| Submit your comments on this article |
| Down Under |
| Locusts swarm across Australia |
| 2004-03-16 |
| Signs and portents: A plague of locusts that has devastated crops in the Australian outback has begun migrating south. Heavy rains that ended a long drought in north-eastern Australia has provided ideal breeding conditions for the bugs. Officials said the swarms that appeared in remote parts of Queensland had moved to more built-up New South Wales. Until the weekend, locust fighters thought they had won the battle over Australia’s worst locust outbreak since December 2000. More than 200,000 hectares (494,000 acres) have been sprayed in a bid to contain the plague. But the heavy rainfalls that ended the drought last month rendered the insecticides virtually useless. "Over the last week, substantial redistribution of adult locusts have occurred with movements into northern New South Wales," said the Australian Plague Locust Commission. New South Wales farmer Joe Davis, who has already lost crops to the locusts, said he had been warned to expect the worst. "In a few days, we will see locusts that will just black the sun out," he told ABC television. "There won’t be a green thing, they’ll even eat the clothes off the washing line." Drought - check. Locusts - check. Sun blotted out...excuse me while I check the supplies in my bunker. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #14 OP: see http://rantburg.com/poparticle.asp?HC=&D=9/28/2003&ID=19181 |
| Posted by: mojo 2004-3-16 6:32:07 PM |
| #13 Just spent some time talking with a friend of mine who works for a local chip manufacturer. He clued me to something I wasn't aware of - you can kill locusts with sound. Remember those "sound weapons" the Marines were going to deploy to Iraq? According to Joe, you can kill locusts with something similar to that. Tune it to the right frequency, and it turns the juices in their digestive tract to steam. Someone in Australia needs to start experimenting... like ten years ago! |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2004-3-16 6:25:03 PM |
| #12 M4D ever the kind hearted poster. AntiWar will sell you down the river in a heartbeat. BTW Chainney hiding on the new planet. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-3-16 4:40:49 PM |
| #11 Oh, it's NOT another story about Muslim immigrants. |
| Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy 2004-3-16 2:26:37 PM |
| #10 Arright, mates, who fergot ta go to Church on Sunday???? |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2004-3-16 1:28:22 PM |
| #9 We in DC are expecting a bumper crop of 17-year cicadas this spring... |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2004-3-16 1:27:44 PM |
| #8 i hope antiwar remeber to get her laundry. they should not put poisin everywere in a panic as that can damage envirement. croc hunter will probly make show about locus purdy soon. |
| Posted by: muck4doo 2004-3-16 11:57:31 AM |
| #7 perhaps binny will put out a new apocalyps trailer saying the locusts are the new weapon of 'Islam'. Can't we Geneticlly modify locusts to be made out of pork and thenrelease them so they can swarm binny and his friends in Pakiland |
| Posted by: Jon Shep U.K 2004-3-16 11:49:53 AM |
| #6 locusts - Why do they hate us? |
| Posted by: .com 2004-3-16 11:35:25 AM |
| #5 You think the locusts are bad... you just wait for the B-36 seagulls that are on the way. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-3-16 10:45:14 AM |
| #4 It's Bush's fault. |
| Posted by: Matt 2004-3-16 10:14:38 AM |
| #3 My understanding is that the problem with using insecticides on locusts is that they quickly build up resistance to anything used on them and so become that much stronger. And it messes up our food supplies with residual pesticides. Too bad the Aussies can't find a way to catch them, dip them in chocolate or Thai spices or whatever, and package and sell them to those who enjoy such "delectable" crunchables. Little bags of bug chips. |
| Posted by: ex-lib 2004-3-16 10:07:47 AM |
| #2 In Thailand they are lunch. Seriously locusts are just a resource we havn't yet exploited. On a number of occasions I have driven through the bush in Western Australia and the locusts are so thick that after five minutes you have to stop and clean your windshield because it is completely obscured by dead locusts. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2004-3-16 9:53:28 AM |
| #1 wow sounds awesome,a plague of biblical proportions.hope they go to russia to eat |
| Posted by: Jon Shep U.K 2004-3-16 9:39:08 AM |