Controlling Locust Swarms: How Nations Around The World Fight Locust Attacks

Locusts have wreaked havoc in the states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh and are slowly making their way to New Delhi from Rajasthan-Haryana border.

Authorities are trying their best to get rid of these plague-causing pests that can cause catastrophic damage to people¡¯s lives.

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In case you didn¡¯t know, locusts, or Desert Locust, specific to India¡¯s situation right now, come from the family of grasshoppers. Normally they like living alone in solidarity however, in certain climatic and environmental conditions they experience rise in serotonin levels and start breeding in exceeding numbers forming large swarms.

They¡¯re voracious eaters. To put things into perspective, one square kilometre swarm of locusts with an average population of 40 million can eat the food of as much as 35,000 people in a day, leaving no food for people.

Locusts have been troubling parts of Africa, the Middle East and India for a few years now. And here are a few ways they¡¯ve been dealing with these pests to effectively take them down.

Pesticides to fight locusts

Definitely the most basic and effective is the dispersal of pesticides either from a car or aircraft. This method is commonly practised to take down locust swarms in African countries like Kenya, Ethiopia etc as well as in Australia.

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Initially, there were concerns about the use of pesticides and its harmful effects, but now, environmentally friendly biopesticides (like Green Guard/ Fenitrothion) are used, which are sourced from countries such as Japan, the Netherlands and Morocco.

Monitoring locust growth using drones

While drones or UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) are being used for effective and cost-effective dispersal of liquids (something that even Indian government is looking into), FAO or Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations has been working on a novel approach to fit UAVs to monitor growth patterns of these swarms to nip them in the bud.

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The FAO is currently working with university researchers and private sector partners in Europe to make drones more developing-country friendly with solar power options, optics and sensors to better track swarm and vegetation etc. They¡¯re soon expected to commence testing in Mauritania to refine and use it for dealing with locust outbreaks.

Locust control expeditions

Sure, drones and planes sound cool to take down locusts. But not all nations are developed enough to have access to such hi-tech gear. In a country like Tajikistan, people like Khojamiyor Umarov -- a senior specialist with the nation¡¯s ¡®Locust Control Expedition,¡¯-- look for locusts while riding on his bike through hilly regions of the nation. His work ensures early warnings of locust outbreaks, which help in emergency responses to be laid out in time.

FAO

Workers in the field transmit data they¡¯ve collected directly to the central offices who¡¯re closely monitoring them. Data analyses, including forecasts and recommendations, are sent to the highest authorities for timely decisions on control operations.

China uses ducks against locusts

China took a different approach to deal with the locust when they first emerged in the north-western Xinjiang region two decades ago. They deployed ducks who love eating insects like locusts. In fact, they can eat as many as 200 locusts in a day. This apparently worked like a charm to help China get rid of locusts two decades ago.

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Moreover, recently, after seeing the trouble Pakistan is experiencing, it announced in February that it¡¯ll send 100,000 ducks to deal with the infestation.

Even though there are concerns to this, pointed out by Beijing¡¯s troubleshooting team expert Zhang Long, a professor from China Agricultural University, who claims that desert areas of Pakistan aren¡¯t suitable for ducks to feel comfortable, who prefer pond-like areas with water bodies.