Locust Swarms in Africa Are Worst in Decades 非洲遭受數(shù)十年來最嚴(yán)重蝗災(zāi)

本·柯蒂斯 喬斯法特·卡西雷 卡拉·安娜

The hum of millions of locusts on the move is broken by the screams of farmers and the clanging of pots and pans. But their noise-making does little to stop the voracious insects from feasting on their crops in this rural community.

The worst outbreak of desert locusts in Kenya in 70 years has seen hundreds of millions of the bugs swarm into the East African nation from Somalia and Ethiopia. Those two countries have not had an infestation like this in a quarter-century， destroying farmland and threatening an already vulnerable region with devastating hunger.

“Even cows are wondering what is happening，” said Ndunda Makanga， who spent hours Friday trying to chase the locusts from his farm. “Corn， sorghum， cowpeas， they have eaten everything.”

When rains arrive in March and bring new vegetation across much of the region， the numbers of the fast-breeding locusts could grow 500 times before drier weather in June curbs their spread， the United Nations says.

“We must act immediately，” said David Phiri of the U.N. Food and Agricultural Organization， as donors huddled in Kenyas capital， Nairobi， a three-hour drive away.

About $70 million is needed to step up aerial pesticide spraying， the only effective way to combat them， the U.N. says. That wont be easy， especially in Somalia， where parts of the country are in the grip of the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab extremist group.

The rose-colored locusts turn whole trees pink， clinging to branches like quivering ornaments before taking off in hungry， rustling clouds.

Astonished by the finger-length insects， children dash here and there， waving blankets or plucking at branches to shake the locusts free. One woman， Kanini Ndunda， batted at them with a shovel.

Even a small swarm of the insects can consume enough food for 35，000 people in a single day， said Jens Laerke of the U.N. humanitarian office in Geneva.

Farmers are afraid to let their cattle out for grazing， and their crops of millet， sorghum and maize are vulnerable， but there is little they can do.

About 70，000 hectares （172，973 acres） of land in Kenya are already infested.

“This one， ai！ This is huge，” said Kipkoech Tale， a migratory pest control specialist with the agriculture ministry. “Im talking about over 20 swarms that we have sprayed. We still have more. And more are coming.”

A single swarm can contain up to 150 million locusts per square kilometer of farmland， regional authorities say.

One especially large swarm in northeastern Kenya measured 60 kilometers long by 40 kilometers wide （37 miles long by 25 miles wide）.

Kenya needs more spraying equipment to supplement the four planes now flying， Tale said. Ethiopia also has four.

They also need a steady supply of pesticides， said Francis Kitoo， deputy director of agriculture in southeastern Kenyas Kitui county.

“The locals are really scared because they can consume everything，” Kitoo said. “Ive never seen such a big number.”

The locusts eat the fodder for animals， a crucial source of livelihood for families who now worry how they will pay for expenses like school fees， he said.

His own concern about the locusts？

“They will lay eggs and start another generation，” he said.

A changing climate has contributed to “exceptional” breeding conditions， said Nairobi-based climate scientist Abubakr Salih Babiker.

Migrating with the wind， the locusts can cover up to 150 kilometers （93 miles） in a single day. They look like tiny aircraft lazily crisscrossing the sky.

They are now heading toward Uganda and fragile South Sudan， where almost half the country faces hunger as it emerges from civil war. Uganda has not had such an outbreak since the 1960s and is already on alert.

The locusts also are moving steadily toward Ethiopias Rift Valley， the breadbasket for Africas second-most populous country， the U.N. says.

“The situation is very bad but farmers are fighting it in the traditional way，” said Buni Orissa， a resident of Ethiopias Sidama region. “The locusts love cabbage and beans. This may threaten the shaky food security in the region.”

Even before this outbreak， nearly 20 million people faced high levels of food insecurity across the East African region long challenged by periodic droughts and floods.

As exasperated farmers look for more help in fighting one of historys most persistent pests， the FAOs Locust Watch offers little consolation.

“Although giant nets， flamethrowers， lasers and huge vacuums have been proposed in the past， these are not in use for locust control，” the U.N. agency says. “People and birds often eat locusts but usually not enough to significantly reduce population levels over large areas.”

Still， it offered recipes. One suggested seasoning in Uganda is chopped onion and curry powder. Then fry.

數(shù)百萬蝗蟲飛過，嗡嗡作響——農(nóng)民大聲喊叫，哐哐敲打鍋盆，攪亂了那片轟鳴。他們想制造噪音阻止貪吃的蝗蟲吞噬這片農(nóng)地莊稼，但收效甚微。

肯尼亞暴發(fā)了70年來最嚴(yán)重的沙漠蝗災(zāi)，數(shù)億只蝗蟲從索馬里和埃塞俄比亞涌入這個東非國家。而那兩個國家已有25年沒有出現(xiàn)過這樣的蟲害：蝗蟲毀壞了農(nóng)田，讓這個本已罹患饑荒的地區(qū)雪上加霜。

恩丹達(dá)·馬坎加說：“就連牛都在疑惑到底發(fā)生了什么。玉米、高粱、豇豆，蝗蟲吃光了一切?！敝芪?，他花了好幾個鐘頭想把自家田里的蝗蟲趕走。

聯(lián)合國稱，隨著3月雨季到來，該地區(qū)很多地方會長出新的植被，蝗蟲將會迅速繁殖，6月前，數(shù)量可能會增長500倍。6月進(jìn)入旱季，會抑制蝗災(zāi)蔓延。

