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An irresistible scent makes locusts swarm, study finds:
On its own, a locust is fairly harmless. But so-called solitary locusts can undergo a metamorphosis, changing colour and joining together with millions of others in catastrophic clouds that strip fields.
So what prompts locusts to transform from solitary to "gregarious"?
A study published Wednesday in the journal Nature reveals the secret lies in a pheromone.
Almost like an irresistible perfume, the chemical compound is emitted by locusts when they find themselves in proximity to just a few others of their kind.
The chemical attracts other locusts, who join the group and also begin emitting the scent, creating a feedback loop that results in enormous swarms.
The discovery offers several tantalizing possibilities, including genetically engineering locusts without the receptors that detect the swarming pheromone, or weaponising the pheromone to attract and trap the insects.
[...] It focused on the migratory locust, the most widely distributed species of the insect, and examined several compounds produced by the bug.
It found that one in particular—4-vinylanisole, or 4VA—appeared to attract locusts when emitted, and that the more locusts flocked together, the more 4VA they emitted.
Journal Reference:
Xiaojiao Guo, Qiaoqiao Yu, Dafeng Chen, et al. 4-Vinylanisole is an aggregation pheromone in locusts [$], Nature (DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2610-4)
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(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 14 2020, @12:27AM (2 children)
But first thing first. Figure out a way to capture and eat'em, turn it into animal feed, etc.
Turn crisis into opportunity - the regions typically affected by locust swarms often suffer from famine. And maybe it's the famine that drive them buffers into swarms.
Turn a pestilence into a feast. We humans are pretty good at driving species into extinction. Reducing species population should be no problem.
(Score: 2) by crb3 on Friday August 14 2020, @04:48AM (1 child)
Attach an atomizer of the attractant to a wood chipper set on cruise; come back once a day to empty the holding tank into cannisters of what can be, after suitable treatment, animal feed.
Too bad you can't choose where to site the harvester; I'm sure there're places in the American South that would love to have all that kudzu devoured.
(Score: 2) by Bot on Saturday August 15 2020, @10:34AM
This is a neat idea, because the next move by nature is to select locusts that don't behave that way, so they will be naturally less harmful.
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