Alien Armyworm Invading Africa May Reach Asia, Mediterranean
- Pest that threatens corn fields already in Ghana, South Africa
- Invasion imperils southern Africa’s recovery from drought
A fall armyworm, right.
Photographer: Taonga Clifford Mitimingi/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The fall armyworms that have ravaged corn fields from Ghana to South Africa since arriving on the continent last year could spread to Asia and the Mediterranean, a research body said.
Infestations of the pest that arrived from the Americas last year have been confirmed in Ghana, the Oxfordshire, U.K.-based Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International said. South Africa also verified Feb. 3 that the caterpillars have arrived in the continent’s biggest producer of corn, a staple, after they traveled from Zambia through Zimbabwe. There are reports that they’ve also reach Malawi, Mozambique and Namibia, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.