Crops, forest products, pest control
Crop pests and diseases
Research reports for "locust"
Crop pests and diseases
Research reports for "locust"
- Catch Brown Locusts before they hatch
Forecasters in southern Africa can now predict swarms of locusts cost-effectively and accurately. Plagues of the Brown Locust are extremely destructive in Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. They happen in at least seven out of ten years, often coinciding with droughts - a double whammy for poor farmers. Previously, warnings based on field surveys often came too late for farmers to take action. Forecasters in South Africa successfully used a new computer model - based on rainfall, vegetation, historical and satellite data - to show where locusts were likely to hatch out. They then warned farmers to prepare for outbreaks. Now, the governments of South Africa, Namibia and Botswana intend to use this system to strengthen control of locust and other migrating pests. (Ref: CPP70) - Forecasts prevent crop damage by migrant pests in southern Africa
Twelve countries in southern Africa - Angola, Botswana, D.R. Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe - now use a new early warning system to prevent large-scale damage to crops by migrant pests. It’s vital to deal with insect and bird pests before they become a serious problem. But they appear suddenly, multiply rapidly and disappear just as quickly. Now, each country sends in regular reports that are fed into a database. This shows what’s happening with pests and where. The information helps pest officers forecast imminent outbreaks and issue warnings so that farmers can take preventive action. Active co-operation between countries has been crucial to the system’s success, as pests don’t respect national borders. (Ref: CPP46) - New techniques give decision makers an edge
The Local Application of Remote Sensing Techniques (LARST) project has produced a variety of remote sensing tools to help decision makers plan for and monitor a huge range of environmental problems. They can also be used to provide early warning of threats to food security (like locust outbreaks), human and animal health (by predicting epidemic outbreaks), threats to forestry (like fire) as well as threats to water resources, and fisheries. Remote sensing techniques like these give decision makers the tools they need to properly design, implement and monitor new policies. The techniques are already in use around the world to solve a range of problems, from detecting fire risks in Nicaragua, Mexico and Botswana, to estimating rainfall and avoiding famine in Ethiopia. (Ref: FRP35)
Crop pests and diseases
