Wheat farmers in Nakuru are facing significant losses after a flock of quelea birds descended on their crops, causing extensive damage.
These small, voracious birds, which typically target robust wheat, rice, and sorghum plantations, consume an average of 10 grams daily.
In Rongai Sub-County, farmers risk losing approximately 80,000 kilograms of wheat per day.
The Nakuru County Government is working with growers to manage the situation.
Leonard Bor, County Executive Member (CECM) in charge of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries, urged residents to report roosting sites for these destructive birds.
He noted significant damage had already been reported on large-scale wheat farms, such as Madrugada Farm in Rongai.
To combat the birds, farmers are resorting to rudimentary methods like mounting scarecrows, using catapults and slings, and throwing pebbles at dawn, when the crops are most vulnerable.
Despite these efforts, the birds continue to pose a significant threat, with farmers expressing concern that their crops could be destroyed without urgent intervention.
Bor assured farmers that a team is actively mapping and identifying the birds’ roosting sites and conducting surveillance to determine the best control methods.
He cautioned that using chemicals to flush out the birds could endanger livestock and advised farmers in affected areas to relocate their animals temporarily.
Nakuru County is a leading wheat producer, second to Trans Nzoia, with Uasin Gishu and Laikipia following.
The quelea bird invasion, however, threatens to destroy over 40 per cent of the expected harvest, putting both large- and small-scale farmers at risk.
Bor highlighted the severity of the situation, noting that the quelea bird population in the county exceeds 10 million.
These birds, capable of long-distance migration, can cover over 10 million square kilometres, with colonies consuming up to 50 tons of grain daily.
Each quelea roost can contain two to three million birds, posing a substantial threat to crops.
Farmers affected by the quelea menace are urging the county government to take proactive measures ahead of the next planting season.
Paul Mwaura, a wheat farmer in Tabot village, Visoi ward, described the devastation caused by the birds, noting that they often raid wheat farms from early morning until evening, forcing farmers to remain vigilant.
While some wealthier farmers can afford to spray their fields, small-scale farmers often watch helplessly as their crops are decimated.
In addition to wheat, quelea birds also attack barley, millet, oats, rice, and sorghum, though they do not target maize due to their small beaks.
The quelea invasion exacerbates the threat to food production in a country already facing a food shortage crisis due to changing rainfall patterns and desert locust invasions.
Persistent drought in the Horn of Africa has reduced the availability of native grasses, queleas’ primary food source, leading them to increasingly forage on grain fields.
According to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), a single quelea can consume up to 10 grams of grain daily.
While fenthion, an organophosphate pesticide, has been used in Africa to combat these pests, it is toxic to humans and non-target organisms, posing additional risks.
