Australian plague locust warning

The Victorian Minister for Agriculture, Joe Helper, recently issued a warning to Victorian landholders to be on the lookout for Australian plague locusts (Chortoicetes terminifera) over the coming months. Egg-bearing locusts were recorded across an area of about 1.25 million hectares in northern Victoria during autumn. It is expected that eggs laid during this time will begin hatching in spring. The combined risk of these eggs hatching, and locusts moving south from New South Wales and Queensland, means Victorian growers need to be particularly alert this season. PestFacts reports earlier this year suggest locusts are likely to hatch in many parts of New South Wales as well.

Any sightings of Australian plague locusts should be reported to the Rural Lands Protection Board or the Department of Primary Industries, so that populations can be monitored and timely advice on control can be issued.

Australian plague locusts can cause severe damage to pastures and a range of field crops if they are not controlled. To prevent the build up of large populations, locusts need to be controlled during their early stages as ‘hoppers’ when they are unable to fly. Once locusts reach the adult stage, controlling them becomes difficult and expensive. Adults can move long distances very quickly and have been recorded travelling hundreds of kilometres in one night driven by wind. Several chemicals are available for controlling Australian plague locusts.

Australian plague locusts are readily distinguished from other locust species by the large dark spot present on the tip of each hindwing and red coloured shanks on their hindlegs. Adults are up to 40 mm long with a variable body colour of grey, brown or green. They are the most important pest species of locust in Australia due to the area infested and frequency of plagues.

Click here for images of the Australian plague locust.