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NATURE

An encounter with
a free-roaming
Arthropod revealed

some interesting
facts about locusts
and their reasons

for visiting one’s
garden.

BY BERNARD BUYS
BY JOSH TRUTER
PHOTOS BY JOSH TRUTER AND JMK

LESSONS FROM

A LOCUST

ast year, while renovating our And here’s another cause for concern –
garden cottage, we arrived at some of the plants that they feed on are
its entrance one morning to find highly toxic. According to Wikipedia, all
La large locust gracing the door plants of the genus Acokanthera contain
Our first visitor at the door of our garden cottage. handle. We’d been thinking of using toxic cardiac glycosides strong enough
the cottage for AirBnB accommodation, to cause death, which is why the sap
as a way of travelling the world without from these plants is used by traditional
actually going anywhere ourselves. Bushmen (Khoisan) for their poison
Needless to say, that idea has since arrows. The Green Milkweed Locust feeds
been squashed. on Acokanthera oppositiflora, Acokanthera
schimperi, both indigenous to Africa,
It’s a year later and again a lone locust and Cascabela thevetia (also known as
has appeared. We now have a puppy who, yellow oleander) which hails from Central
we found out multiple times, is allergic America. Despite the toxicity of these
to bees. When she started trying to play plants, they are often used for hedges.
with this new toy, I quickly intervened and
caught it. Due to work pressures, I decided It’s almost as though these lone visitors
to keep it in an old bird cage until I could were trying to tell me something, so I set
get a gap to take it to the green belt and out to look for what would attract them to
release it – far away from the juicy new our garden – and lo and behold – there it
buds and shoots in our neighbourhood was, right at the entrance to our property
gardens. In the meantime, I gave it some – a very healthy and thriving Acokanthera
The second visitor in the bird cage. leaves and water to keep it alive. schimperi, commonly known as a Round-
leaved poison-bush.
It took a few days of watching this large
creature with great fascination before I I put a few young leaves and flowers from
thought to do a bit of research and find this plant into the bird cage and, sure
out more about it. enough, the locust soon tucked in and
polished off all the buds and half a leaf.
Whoopsy. It turns out that it’s known as That doesn’t mean that these locusts
the Green Milkweed Locust (Phymateus don’t eat other plants, but they will track
viridipes), also known as the African down their favourite sources of food if
Bush Grasshopper. While the dorsal area they are in your garden.
immediately behind its head, which is
covered in carbuncles, and its long oval When I eventually found a suitable
head, are often bright green - as are the opportunity to take the bird cage to the green
outer wings, the inner wings are bright belt up the road and set the visitor free, of
red and blue, quite striking to watch when course he simply did what came naturally.
it’s in flight.If you annoy these locusts, There was no panic or flurry to get away.
they secrete a poisonous fluid from their Without skipping a beat, he set foot on terra
thoracic joint – so they are not good toys firma and immediately started eating the
This visitor is actually tasting a succulent leaf. for puppies. lush green leaves of the nearest weed!
10
DPL