Abstract
NATURAL populations of locusts are characterized by large fluctuations in numbers, accompanied by changes in morphology, colour and behaviour in both the nymphs (hoppers) and the adults. When numbers are high, the hoppers aggregate into bands containing from a few hundred to several thousand individuals. Similar gregarious hoppers can be produced in the laboratory by rearing several together in one cage1. There is much circumstantial evidence to suggest that, provided the total numbers are sufficient, the formation of hopper bands depends partly on a patchy physical environment, especially a vegetation mosaic, and partly on strong attractions between hoppers2,3.
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References
Faure, J. C., Bull. Ent. Res., 23, 293 (1932).
Ellis, P. E., and Ashall, C., Anti-Locust Bull. No. 25 (in the press).
Davey, J. T., and Johnston, H. B., Anti-Locust Bull. No. 22 (1956).
Ellis, P. E., Behaviour, 5, 225 (1953).
Ellis, P. E. (unpublished laboratory data).
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ELLIS, P. Differences in Social Aggregation in Two Species of Locust. Nature 178, 1007 (1956). https://doi.org/10.1038/1781007a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/1781007a0
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