Abstract:
The red locust (Nomadacris septemfasciata Serville) is one of the most devastating migratory
pests of crops in several African countries south of the equator. It originates from small
areas characterised by a mosaic of tall and short grasses, known as outbreak areas. The
females of this species prefer to lay eggs in clay soils, indicating that the floristic composition
and soil characteristics influence the upsurges of red locust. Limited information exists on
the abundance and distribution of this important habitat along the country. Therefore, the
objective of this study was to characterise the plant community of Lake Chilua and Chiuta
plains as outbreak areas of red locust, and to use the obtained data and soil type to identify
other potential red locust outbreak areas in Mozambique. A total of 52 plots of 32 m x 32 m
and 624 sub-plots of 1 m2 were mapped out and sampled. In the study area, 83 species
were found and these taxonomically represented 55 genera and 21 families. The most
abundant and frequent species were Cyperus sp. (44.39%), Sesbania sesban (28.21%),
Cynodon nlemfuensis (20.81%), Sporobolus sp. (19.71), Ipomoea sp. (19.23%),
Hyparrhenia sp. (15.06%), Leersia hexandra (14.58%), Sacciolepis sp. (11.86%), Typha
sp. (6.73%) and Panicum dregeanum (6.41%). According to soil type and vegetation (clay
and flood plain grassland) observed in the study area, there is likelihood of outbreaks in all
provinces of Mozambique. However, Sofala, Zambezia, Niassa and Maputo showed areas
with high risk of red locust outbreaks.
La sauterelle rouge (Nomadacris septemfasciata Serville) est l’un des ravageurs migratoire
les plus dévastateurs des cultures dans plusieurs pays africains au sud de l’équateur. Il
provient de petites zones caractérisées par une mosaïque d’herbes hautes et courtes, appelées
zones de foyers. Les femelles de cette espèce préfèrent pondre dans les sols argileux, ce
qui indique que la composition floristique et les caractéristiques du sol influent sur les
recrudescences des sauterelles nomades. Il existe peu d’informations sur l’abondance et la
distribution de cet important environnement le long du pays. Par conséquent, l’objectif de
cette étude était de caractériser la communauté végétale du lac Chilua et des plaines de
Chiuta plaines comme étant les zones d’éruption des sauterelles rouge, et d’utiliser les données
obtenues et le type de sol pour identifier d’autres zones de foyers potentiels d’éruption de
Language:
English
Date of publication:
2014
Country:
Region Focus:
Southern Africa
University/affiliation:
Collection:
RUFORUM Conferences and Workshops
Agris Subject Categories:
Additional keywords:
Licence conditions:
Open Access
Access restriction:
Form:
Printed resource
Publisher:
ISSN:
E_ISSN:
Edition:
Extent:
247 - 248
