9. J.S.Kennedy
Eggs
• Eggs are yellowish brown in color and
7-8 mm long
• 1-3 egg pods per female with an average
of 60-80 per pod.
• Egg pod is large, slightly bent, 50-85 mm
in length, 7-10 mm in diameter
10. J.S.Kennedy
Female lays eggs in a hole in damp, warm or sandy
soil called a Pod usually at a depth of 2-10 cm.
Each pod contain 60-80 pale yellow
banana- shaped eggs 5-6 mm long.
Covers the eggs with frothy liquid to protects
from enemies, dehydration and contamination.
11. J.S.Kennedy
• Collection of egg pods laid by a number of locusts is
termed as Egg Bed.
• Egg beds may vary from a few square meters to
several hundred square meters and scattered
throughout a region.
• Eggs hatch in 14-20 days
• Afterwards the nymphs move by crawling or hopping
along the ground as they have no wings.
• 5 nymphal instars and nymphs take 4-8 weeks to
complete development
12. J.S.Kennedy
Nymph
• An immature locust is called a nymph or hopper
• Miniature to adults but wingless
• Lighter in color than adult
Adult
• Large size about 45–60 mm in length
• Green or brown in the solitary form
• Straw-colored in gregarious form
• Hind wings have no markings.
• Adult flight is strong and steady
13. J.S.Kennedy
Swarm
If numbers are sufficient, locusts form dense
groups.
Swarms infested areas that are usually 5
km2-50 km2.
There can be 40-80 millions locust in each
square kilometer of swarm.
Swarms can travel about 5-130 km or more
in a day.
15. J.S.Kennedy
Phase variation
• Behave Independently
• Repelled from other locusts
• Walk slowly with creeping
• Active mostly at night
• Diet restricted
• Behave as a Cohesive Unit
• Attracted to conspecific
• Walk rapidly
• Active mostly at day
• Diet broad
Contents Title
Contents Title
Solitary Phase
Gregarious Phase
18. J.S.Kennedy
Three types breeding of locust – summer, winter and spring
India has only one locust breeding season and that is Summer breeding.
The neighboring country Pakistan has both spring and summer breeding
19. J.S.Kennedy
Triggering factor – Guaiacol
pheromone (guaiacol, a key
component of a pheromone
derived from locust faecal pellets
that promotes the aggregation of
locusts) produced by the hopper
via plant material and gut
bacterial (Pantoea aglomerans)
26. J.S.Kennedy
It is one of the most devastating migratory
pests in the world
Feeds on large quantities of any kind of
green vegetation, including crops, pasture,
and fodder.
A typical swarm can be made up of 150
million locusts per square kilometer and is
carried on the wind, up to 150 km in one day.
Even a very small, locust swarm can eat the
same amount of food in one day as about 35
000 people.
It is an international transboundary pest
which threatens agricultural production and
livelihoods in many countries in Africa, the
Middle East, and south and southwestern
Asia.
The desert locust
(Schistocerca gregaria)
27. J.S.Kennedy
• Highly mobile, and usually fly with the wind at
a speed of about 15 to 20 kilometres per hour
(9.3 to 12.4 mph).
• Swarms can travel 5 to 130 km or more in a
day.
• The swarms can vary from less than one square
kilometre to several hundred square kilometres
with 40 to 80 million individuals per square
kilometre.
Oriental migratory locust
(Locusta migratoria)
28. J.S.Kennedy
• The Bombay locust is found in India, Southwest Asia and
Southeast Asia.
• Its range extends from India and Pakistan to Thailand,
Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia.
• Its typical breeding habitat is grassy plains and rough, tussocky
grassland with shrubs and scattered trees at elevations up to
about 1,500 metres (4,900 ft).
• In India, where swarms were common at one time, there have
not been any swarms since 1927; it is thought this is due to a
change of land use, with the areas of grassland in which it used
to breed now being largely under cultivation
Bombay locust
(Patanga succincta)
29. J.S.Kennedy
• These grasshoppers inhabit trees and shrubs, scrub land, maquis and orchards in
warm and bright environments, at an elevation from sea-level to 1,500m
• Their body is usually gray, brown or olive coloured, the antennae are relatively
short and robust.
Tree Locust
(Anacridium sp.)
42. J.S.Kennedy
i. Detection and monitoring of vegetation
ii. The estimation of soil moisture
iii. The measurement of certain meteorological parameters, such as rainfall distribution
43. J.S.Kennedy
• Satellite images are effective in
detecting zones of green vegetation
that appear after sporadic rains.
• Migratory locust, satellite images have
been used, for instance, to map spatio-
temporal distribution of its preferred
vegetation.
• They have also been used for post-
outbreak damage assessment on
vegetation in China.
• Rapid identification of areas with
emerging green vegetation is
instrumental in fast decision-making
regarding control interventions
against locust congregations.