My Louisiana Encounter with a ‘Monster Bug’

SHREVEPORT, LA - I get up for work very early each morning. Typically I am driving to work in the 4am hour. The exact timing really depends on how much work I've done from home. Because it's so early, I am very alert to my environment when I walk out the door.

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I keep an eye out for people and animals. I watch out for other motorists who are driving crazy. I have actually called 9-1-1 a couple of times in the past 2 weeks because of drunk drivers. You will see impaired drivers pretty often during the early morning hours. I hope police were able to catch up with these guys.

But I had an unusual encounter on my way to work today. As I sit in my car buckling up and getting ready to pull out of my driveway, I noticed a monster bug on the hood of my car. This was no ordinary bug. He was huge. He was gently walking along the middle of the hood, not really paying much attention to me. He did start to move a little as I started the car.

What Happened to the Bug When I Started Rolling?

So this bug crawled toward the grill of my car and I was not sure where he went. I wondered if he was one of those cicadas that was supposed to invade our area earlier this summer. But he was not that big. And to be honest I haven't seen any cicadas. I have friends who have seen them or heard them, but not in my neck of the woods.

This amazing bug held on for dear life for about 15 minutes, the entire drive to work this morning. And this ride was on I-20 when I was traveling at a high rate of speed (I won't acknowledge the speed for fear of incriminating myself). This little guy popped back up on the hood of my car after I pulled up to work at 4:45 this morning. Turns out this was a cricket, a very BIG cricket.

How did he do it? God's creatures amaze me some days.

Fast Facts About Crickets

• Bug folks will tell you there are hundreds of species of crickets. 900 or so are roaming among us.
• Female crickets don't chirp. It's the annoying boy crickets you hear at night.
• Not all crickets can fly.

Lots of people eat crickets

Folks in Thailand consider crickets one of the best tasting insects. They are cooked and served as a crunchy snack. No thanks.