Locust swarm threat to Aust cropping area

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BRISBANE - The best rain in decades has spawned a locust plague that could threaten crops in Queensland's Central Highlands.

The plague of millions of locusts is now affecting the Longreach area in central Queensland.

The insects are stripping gardens and grass cover on grazing properties, but the effect will be much worse if the plague moves to cropping areas in the Central Highlands.

Biosecurity Queensland says the plague around Longreach is a medium-sized swarm of spur-throated locusts. The weather will determine where they move to next.

Officers will conduct surveys this week to determine the risk of the swarm moving to the Central Highlands and whether control measures are necessary.

"I'm looking at about 10,000 of them right now," the Mayor of Longreach Regional Council John Palmer said.

"They're everywhere, just everywhere. It just starts about 20 to 25km out of town. [At] night time you just can't have any sort of door or a window open."

- AAP