WATCH: People baffled by odd creatures ripping up gardens as strange footage emerges

Homeowners in Wicklow have been left baffled by odd creatures destroying their gardens as footage of the incidents emerged online. 

Alan O'Reilly from Carlow Weather shared the unusual footage after being contacted by residents in Wicklow who said 'caterpillars' had invaded their lawn and were causing severe damage.

The video shows the creepy whitish creatures burrowing into the soil across a huge area of grass in a garden. Further damage is being caused by crowd swooping down to feast on the critters.

Alan captioned the video: "A follower in Wicklow has sent me these videos of caterpillars invading their lawn and doing awful damage along with the crows that are feeding on them! Some other gardens in area are the same, you ever seen that before?"

A follower in Wicklow has sent me these videos of caterpillars invading their lawn and doing awful damage along with the crows that are feeding on them! Some other gardens in area are the same, you ever seen that before? pic.twitter.com/mtCmuiGtrA

— Carlow Weather (@CarlowWeather) September 13, 2024

People were left baffled with their skin crawling in the comments. One person wrote: "If they do this to lawns - imagine what they will do to crops...soon."

Another explained what the creatures might be: "Chafer Grubs, larvae of the chafer beetle. Eat the roots of the grass. Crows love them and will tear the place apart to get to them. Turfgrass professionals just love them."

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A third agreed, writing: "Those aren't 'caterpillars'. I think they're Chafer grubs. They're eaten by foxes and badgers as well as crows, which might explain the extensive damage to the lawn. The Chafer beetles are quite something when they emerge in the Spring."

A fourth person has said they noticed the damage in their garden too: "We have had that here for the last few years but never knew the reason behind it. It pops up almost overnight."