Desert Locust – Billasimer

Whilst birding a deep woodland valley near Billasimer I flushed a Desert Locust Schistocerca gregariasituation off the main track and onto a dry stone wall, where it was well camouflaged. The Desert Locust can form plagues and threaten agricultural production in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, something it has done for centuries. The desert locust is potentially the most dangerous of the locust pests because of the ability of it to form swarms and to fly rapidly across great distances. There has not, however, been any large swarms I know of in recent years.