‘File 16/37A-I Anti-Locust Measures’ [‎194r] (387/900)

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pEiV't/i cular Hy
pe iscn to-
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/ I r I^LE- -e:'-iT ~"I fLOCUST IT r IT o
IToton on locunt c^nppignc in opnrGoly inhabited
countriooo
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St aao at r Jh ich locuotwa can- bo attaaheetc
ro practical larpo ac-lo nothod.of dealing vith adult
locuato has yet been discovered o If egg dev raits c^.n be
located in tine, and if labour in plentiful and che^p, the
eggs can be ploughed or dug upo - ,
As a rule 5 hovievcr, ’ the only st^ge against <vhich a large
scr le canpaign Is practicable an sparsely inhabited countries
is the hopper stage*
Ilethcds of kil l ing' honn ers o
Hoppers c A n. be r J- by the old methods of beating
pith branches 9 burying in holes- or burning* Such methods ^.re
usually inefficient and they require much labour» Trenching
can be efficient if zinc sheets are available, but this
method also necessitates many labourers.
Spraying with crude oil is used Phere this material c^.n
be obtained verv che'ply, but it is heavy to.transport
compared with poison, bait which is described belovj 0 Th°t is
to say one kilogram of poison bait when properly used will
kill many more hoppers than one kilogram of c-rudo oil ^nd ag
transport is a. primary consider^.tidh 9 '‘in locust c^mp^igns,
especially in ^ar tine, the poison bait method is preferable.
T he Poisn 3" i t r othod . The bait consists of sc ic absorbent
m tori ' 1 !• such ^s iheat. or maize bran, or other similar
agricultural product which is easily obtained locally, mixed
>ith about 1 7o. of a poison, usually Sodium ArssonitG.
pr cp : . rtion. :oI^abQcrbdnt sh: uId never o.xc oed 2 . % under any
c irc ur str nces V .
The bait is sometimes prep'red beforehand and then dried
"'nd stored, in which case it only requires the addition of
water to. make it ready for use. Alternatively it c~n be made
ne^r the scene of operations as and when it is required.
Dry prepared.bait must be moistened before use. A cle''h
four gallon petrol bin is a suitable container in which to
mix the bait and a ter. About four inches of later in the
bottom of thb 'tin i.'s sufficient. The-.dry bait is then added
to within a few inches of the top of the tin ^nd the whole
lot is kneaded with ;the h^.nds until^it^ ts unifoir^lv moist, but
not sloppyw Vegetable 1 oil such ns , s . lrlsir . 1 oil, cotton seed cil
etc, should be rubbed into the hands and forearns before
mixing or .using bait in order to protect the skin from thc-
pcisen. ;
U sing Poi so n -3 ' it. a • ••
Bait may be; used against hoppers- of any age. For a d^y
or so‘after they emerge from the ground, ycung hoppers do not
march, but thev: sit in black clusters Tike £ j Ll ' es / Then they
are only a few hours old they fi.ll:start to feed and sc this
is the tine to ^oison them. The 'operator, - with his tin of
poison ba it $ should approach to , i-ithin 3 metros of the band.
He sh uld then takdea handful of bait, holding it loo sely in
his hand, and thrc’v it:hard among the hoppers so that the b^it
-falls to the ground as scattered -particles ;hich only slightly
alter the Tcclour of.'the :ground. It-is essential that the bait
should 'be ‘spread t hinly because then- the hoppers will ca.t
nearly all the bait and any that may be left will ouickly dim r
up and mix with the soil thus .becoming unattractive to animals.
Thickly spread lumps bait nre, on the ether hand, mast
dangerous to aninals. In.the ca so of young hoppers 10 handfuls
of bait should suffice to-kill hoppers covering about 5
snu- re metres'. P eople a T;‘ ys tond tc_ use - too muth_ b ait , this
must be discour~ged. • "Ha' T ing thrown the bait, the operat- rs
sh-uld go and deal :>ith;tho next.lot of hoppers.
Then hoppers are marching the method is- to spread a belt
of bait in front of the; band and across their line of march.
The direction cf march must''first be noted, but the opera tr
must n t go sc near as to-frighten the hoppers a.nd cause them
to_ eft'’age-their dir ec tif n. The bigger -hoopers aroma re easily
frightened than the. smaller ones and the' r also fc rm bigger