# Red locust

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Species of grasshopper

For the American band, see [The Red Locusts](/source/The_Red_Locusts).

Red locust Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Clade: Pancrustacea Class: Insecta Order: Orthoptera Suborder: Caelifera Family: Acrididae Subfamily: Cyrtacanthacridinae Tribe: Cyrtacanthacridini Genus: Nomadacris Uvarov, 1923[1] Species: N. septemfasciata Binomial name Nomadacris septemfasciata (Audinet-Serville, 1883) outbreak areas invasion areas isolated high concentrations

The **red locust** (*Nomadacris septemfasciata*) is a large [grasshopper](/source/Grasshopper) species found in [sub-Saharan Africa](/source/Sub-Saharan_Africa). Its name refers to the colour of its hind wings. It is sometimes called the *criquet nomade* in [French](/source/French_language), due to its nomadic movements in the dry season. When it forms [swarms](/source/Swarm), it is described as a [locust](/source/Locust).

*Nomadacris septemfasciata* is in the family [Acrididae](/source/Acrididae) and is the [only member](/source/Monotypic_taxon) of the genus *Nomadacris*.[2] The genus *Nomadacris* was erected in 1923 by [Boris Uvarov](/source/Boris_Uvarov) and the species was named originally as *Acridium septemfasciatum* by [Jean Guillaume Audinet-Serville](/source/Jean_Guillaume_Audinet-Serville) in 1838.[1][2] It is placed in the subfamily [Cyrtacanthacridinae](/source/Cyrtacanthacridinae), the bird locusts.[2] Other species previously placed in *Nomadacris* are now considered part of the genus *[Patanga](/source/Patanga_(grasshopper))*.[2]

## Description

### Adults

The overall colour of adult insects is a mixture of light beige and brown. They have seven brown transverse bands on the [elytra](/source/Elytra), justifying the species name *septemfasciata*. The [pronotum](/source/Pronotum) has two brown lateral bands.

Males are 60–70 mm (2.4–2.8 in) long; females are 60–85 mm (2.4–3.3 in) long.

### Nymphs

Unlike adults, the colour of immature insects varies depending on their phase. When solitary, they can be green or brown; when in large numbers (gregarious), they are bright yellow and red-brown with black markings.

		- Hopper band in Iku-Katavi, Tanzania

		- Hoppers on wild sorghum stalk

## Ecology

Red locusts actively seek out moist environments such as seasonal [floodplains](/source/Floodplain). [Grains](/source/Grain) are their primary food source, so grassy lowlands are prime habitat. They also like spending time in trees and thus prefer some tree cover.

Red locusts are sedentary when ample shelter, perches, and food are available. In dry years, when the amount of suitable habitat is reduced, population densities increase. If the population density increases past a threshold, the locusts transform into their [gregarious phase](/source/Locust#Swarming_behavior), changing their behaviour and anatomy. When gregarious, red locusts keep together in large swarms and fly with the wind in daylight hours, looking for more food. The higher temperatures during daylight enable gregarious locusts to travel longer distances by flying longer and higher, aided by [thermal lift](/source/Thermal).[3] A swarm rarely moves more than 20–30 km in a day. In contrast, solitary locusts prefer to fly in the dark and do so alone.[4]

Compared to their solitary phase, gregarious red locusts also have:

- reduced lifespan

- more markings

- five [instar stages](/source/Instar) rather than six

- longer sexual maturation

- larger and heavier young, although they lay fewer eggs

Swarming females often lay eggs at night. Their young immediately behave gregariously and are capable of "hopping" hundreds of metres every day.

## Outbreaks

Outbreak areas have been identified in [Zambia](/source/Zambia), [Tanzania](/source/Tanzania), [Malawi](/source/Malawi), [Madagascar](/source/Madagascar), and [Réunion](/source/R%C3%A9union). In the [Sahel](/source/Sahel), the species is observed on a more incidental basis in [Cape Verde](/source/Cape_Verde), the central [Niger River](/source/Niger_River) delta in [Mali](/source/Mali), and around [Lake Chad](/source/Lake_Chad). Large swarms attacked the [KwaZulu-Natal](/source/KwaZulu-Natal) region which contributed to creating conditions which favoured the [1890s African rinderpest outbreak](/source/1890s_African_rinderpest_epizootic).[5] The last widespread plague occurred from 1930 to 1944, when almost all of southern Africa was invaded.

Hoppers killed by the fungus *[Metarhizium acridum](/source/Metarhizium_acridum)*

After unsuccessful efforts to control the locusts through environmental modifications, chemical agents are currently being used. A biological product based on an [entomopathogenic fungus](/source/Entomopathogenic_fungus), *[Metarhizium acridum](/source/Metarhizium_acridum)*, is now available (see [desert locust](/source/Desert_locust)). It has been successfully tested on both nymphs and adults of the red locust. However, over recent years, a new mechanism to control pests was created. The Integrated pest management (IPM) is a combination of environmentally friendly methods that together can be used effectively as a pest management strategy.[6]

## References

- ["Les criquets ravageurs"](http://locust.cirad.fr/principales_especes/nse_en.html). CIRAD - French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development. Retrieved 2008-11-06.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-uvarov1923_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-uvarov1923_1-1) [Uvarov BP (1923) "A revision of the Old World Cyrtacanthacrini (Orthoptera, Acrididae) – I. Introduction and key to genera." *Annals and Magazine of Natural History* (9) **vol. 11** 143](https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/107006#page/159/mode/1up)

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-osf_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-osf_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-osf_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-osf_2-3) Cigliano, M. M.; Braun, H.; Eades, D. C.; Otte, D. ["genus *Nomadacris* Uvarov, 1923"](http://orthoptera.speciesfile.org/Common/basic/Taxa.aspx?TaxonNameID=1112483). *orthoptera.speciesfile.org*. Orthoptera Species File. Retrieved 30 December 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Farrow, R.A. "Flight and Migration in Acridoids". *Biology of Grasshoppers*. John Wiley and Sons.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Chapman, R.F. (1959). "Observations On the Flight Activity of the Red Locust, Nomadacris Septemfasciata (Serville)". *Behaviour*. **14** (1): 300–334. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1163/156853959X00126](https://doi.org/10.1163%2F156853959X00126).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Ballard, Charles (1986). ["The Repercussions of Rinderpest: Cattle Plague and Peasant Decline in Colonial Natal"](https://dx.doi.org/10.2307/218974). *The International Journal of African Historical Studies*. **19** (3): 421–450. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/218974](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F218974). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0361-7882](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0361-7882). [JSTOR](/source/JSTOR_(identifier)) [218974](https://www.jstor.org/stable/218974).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Andiatsirevombola et al., 2016

Taxon identifiers Nomadacris septemfasciata Wikidata: Q3002690 Wikispecies: Nomadacris septemfasciata BOLD: 793675 CoL: 47NN7 EoL: 856840 EPPO: NOMASE GBIF: 1707143 iNaturalist: 678218 IRMNG: 11320930 ISC: 36481 NCBI: 1634087 Open Tree of Life: 3499569 Orthoptera Species File (old): 1112484 Orthoptera Species File (new): 819190 Xeno-canto: Nomadacris-septemfasciata Nomadacris Wikidata: Q14647212 Wikispecies: Nomadacris BOLD: 199442 CoL: 8NW2N EoL: 52182 EPPO: 1NOMAG GBIF: 1707142 iNaturalist: 642212 IRMNG: 1032804 NCBI: 274596 Open Tree of Life: 690547 Orthoptera Species File (old): 1112483

Authority control databases: National Israel

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Red locust](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_locust) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_locust?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.