgemont.

"Let everyone know we have a serious problem out here and hopefully we can get some assistance," Tubbs said.

Assistance with feeding their cattle and killing the grasshoppers.

"Right now the cost of spraying is pretty prohibitive.  Up to $8 an acre," Falkenburg said.

So, what were ranchers who relied on themselves, are now people who've run out of options.

"I'm one that does not like to look to government for answers to our problems," Paulton said.

"It's impossible to act on our own."

If you have an infestation of grasshoppers near you, contact your county auditor about the problem.