Vadym Chaykovskyi, deputy head of the State Service for Food and Consumer Protection of Ukraine, said in an interview with a Ukrainian news website, that locusts — insects that are a species of grasshoppers — have become a particular nuisance in Ukrainian regions battered with conflict since 2022 — when Russia first invade Ukraine.
“It is the war,” Chaykovskyi said. “It is the neglected land near the line of contact, it is the consequences of the destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant.”
The Kakhovka water reservoir is one the worst hit infestations of locusts, according to Chaykovskyi. Back in 2023, Russia troops blew up the dam which eventually drained, thus attracting the locusts.
“I would like to emphasize once again that the reason for the intensive development of locusts is Russian ecocide, because the Dnieper riverbed has significantly decreased in the southern regions,” Chavkovskyi said. “The favorite habitat of locusts is precisely river banks and abandoned areas. There is a lot of such land now, especially where everything is mined. Obviously, civilians cannot fight pests in such areas.”
While locusts are known for devastating crops and grass; Chavkovskyi said the Ukrainian government has the situation under control.
“There is no need to incite or frighten the population in any way,” Chavkovskyi said. “The situation is under control, but there are problems, especially on the line of contact. And they will continue until there are natural enemies of locusts near the Luhansk region. Here’s a simple example: Pakistan defeated one of the locust invasions by having rural residents release their ducks from their yards, and the insects simply ate them. Not only that, but in the Zaporizhzhia region, they say that ducks only catch locusts and don’t want to eat anything else. These are very high-protein insects, and they have many natural enemies.”
Birds are a natural predator of locusts; however the loud noises associated with Russia’s military strikes have kept birds away from war-torn areas most effected by the infestation.
Zaporizhzhia authorities have used insecticide on the locusts which have taken over 6,000 hectares of land.
“There is no (direct) threat to people,” Andriy Piatnitsky, vice head of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia told Ukrainian media. “Yes, it (the locust swarms) looks horrible. Yes, there are huge numbers of bugs, the sky is full of them, but once again, I say that this is not a threat for the life and health of citizens.”
