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Nature & Environment

Millions of desert locusts descend on Africa

By T.K. Randall
January 26, 2020 · Comment icon 8 comments

Locusts breed quickly and eat one whole hell of a lot. Image Credit: Arpingstone
A plague of locusts of biblical proportions has been devouring vast swathes of crops across east Africa.
The apocalyptic swarm - the largest in 70 years - has already lain waste to food crops in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia and there is no indication that things will die down anytime soon.

Capable of traveling 150 miles and eating their own body weight in food every single day, the insects have seen a huge boost in numbers due to heavy rain at the end of last year.

There are even concerns that when the rains arrive in March, the insects could multiply by a factor of 500 - resulting in swarms so large that it is almost impossible to imagine.
To give you an idea of their destructive potential, a swarm the size of Paris would be capable of eating through the same amount of food as half the population of France in just a single 24-hour period.

The United Nations has called for immediate action in Africa to curb the swarm and efforts are underway to ramp up aerial pesticide spraying in an attempt to combat the insects.

Millions of people across Africa were already facing food insecurity even before the locusts arrived.

If drastic action isn't taken, many of them will be at risk of malnutrition and starvation.



Source: The Guardian | Comments (8)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #1 Posted by Jujo-jo 4 years ago
Very sad for vegetation, crops and the people there : (
Comment icon #2 Posted by and then 4 years ago
I think I'd be harvesting locusts for food Grrrrrrr
Comment icon #3 Posted by weaselrunner 4 years ago
Lots of protein on the loose there.
Comment icon #4 Posted by Jon the frog 4 years ago
Eat them, dry them and eat them later.... On the video it's losing energy in vain battling them and poison them so they cannot be eaten...
Comment icon #5 Posted by Habitat 4 years ago
You can only eat so many "sky prawns" at one sitting.
Comment icon #6 Posted by Manwon Lender 4 years ago
It sounds like the Christian Zionists are getting their wish, and Moses is preceding Christs second coming and bring the Old plagues along with him.
Comment icon #7 Posted by Jujo-jo 4 years ago
lol not yet, at least we'd all better hope 
Comment icon #8 Posted by Hazzard 4 years ago
I say we Nuke'm! 


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