Insect Infestation

Definition
Accordingly to the Integrated Research on Disaster Risk (IRDR) programme, insect infestation is classified as biological hazard and described as the pervasive influx, swarming and/or hatching of insects affecting humans, animals, crops, and perishable goods. Examples are locusts, plague and African Bees (IRDR).
Facts and figures
Insects are responsible for significant losses to the world's total crop production annually. Not all insects are pests but a small number are harmful to crops, livestock and humans. One major reason for the occurrence of these pests is the creation of man-manipulated habitats, with crops selected for their large size, high yield, nutritious value, and clustered in a confined area. This provides a highly conducive environment for herbivorous insects (FAO).
Further information
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Data Source
Noticias
SERVIR, a joint program between NASA and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has partnered with relief organizations and the United Nations, including the Desert Locust Information System of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), to produce maps that could explain locust behavior. The maps provide useful information on environmental conditions, such as soil moisture and vegetation, that can influence locust life cycles. By identifying the potential conditions under which the locusts hatch and grow, these maps can help governments keep track of the locust swarms, create forecasts of where and how much longer locust outbreaks might occur, as well as prevent other locust infestations from happening.
SERVIR, whose aim is to use satellite images to improve environmental policies in developing nations, has developed a map that shows the average soil moisture over eastern Africa from 14 to 20 January 2020, when the locust invasion... read more
The Pest Risk Information Service (PRISE), developed by the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International development charity (CABI), combines temperature and weather data provided by satellites with computer models to predict when pest outbreaks are most likely to occur, giving farmers time to prepare.
Farmers are currently notified of pest forecasts through an existing network of so-called "Plant Doctors" and receive WhatsApp messages with weekly warnings at county level during the growing season.
How does it work?
Satellites scanning the Earth can provide accurate land temperature information, which is one of the... read more