GRASSHOPPER LEGIONS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 3 January 1925, Page 16

GRASSHOPPER LEGIONS.

DEVASTATE FARMS. AN AUSTRALIAN PEST. SYDNEY, Dec. 10. Legions of grasshoppers are just mow causing much loss and anger to. farmers in some part of the west of New South Wales. These, like the peiiodic visitations of caterpillars and locusts, mow down great aieas of green crops, and appear in such vast numbers that it is almost impossible to contend against them. During the past week countless millions of grasshoppers hav e been hard at work around the western town of Wellington. They came from the north-west in one perfect _ formation, and darkened the sky, whilst the rustling of their wings was like the noise of the wind amongst a forest of trees. On they came, and soon the roads and vacant allotments were one living mass of creeping and hopping insects. All the afternoon of tlieir first appearance they came from out of the north-west, flying in the one direction — due south. At nightfall they settled to rest on green patches of grass or on young crops of maize, lucerne,.Sudan grass, etc., where they remained until mid-day on the following day, when they again took wing and made south. During the afternoon there were no winged pests about, but the next morning the next swarm came along, flying in the same direction, and devouring all young green stuff. These arrivals have continued daily since. One wonders where they will all end their long pilgrimage, for they appear to lie making for districts . where the herbage is still green down about Molong, where they will be in millions of millions.

Ij> Wellington a 25-acre crop of Sudan grass, the property of a dairyman named Reinberger, was levelled to the ground within half an hour,’ whilst another small paddock of the same .grass disappeared in a much less period of time. No one realises what amount of damage the pest can do within so short a space of time except those who ride about a. devastated region and see the havoc that has been caused. The insects are seen inches deep in places, devouring crops as hard as they can go. The hoppers fly in one solid formation, and can be seen in the air as far as the eye can* see. The swarm extended miles wide. Day after day they are. flying southward, and their flight averages five miles a day. The pest had been further west for a week, and is now making its way to the south and south-western areas. Fortunately the wheat crops were too far advanced for the pest to do any damage, but had the plague comb along six weeks earlier hardly a grain of wheat would have been harvested in the district over which the hoppers passed. As. it is one crop still in the green stage had all the leaf paten, leaving, only the ear standing on bare stalks. This season has also seen a big increase in caterpillar and cut-worm pests',, which did much damage to early wheat crops. The present plague of grasshoppers is the worst that lias been seen in the west for many years, and there are grave fears that there may be a bigger plague next year, which will be spread over a much wider area owing to the females laying their eggs in the ground as they travel through different districts, so farmers will have to be prepared for a bigger and much more formidable visitation.