Baits can also be carried by rain or sprinklers into nearby streams or ponds. Although carbaryl is of fairly low toxicity, children, pets, birds, and wildlife should be considered when selecting this method of grasshopper control. Long-term management tactics should encourage the natural predators of grasshoppers as much as possible. Birds, including sparrows, starlings, meadowlarks, bluebirds and crows, are among the best natural predators. Chickens, skunks, spiders, and toads also consume many of these insects.
Many rodents eat both the grasshoppers and the eggs.
Insect predators include the ground beetles, tiger beetles, robber flies and tachinid flies. Floating row covers, available from most garden suppliers, can protect garden crops. Lay the light fabric, which will let air, sunlight, and water through, over the crop, making sure the edges are tacked to the ground closely, to prevent insects from crawling inside. If grasshoppers or other pests are already present on the crop, you may wish to make an application of an insecticide labeled for the crop before you tack down the floating row cover. Cultivation of the soil in the fall can help destroy grasshopper eggs, but will do little to prevent migration from other areas.