10 Most Incredible Insect Invasions 十大奇異蟲災(zāi)

馬爾庫斯·布萊克

You dont fool with Mother Nature！ Some of the worst invasions in history have been natural—bugs in particular have brought havoc1 and destruction to people， places， animals and things for thousands of years.

The story of Pharaoh refusing to let the Hebrew people （or Israelites） leave Egypt in the book of Exodus comes to mind when you think of insect invasions. It was written that God created 10 plagues as demonstrations of power and displeasure designed to persuade Pharaoh to free the Israelites. Through Moses， God released a plague of locusts that covered the land and consumed all of the remaining Egyptian crops.

Here is a list of some incredible insect invasions that have confounded people and brought jaw-dropping destruction.

1. The insects that ate money

Weve heard of money-hungry people， but these insects were literally hungry for money！

In 2011， at a bank in the northern town of Lucknow， India， a bank manager opened a steel chest in an old reinforced2 room. To his shock， he discovered that an army of termites had eaten through 10 million rupees （$222，000） in currency notes stored in the chest at the bank.

The bank manager told the press， “Its a matter of investigation how termites attacked bundles of currency notes stacked in a steel chest.” The money was put in the chest in January of that year.

2. The caterpillars that slimed3 a car

In 2009， a car in Rotterdam， Holland was “attacked” by thousands of spindle ermine moth caterpillars when they left a giant silk web that literally covered the vehicle.

The caterpillars devoured a tree in a park in the Dutch city and migrated over to a nearby carpark where they spun their webs for protection from wasps and birds before they pupate4.

The caterpillars turned to moths about four weeks later and bye-bye caterpillar invasion.

3. The insect invasion so large it showed up on radar

If you live in the city of Albuquerque， New Mexico， you might have noticed the grasshopper population has grown. A lot. In 2014， the worst infestation5 of grasshoppers in twenty years hit this southwestern city.

The air is so dense with bugs that it appears on radar！

As Professor David Richman at New Mexico State University explained： “There wasnt enough winter to kill the egg pots. Because of the dry winter the eggs survived， hence the outbreak of grasshoppers.”

4. A “bugnado6” of aquatic insects invades Iowa cornfields

In 2011， a cloud of aquatic insects， known as midges， swept across the fields of Iowa. Footage of this ominous cloud of bugs， dubbed a “bugnado，” quickly blew up on social media. Although， the bugnado looked like an evil， crop-destroying invasion， the insects are pretty harmless overall.

These large swarms can be attributed to the males being in reproductive mode. As entomologist Joe Keiper of the Museum of Natural History of Virginia told Weekend Edition Saturday， “The males are essentially nothing more than flying sperm packets. They will fertilize a female and will die and fall to the ground shortly afterward.”

5. The beetles that bagged a biker

Beetlemania has hit the Gold Coast in Australia！ No， were not talking about the Fab Four7s Beatlemania， were talking about thousands of water beetles that invaded the east coast of the Australian city in 2011.

Ken Tompkins was riding his bike along the Esplanade at Surfers Paradise when he skid into a mound of dead beetles. He shattered his hip， collarbone and ribs and was bedridden8 for six weeks recovering from his injuries.

Scientists are quite baffled at this bevy9 of bugs.

6. A volcano caused an insect and snake invasion

In 1902， when Mt. Pelée， a volcano located on French Caribbean island Martinique， became active it spewed10 sulfurous gasses and ash and caused large tremors in the area. The tremor and ash combo caused by the newly active volcano drove thousands of insects and venomous snakes into the neighboring villages. The snake and insect invasion killed an estimated 50 humans and around 200 animals.

Mt. Pelée was one mean volcano！ When it erupted， it also obliterated11 the nearby city St. Pierre. Of approximately 28，000 people in St. Pierre， there were only two known survivors. The eruption is one of historys worst volcano disasters.

7. The ants that eat through electric wiring

Houston， we have a problem—an ant problem！ Billions of Rasberry Crazy ants are taking over Texas largest city. These red-brown ants are extremely tough critters12—they have been known to even go head to head with13 the dreaded fire ants！

Crazy ants spread at an alarmingly fast rate and seem to be much more interested in electrical equipment than food. They eat through any and every electrical device possible. And chew through insulation， causing short circuits and all sorts of havoc.

