It's almost a Biblical plague and it could soon swamp the U.S.

The "Camel Cricket Plague" is upon us. Think of 700 million camel crickets.

We can't blame you if you've never heard of camel crickets. Folks in Missouri and Virginia call these crickets "cricket spiders."

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These pests belong to the orthopteran family Rhaphidophoridae and have the nasty habit of quietly invading homes, especially basements, and multiplying there.

A citizen science project recently sounded the alarm against the camel crickets. They said the pests now outnumber the entire U.S. population. These critters have been invading U.S. homes and have never stopped their invasion.

The invasive insects arrived from Asia but are now found to be more common in American homes than the ordinary crickets Americans occasionally find in their backyards.

Camel crickets are also known as "sprickets."

They're described as having arched backs and long rear legs. Sprickets are far more slender than the native American crickets and were first thought to only live inside greenhouses.

A recent research study sought to know discover how common camel cricket are in a sample population of homes. Holly Menninger, director of public science in Your Wild Life lab and co-author of the study and her team gathered photos and physical specimens of the sprickets.

The research concludes sprickets are abundant because there were 50 individual crickets caught at a single backyard in Raleigh, North Carolina after just two days.

Study leader Mary Jane Epps said they don't know what impact this abundance has on the local ecosystem but said it was possible the camel crickets have been driving off native crickets from their homes.

A rough estimate of over 700 million camel crickets might be making their homes in American homes and backyards. Since the sprickets haven't caused any harm as of yet, researchers conclude these crickets don't harm humans.

The camel crickets are natural scavengers so they really help in cleaning American homes. Researchers said these crickets eat anything such as dead ants, human feces, fallen fruits, and a whole lot more.

Some researchers suggest the camel crickets will actually be useful since they'll eat the dead stuff accumulating in basements and garages.

TagsCamel Crickets, American Homes, Invade, Basement, Yards, Garages