CALDWELL -- An invasive insect responsible for crop damage on the East Coast could be stinking up the cherry orchards, vineyards, peach trees, and vegetable gardens of Idaho.
What's worse: they could invade your house too.
Scientists say the "brown marmorated stink bug," has recently invaded Idaho. The pesky critters are known to destroy a variety of fruit and vegetable crops, and have done so along the Atlantic Seaboard.
"It can be really devastating if it takes hold, and we're just hoping, that it's not going to take hold," said fruit grower Dar Symms from Caldwell.
Symms is the President of Symms Fruit Ranch on East Sunnyslope Road. He oversees 3,000 acres of cherry and peach orchards, and says the kind of fruits he grows are the kind targeted by the brown marmorated stink bugs.
"It's a true bug, and it has a proboscis that goes into the fruit, and will make a brown spot in the fruit," said Symms.
Symms says he isn't worried about the bug yet, but adds that this particular stink bug is now firmly on his radar.
"I've been keeping up -- following this insect in the East Coast and Oregon through all the trade publications," Symms said. "It's a real problem in the agricultural areas in the East."
However, unlike other bugs, this one has a lot of experts scratching their heads.
"Well, they've not really figured out how to tackle it," said Symms.
How did the bug get to Idaho?
KTVB talked with Lloyd Knight with the Idaho State Department of Agriculture about how this pest got to Idaho in the first place. Knight says they hitched a ride.
"We've had one report from one household that moved here from Maryland that opened up their boxes after they were here for a number of months and had bugs fly out," said Knight.
Knight says unfortunately, the incident happened outdoors, so experts are not sure if the bugs will spread. Knight says he doesn't think there is any real reason to be concerned.
Though he's warning everyone to be cautious, Symms also says he's going to rely on the information and help he receives from the Idaho Dept. of Agriculture to combat the bugs if they spread. Knight says the department also plans to monitor traps set around the Treasure Valley and across the state to catch these stinky invaders.
