An upsurge of oriental migratory locusts in north China and the Yangtze River areas has spiraled into a plague that is devastating crops.

The infestation has affected 970,000 hectares of farmland in 10 provinces and municipalities, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.

Grasshoppers have attacked more than 13.3 million hectares of grassland, half of it in Inner Mongolia.

Grasshoppers do not migrate and are less harmful than locusts.

Plant protection departments have reportedly brought the infestation under control on 482,000 hectares of farmland and more resources are on the way, including insecticides, equipment and manpower.

So far, the central government has spent 5 million yuan (US$604,500) and has earmarked 50 million yuan (US$6 million) more.

A plague of locusts is a large population present in at least two major regions. Locusts are normally lone creatures, but when their numbers boom they modify their behavior and group together. Migratory locusts are more harmful than nonmigratory ones.

Hebei Province, one of the spots most seriously hit, is being sprayed with insecticide using planes as well as ground units to kill the swarms.

To minimize environmental damage, the ministry tried to fight the plague using biological methods.

In late May, 6.7 million hectares were set up as sample field in which more environmentally friendly biopesticides have been used.

Other environmentally sound alternatives, like improvements in planting the plague area and taking the advantage of natural enemies, were also used on 8 million hectares of sample areas.

Earlier, Xinhua News Agency reported that China’s first airport for locust control started operation on June 17 in east China’s Shandong Province.

In another development, the State Forestry Administration said that forest pests are causing great losses to China, attacking 8.7 million hectares so far this year.

Economic losses are currently estimated at 100 billion yuan (US$12 billion) and there is no end in sight.

The pest attack is more serious and diversified in south China than in the north and northeast.

Growing foreign trade has brought with it a growing number of alien invasive species. A warm and dry climate and the structure of the forests, which have large proportions of young-trees, also help the pests develop.

A pest that attacked south China’s Shankou Mangrove Reserve at the end of May destroyed 66.7 hectares of in two weeks. Mangrove expert Fan Hangqing said the destruction, near the city of Fangchenggang on the Sino-Vietnam border, was caused by a type of caterpillar.

He attributed the pest’s arrival to constantly expanding offshore aquatic breeding.

Warning that such negative impacts are slow but cumulative, Fan said the pest attack is a sign of a destroyed mangrove ecosystem.

(China Daily June 24, 2004)