On the recent Swarming of Locusta migratorioides, R. & F.

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Abstract
The present paper attempts to summarise the information collected by the Imperial Institute of Entomology on the swarming of migratorioides in Africa.It is concluded that the outbreaks in West, Central and East Africa are all interrelated and probably originated in one or at most two permanent breeding-grounds.The area most suspected is the lake district of the middle Niger, where conditions seem suitable for the formation of the swarming phase. Lake Chad is probably a secondary rather than a permanent breeding-ground.It is indicated that the key to the problem of the cause of the original outbreak may be found in the study of recent variations in the water régime of the River Niger.Should these suppositions be substantiated, we are well on the way towards a solution of the problem. The ultimate control of the locusts depends not on control during the swarming periods, but upon preventing the swarming phase from developing in the permanent breeding-grounds.It is therefore important to check and augment the records of the early swarms in West Africa and more important still, to study the behaviour of the locust, its ecology, and the water régime in the suspected areas.In conclusion the author wishes to acknowledge the constant help and advice of Mr. B. P. Uvarov. His thanks are also due to Mr. H. B. Johnston for his permission to make use of his paper in manuscript.

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