Tom Rasberry， the local exterminator credited with discovering these tiny insects， has seen cases in where hes been in houses and “where every time you took a step youd literally be stepping on thousands of ants with each step.” There are so many in some areas of infested houses that it looks like the ground is moving. Rasberry also says that the ants invade so quickly that “in no time， a one-acre field can be covered with 15 to 20 billion ants.”

8. The cicada invasion that happens every 17 years

If you live on the east coast of the United States， youve probably experienced invasions of cicadas. You would know if you experienced the invasion of these bugs because the racket the male cicadas make can be extremely deafening. The buzzing has been measured at being up to 94 earsplitting decibels.

These winged creatures have been biding their time14 to come to the surface. When in wingless nymph15 form， cicadas spend 13 to 17 years a few feet underground， sucking on tree roots. They emerge only when the ground temperature reaches 64 degrees Fahrenheit. After a few weeks up in the trees， they will die and their offspring will go underground for another 13 to 17 years.

What do they do when they come up？ They have sex. Hence， the loud sound that the males make is a mating call.

Since fifteen broods of the cicada emerge every 13 to 17 years so， somewhere on the east coast every year there is an invasion. Were talking a HUGE invasion too！ Researchers estimate there are 30 billion to 1 trillion cicadas lurking underground waiting to come up at just the right moment.

9. The yellow jackets that filled a car

In 2006， insect experts noticed that giant yellow jacket nests have been turning up in old barns， houses and other cavernous places all over southern Alabama.

Specialists said it could have been the result of a mild winter and drought conditions， or multiple queens forcing worker yellow jackets to enlarge their quarters so the queens could be in separate areas （a colony could have multiple queens）.

Entomologist Dr. Charles Ray at the Alabama Cooperative Extension System in Auburn discovered a huge nest that filled the interior of a weathered 1955 Chevy parked in a local barn. A nest that started out the size of an automobile tire quickly spread to fill the entire vehicle， even spreading into the barn， about 300 yards away.

10. Fishflies block traffic in Minnesota

In 1957， Hastings， Minnesota experienced an incredibly bizarre invasion of fishflies. There were so many of these bugs that they actually caused a drift， wrecking havoc on the local roadways.

Millions of fishflies piled up so high that they created a 2? foot bug-drift in the middle of the local bridge， making the roads slick and preventing cars from getting through.

The police and the fire department were called， but thanks to the effort of the local teen club， the Cavalier Auto Club， motorists were able to get through. The teens spent over an hour pushing automobiles through the mountain of bugs.

1 havoc破壞，混亂。

2 reinforced加固的，強(qiáng)化的。? 3 slime涂上黏液。? 4 pupate（昆蟲）變成蛹。

5 infestation（昆蟲、老鼠等）大量滋生，大批出沒。? 6作者用bug（蟲子）和tornado（龍卷風(fēng)）組合而成的自造詞。

7英國搖滾樂隊(duì)The Beatles（披頭士樂隊(duì)）的昵稱。? 8 bedridden（因生病或年老）臥床不起的。? 9 bevy一群。? 10 spew噴出，吐出。? 11 obliterate毀滅，抹去。

12 critter生物或動(dòng)物的非正式說法。? 13 go head to head with與……實(shí)力不相上下。

14 bide ones time（耐心）等待時(shí)機(jī)。? 15 nymph蛹。

別不拿大自然當(dāng)回事！歷史上一些最嚴(yán)重的侵害都來源于自然——尤其是蟲子，它們對(duì)人、地、動(dòng)物和物品的破壞和毀滅已延續(xù)了幾千年。

想到昆蟲災(zāi)害，《圣經(jīng)·出埃及記》中法老拒絕讓希伯來人（或古以色列人）離開埃及的故事便會(huì)浮上腦海。據(jù)記載，神為顯示自己的力量和不滿，降下了十災(zāi)，以迫使法老釋放希伯來人。神借摩西之手降下災(zāi)難，放出漫山遍野的蝗蟲，將埃及剩余的莊稼啃食殆盡。

