When locusts gather in large numbers, their natural enemies don't like to eat locusts, which is why. At this time, not only animals but also people can't eat locusts.
Zhang Zhigang said: "Animal gathering is a common natural phenomenon. After some animals gather, the individual shape and group color will change, which is obviously born to resist natural enemies. In other words, group animals may have the ability to defend against natural enemies that individuals and scattered animals do not have, and this important research progress of the Chinese Academy of Sciences scientifically explains this ability of locusts. "
"A few drops of rain can benefit people, but people can't enjoy it when the flood strikes. Logically speaking, locusts and locust plagues are also here. " Zhang Zhigang said, "Any major breakthrough in natural research is, in the final analysis, to remind human beings how to live in harmony with nature better; When the plague of locusts strikes, we should be less absurd and delusional, more popular science, and always maintain awe of nature. "
Disaster species
The main species causing locust plague is locusts. Locust belongs to Arthropoda, Insecta, Orthoptera and Acridoidea. Its body is generally green or yellow-brown, with chewing mouthparts and large hind feet, which is suitable for jumping and incomplete metamorphosis. Its larvae are called "cockroaches" and mainly feed on Gramineae. There are about 654.38 million+species in the world, and there are more than 300 species in China, such as flying.
When a certain part of the locust's hind leg is touched, it will change its habit of living alone and become fond of living in groups. Locusts usually prefer to live alone, with limited harm. However, they sometimes change their habits, like to live in groups, and eventually gather in large numbers and migrate collectively, forming a formidable locust plague, which has caused great damage to agriculture.
Scientists at Oxford University say that they have experimented with desert locusts living alone and repeatedly touched many parts of their bodies to see if there are some tactile factors that make them change their habits. It was found that when a certain part of the locust's hind legs was stimulated, they would suddenly live in groups, but touching other parts of the body, such as tentacles, mouth or abdomen, would not have this effect.
Scientists believe that the occasional gathering of locusts in the natural environment may lead them to change their habits and start to live in groups, and their members will increase in large numbers in the same way, thus forming a locust plague. If we can find out which chemical signals stimulate the nervous system of locusts to change their behavior, it is possible to develop new pesticides to prevent locusts from gathering.
Refer to the above?
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Baidu encyclopedia-locust plague