Inventory Reveals Wide Edible Insects’ Biodiversity in Selected Territories of South-Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo

In response to growing food demand, edible insects are seen as a potential source to alleviate food insecurity. With its wide edible insects’ biodiversity, the Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots in Africa. This study aimed at giving a first insight on the inventory showing diversity, perception, consumption, availability, host plants, harvesting techniques and processing techniques of edible insects in South-Kivu, DRC. It recorded twenty-three edible insects belonging to nine families and five orders, some of which are consumed in the larval, adult, egg and pupa stages. Rhyncophorus phoenicis, Alphitobius diaperinus, Macrotermes subhylanus and Acheta domesticus were the most preferred edible insects in Fizi Territory, Ruspolia differens and Apis melifera larvae in Kabare Territory, Imbrasia oyemensis, Imbrasia epimethea, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Rhyncophorus phoenicis in Mwenga Territory, Ruspolia differens, Macrotermes subhylanus, Gryllotalpa africana, Nsike, Nomadacris septemfasciata and Apis melifera larvae in Walungu Territory. R. differens, I. oyemensis, A. melifera larvae, G. africana and Nsike were preferred for their taste. A. domesticus, A. diaperinus and A. melifera larvae were abundant throughout the year, while the others were only available for 9 months or less per year. Numerous plants have been recorded as their hosts, including plants used for food and income. Harvesting strategies and period, processing methods and preservation techniques depend on insect species, local knowledge and practices. These findings suggest similar and thoroughly studies on entomophagy across the country, while encouraging the rearing of edible insects to address the high existing demand and environmental need.

Application of Remote Sensing Data for Locust Research and Management—A Review

Recently, locust outbreaks around the world have destroyed agricultural and natural vegetation and caused massive damage endangering food security. Unusual heavy rainfalls in habitats of the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) and lack of monitoring due to political conflicts or inaccessibility of those habitats lead to massive desert locust outbreaks and swarms migrating over the Arabian Peninsula, East Africa, India and Pakistan. At the same time, swarms of the Moroccan locust (Dociostaurus maroccanus) in some Central Asian countries and swarms of the Italian locust (Calliptamus italicus) in Russia and China destroyed crops despite developed and ongoing monitoring and control measurements. These recent events underline that the risk and damage caused by locust pests is as present as ever and affects 100 million of human lives despite technical progress in locust monitoring, prediction and control approaches. Remote sensing has become one of the most important data sources in locust management. Since the 1980s, remote sensing data and applications have accompanied many locust management activities and contributed to an improved and more effective control of locust outbreaks and plagues. Recently, open-access remote sensing data archives as well as progress in cloud computing provide unprecedented opportunity for remote sensing-based locust management and research. Additionally, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems bring up new prospects for a more effective and faster locust control. Nevertheless, the full capacity of available remote sensing applications and possibilities have not been exploited yet. This review paper provides a comprehensive and quantitative overview of international research articles focusing on remote sensing application for locust management and research. We reviewed 110 articles published over the last four decades, and categorized them into different aspects and main research topics to summarize achievements and gaps for further research and application development. The results reveal a strong focus on three species—the desert locust, the migratory locust (Locusta migratoria), and the Australian plague locust (Chortoicetes terminifera)—and corresponding regions of interest. There is still a lack of international studies for other pest species such as the Italian locust, the Moroccan locust, the Central American locust (Schistocerca piceifrons), the South American locust (Schistocerca cancellata), the brown locust (Locustana pardalina) and the red locust (Nomadacris septemfasciata). In terms of applied sensors, most studies utilized Advanced Very-High-Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR), Satellite Pour l’Observation de la Terre VEGETATION (SPOT-VGT), Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) as well as Landsat data focusing mainly on vegetation monitoring or land cover mapping. Application of geomorphological metrics as well as radar-based soil moisture data is comparably rare despite previous acknowledgement of their importance for locust outbreaks. Despite great advance and usage of available remote sensing resources, we identify several gaps and potential for future research to further improve the understanding and capacities of the use of remote sensing in supporting locust outbreak- research and management.

Acridid ecology in the sugarcane agro-ecosystem in the Zululand region of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Grasshoppers and locusts are well known crop and pasture pests throughout the world. Periodically they cause extensive damage to large areas of crops and grazing lands, which often exacerbate food shortage issues in many countries. In South Africa, acridid outbreaks rarely reach economic proportions, but in sugarcane plantations, localized outbreaks of native acridid species have been reported for the last eight years with increasing frequency and intensity in certain areas. This study was undertaken from May 2012 to May 2013 to identify the economically important acridid species in the sugarcane agroecosystem in these outbreak areas, to monitor seasonal activity patterns, to assess sampling methods, and to determine the pest status of the major species through damage ratings. Five acridid species of particular importance were identified: Nomadacris septemfasciata (Serville), Petamella prosternalis (Karny), Ornithacris cyanea (Stoll), Cataloipus zuluensis Sjötedt, and Cyrtacanthacris aeruginosa (Stoll). All species are univoltine. Petamella prosternalis was the most abundant species and exhibited a winter egg diapause, while N. septemfasciata, the second most abundant species, exhibited a winter reproductive diapause. Petamella prosternalis and N. septemfasciata were significantly correlated with the damage-rating index, suggesting that these two species were responsible for most of the feeding damage found on sugarcane. This study, for the first time, identified the acridid species complex causing damage to sugarcane in the Zululand area of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, and documented their population characteristics and related damage. These data are important information on which to base sound integrated pest management strategies.

Phase-Dependent Color Polyphenism in Field Populations of Red Locust Nymphs (Nomadacris septemfasciataServ.) in Madagascar

Pigmentation of the Red locust hopper,Nomadacris septemfasciataServ., was studied in natural conditions in Madagascar in relation to population density. More than one thousand hoppers were collected and described according to a semiquantitative method. A typology is proposed, strictly reflecting the increase in population densities. This correctly translated the progressive evolution of a solitary state into a gregarious state, while passing through several intermediate transiens stages. According to their density, hopper populations consist of a mixture, in various proportions, of several pigment types. The gregarization threshold is estimated at 100,000 hoppers/ha. A slight black spot on the hind femur is the first sign of gregarization. These results should improve the reliability of the information collected by the Malagasy National locust centre when surveying this major pest. They question the rapidity of the gregarization process in natural conditions as well as the stimuli involved.