下列奇異蟲災(zāi)不僅令人費(fèi)解，還造成了驚人的破壞。

1. 昆蟲吃錢

只聽說過嗜財(cái)之人，竟也有真愛吃錢的昆蟲！

2011年，印度北部城市勒克瑙一家銀行的經(jīng)理打開置于老舊加固房間中的一個(gè)鋼柜，驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)一群白蟻蛀穿了存放其中的1000萬盧比（約22.2萬美元）紙幣。

該銀行經(jīng)理告訴媒體：“白蟻如何損壞了存放在鋼柜中的紙幣，這還有待調(diào)查?！卞X是同年1月放入庫中的。

2. 毛毛蟲黏車

2009年，荷蘭鹿特丹的一輛汽車遭到數(shù)千只衛(wèi)矛巢蛾幼蟲的“進(jìn)攻”，蟲子留下的巨型絲網(wǎng)幾乎籠罩全車。

那些幼蟲在吞噬了鹿特丹某公園中的一棵樹后，遷徙至附近的停車場，結(jié)下抵御黃蜂和鳥類的保護(hù)網(wǎng)，之后變成了蟲蛹。

大約四周之后，幼蟲破蛹成蛾，入侵告一段落。

3.蟲害規(guī)模大到被雷達(dá)捕獲

美國新墨西哥州阿爾伯克基的居民或許已經(jīng)注意到蚱蜢變多了，而且多了很多。2014年，這座西南部城市遭遇了20年來最嚴(yán)重的蚱蜢入侵。

空氣中的蟲子如此密集，連雷達(dá)上都有顯示了！

新墨西哥州立大學(xué)教授戴維·里奇曼解釋說：“冬季太暖，不足以殺死蟲卵。蟲卵由于氣候干燥得以越冬，從而造成蚱蜢數(shù)量猛增?！?/p>

4. 水生昆蟲“蟲卷風(fēng)”入侵艾奧瓦州玉米地

2011年，一大群名為蠓的水生昆蟲掃蕩了美國艾奧瓦州的田野。這群黑壓壓的蟲子被稱為“蟲卷風(fēng)”，相關(guān)視頻在社交網(wǎng)絡(luò)上迅速傳播。盡管蟲卷風(fēng)看似一場破壞莊稼的災(zāi)害，但這種昆蟲總體而言不具危害性。

這些蟲子大批出現(xiàn)可能要?dú)w結(jié)于雄蠓處于繁殖狀態(tài)。弗吉尼亞自然歷史博物館的昆蟲學(xué)家喬·凱博告訴美國全國公共廣播電臺(tái)《周末版（周六）》節(jié)目：“雄蟲本質(zhì)上不過是飛行的精袋。它們令雌蟲受孕，然后很快死去落地?！?/p>

5. 甲殼蟲摞倒騎車人

甲殼蟲狂潮席卷了澳大利亞黃金海岸！不，我指的可不是風(fēng)靡一時(shí)的甲殼蟲樂隊(duì)，而是2011年入侵這座澳大利亞城市東海岸的數(shù)千只水甲蟲。

肯·湯普金斯沿著沖浪天堂的濱海大道騎行時(shí)，滑倒在了一堆甲殼蟲的尸體上，摔傷了臀部、鎖骨和肋骨，為養(yǎng)傷臥床六周不起。

科學(xué)家也無法解釋這堆蟲子是怎么回事。

6. 火山導(dǎo)致蟲蛇入侵

1902年，法屬加勒比海馬提尼克島上的培雷火山開始噴發(fā)，噴射出含硫氣體和火山灰，造成所在區(qū)域劇烈震動(dòng)?；鹕叫陆鼑姲l(fā)所帶來的震動(dòng)和灰燼將數(shù)千昆蟲和毒蛇驅(qū)趕至鄰近的村落。這次蛇蟲災(zāi)害奪去了大約50人和200只動(dòng)物的生命。

培雷火山實(shí)在兇殘！其爆發(fā)還摧毀了附近的城市圣皮埃爾。全市約2.8萬人，已知幸存者僅2人。這是有史以來最嚴(yán)重的火山災(zāi)害之一。

7. 螞蟻咬穿電線

休斯敦遇到麻煩了——螞蟻帶來的麻煩！數(shù)十億只拉斯貝里狂蟻占領(lǐng)了美國得克薩斯州這座最大的城市。這些棕紅色的螞蟻可是了不得的生物，據(jù)說和恐怖的火蟻勢均力敵！