當(dāng)捐助機(jī)構(gòu)齊聚肯尼亞首都內(nèi)羅畢時，聯(lián)合國糧農(nóng)組織的戴維·菲里表示：“我們必須立即采取行動?！眱?nèi)羅畢距離重災(zāi)區(qū)有三小時的車程。

聯(lián)合國稱，唯一有效的戰(zhàn)“蝗”之術(shù)是加快在空中噴灑殺蟲劑，而這需要投入約7000萬美元。這并不容易，尤其在索馬里，因?yàn)樵搰糠值貐^(qū)處于與基地組織有關(guān)聯(lián)的極端組織青年黨的控制中。

玫瑰色的蝗蟲使整棵整棵的樹變成粉紅色，它們緊緊貼在樹枝上，像微微顫動的裝飾品，直到饑餓覓食時整群飛起，沙沙作響，如同移動的云朵。

看到這些手指長的蝗蟲，孩子們都大驚。他們四處奔跑，揮舞毯子或搖晃樹枝把蝗蟲趕走。一個叫卡尼尼·恩丹達(dá)的女子用鏟子拍打蝗蟲。

聯(lián)合國駐日內(nèi)瓦人道主義事務(wù)協(xié)調(diào)辦公室的延斯·拉爾克說，即使一小群蝗蟲，一天也能吃掉3.5萬人的口糧。

農(nóng)民不敢出去放牛，種的小米、高粱和玉米等莊稼都經(jīng)不起侵襲，但他們也無能為力。

在肯尼亞，約有7萬公頃（172973英畝）的土地已經(jīng)受到侵害。

“這一次，哎！這次蝗災(zāi)規(guī)模巨大?！鞭r(nóng)業(yè)部的遷徙害蟲控制專家基普科埃奇·塔萊說，“我是說我們已經(jīng)對20多個蝗蟲群噴灑了農(nóng)藥，可仍有很多要處理。而且，還有更多正在涌來?！?/p>

地方當(dāng)局稱，一個蝗蟲群在每平方公里農(nóng)田里的蝗蟲可能多達(dá)1.5億只。

肯尼亞東北部有一個特別大的蝗蟲群，長60公里（37英里），寬40公里（25英里）。

塔萊說，肯尼亞目前有4架飛機(jī)在執(zhí)行滅蝗任務(wù)，需要補(bǔ)充更多的噴灑設(shè)備。埃塞俄比亞也有4架飛機(jī)參與滅蝗。

肯尼亞東南部的基圖伊縣農(nóng)業(yè)局副局長弗朗西斯·基圖說，他們還需要持續(xù)穩(wěn)定的殺蟲劑供應(yīng)。

“當(dāng)?shù)厝苏娴暮芎ε?，因?yàn)榛认x能吃光一切?！被鶊D說，“我從未見過這么多的蝗蟲。”

他說，蝗蟲吃家畜飼料，而家畜是家家戶戶生計的重要來源，現(xiàn)在民眾都在擔(dān)心如何支付各種費(fèi)用，包括孩子的學(xué)費(fèi)。

關(guān)于蝗蟲，他本人擔(dān)憂什么呢？

他說：“它們會產(chǎn)卵，繁殖下一代。”

內(nèi)羅畢的氣候?qū)W家阿布巴克爾·薩利赫·巴比克爾說，不斷變化的氣候?yàn)榛认x“異常迅速的”繁殖起到了推波助瀾的作用。

蝗蟲隨風(fēng)遷移，一天最多可以飛行150公里（93英里）。它們看上去像是一架架微型飛機(jī)，懶散地漫天飛舞。

現(xiàn)在，蝗蟲正前往烏干達(dá)和脆弱的南蘇丹——這個國家在內(nèi)戰(zhàn)后幾乎一半人口面臨著饑荒。烏干達(dá)自1960年代以來還未發(fā)生過此類災(zāi)害，但目前已處于戒備狀態(tài)。

聯(lián)合國稱，蝗蟲也正向埃塞俄比亞境內(nèi)的東非大裂谷穩(wěn)步挺進(jìn)，那里是非洲第二人口大國的糧倉。

埃塞俄比亞錫達(dá)馬地區(qū)的居民布尼·奧里薩說：“這里的情況非常糟糕，但農(nóng)民們還在用傳統(tǒng)方式對抗蝗蟲?；认x喜歡吃卷心菜和豆科植物。這可能威脅到我們這里脆弱的糧食安全。”

東非地區(qū)長期以來備受周期性干旱和洪災(zāi)之苦，就在此次蝗災(zāi)暴發(fā)前，已有近2000萬人面臨嚴(yán)重的糧食安全問題。

蝗蟲是有史以來最頑固的害蟲之一。為抗擊蝗蟲，煩惱不已的農(nóng)民要尋求更多幫助，但聯(lián)合國糧農(nóng)組織的“蝗蟲觀察”服務(wù)網(wǎng)站沒能提供多少安慰。

聯(lián)合國糧農(nóng)組織稱：“過去有人建議用巨型網(wǎng)、火焰噴射器、激光和巨型真空吸塵器，但這些都不適合用于蝗蟲防控。人類和鳥類經(jīng)常吃蝗蟲，但這通常不足以大面積顯著減少蝗蟲數(shù)量?！?/p>

盡管如此，糧農(nóng)組織還是提供了一些蝗蟲食譜。在烏干達(dá)，有一種推薦吃法：用切碎的洋蔥拌上咖喱粉調(diào)味，然后和蝗蟲一起炒著吃。? ? ? ? ? ? ? □

（譯者為“《英語世界》杯”翻譯大賽獲獎?wù)撸?/p>