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Mass windborne migrations extend the range of the migratory locust in East China
Author(s) -
Tu Xiongbing,
Hu Gao,
Fu Xiaowei,
Zhang Yunhui,
Ma Jian,
Wang Yunping,
Gould Philip J. L.,
Du Guilin,
Su Hongtian,
Zhang Zehua,
Chapman Jason W.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
agricultural and forest entomology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.755
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1461-9563
pISSN - 1461-9555
DOI - 10.1111/afe.12359
Subject(s) - china , migratory locust , range (aeronautics) , locust , pest analysis , ecology , biology , outbreak , geography , invasive species , east asia , agroforestry , materials science , botany , archaeology , virology , composite material
Migratory insect pests pose a substantial challenge to global food security. These issues are particularly acute when pest incursions occur considerably beyond the expected range, through natural migration or human‐aided transport, because the lack of species‐specific control strategies and a potential absence of species‐specific natural enemies in the newly‐invaded area may lead to rapid establishment of a new pest. One such threat is posed by the Oriental migratory locust Locusta migratoria manilensis in China, which, historically, has been restricted to eastern China from the Bohai Gulf southwards, and now threatens to expand its range into the agriculturally important region of northeast China. We analyzed data from a recent outbreak of migratory locusts in Heilongjiang Province (extreme northeast China), > 700 km north of its current known range, and identified the source region, timing of arrival and probable migratory routes of this incursion. We further show that warming temperatures in this region will likely allow subsequent invasions to establish permanent populations in northeast China, and thus authorities in this important crop‐producing region of East Asia should be vigilant to the threat posed by this species.