瘋狂的螞蟻以令人擔(dān)憂的速度迅猛擴(kuò)散，且似乎對(duì)電力設(shè)備比對(duì)食物更感興趣。它們咬穿了所有能接觸到的電力設(shè)施，還啃掉絕緣層，造成短路等各種各樣的破壞。

據(jù)說是當(dāng)?shù)匾晃唤袦贰だ关惱锏穆殬I(yè)滅蟲人發(fā)現(xiàn)了這些小昆蟲，在他去過的一些房子里，“每走一步都會(huì)踩到幾千只螞蟻”。一些遭受蟲害的住宅里，螞蟻多到地面看上去都在移動(dòng)。拉斯貝里補(bǔ)充道，螞蟻的入侵十分迅速，“1英畝田地轉(zhuǎn)瞬就能被150至200億只螞蟻覆蓋”。

8. 蟬災(zāi)每17年暴發(fā)一次

住在美國東海岸的人或許都經(jīng)歷過蟬災(zāi)。雄蟬的鳴叫震耳欲聾，親身經(jīng)歷過就明白有多煩了。據(jù)測量，刺耳的蟬鳴高達(dá)94分貝。

這些有翅生物一直在靜待亮相的時(shí)機(jī)。蟬在長出翅膀之前，會(huì)以蛹的形式在地下數(shù)英尺處依靠吮吸樹根生活13至17年。只有當(dāng)?shù)孛鏈囟冗_(dá)到64華氏度時(shí)，它們才會(huì)破土而出，在樹上待幾周后便死去，而它們的后代又將在地下開始新一輪13至17年的生活。

那蟬出來后都做些什么呢？交配。因此雄性發(fā)出的響亮鳴叫是一首求偶之歌。

因?yàn)橛?5群周期蟬每13至17年現(xiàn)身一次，所以東海岸某地幾乎每年都會(huì)迎來一次蟬災(zāi)。規(guī)模也不小呢！研究人員估計(jì)，地下潛伏著300億至1萬億只蟬，只等合適的時(shí)機(jī)破土現(xiàn)身。

9. 黃蜂占滿整輛車

2006年，昆蟲專家注意到，美國整個(gè)亞拉巴馬州南部的舊谷倉、房屋和其他巨穴般空曠的地方都出現(xiàn)了巨型黃蜂巢。

專家稱，這可能是暖冬和干旱所致，也可能是多只蜂王為區(qū)分各自的領(lǐng)地迫使工蜂擴(kuò)建巢穴（同一蜂群可能會(huì)有多只蜂王）。

位于奧本的亞拉巴馬州合作推廣機(jī)構(gòu)的昆蟲學(xué)家查爾斯·雷博士發(fā)現(xiàn)，當(dāng)?shù)啬彻葌}里停放了一輛廢棄的1955年款雪佛蘭汽車，其內(nèi)部被一個(gè)巨型蜂巢占滿了。蜂巢一開始只有汽車輪胎大小，后迅速擴(kuò)張，直至塞滿整部汽車，甚至漫出汽車侵入谷倉，蔓延近300碼遠(yuǎn)。

10. 魚蛉堵塞明尼蘇達(dá)州交通

1957年，美國明尼蘇達(dá)州的黑斯廷斯經(jīng)歷了一次無比怪異的魚蛉入侵。大量的蟲子甚至形成蟲堆，嚴(yán)重危及當(dāng)?shù)氐缆方煌ā?/p>

數(shù)百萬魚蛉在當(dāng)?shù)貥蛄旱闹醒攵逊e成高達(dá)2.5英尺的蟲堆，路面滑得車輛無法通行。

警方和消防部門都接到了求救電話，但多虧當(dāng)?shù)厍嗌倌昃銟凡俊T士汽車俱樂部——的努力，汽車才得以通過大橋。俱樂部成員花費(fèi)了一個(gè)多小時(shí)才將那些被堵的汽車推過蟲山。