June 27, 2024

Rice farmers in Nahuta – Lalinga community of Karim – Lamido Local Government Area (LGA) of Taraba, have decried the destruction of hectares of cultivated farmlands by quelea birds.

One of the affected farmers, Mr Tanko Andemi, disclosed this in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Jalingo.

Quelea bird is a small, short-tailed weaver with a mottled back and a yellow or reddish bill, eye-ring, and legs.

The red-billed quelea is mostly found in tropical and subtropical areas with a seasonal semi-arid climate.

Andemi, who said that the attack by the birds would lead to poor harvests, called for intervention by the federal and state governments, towards ameliorating the situation.

“I’m expected to harvest 100 bags of dry season Paddy Rice, but with the invasion of the quelea birds, I may end up harvesting less than 10 bags.

“So, we are calling on the government at both federal and state levels to urgently intervene to prevent further losses.

“This can be in the aspect of controling the birds which resurface after the dry season, control and provision of inputs to boost production and avert losses of crops in the field,” Andemi said.

Mr Adamu Kazaure, the Field Officer of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, in charge of Adamawa and Taraba states, told NAN that the level of damage caused by the birds had been properly assessed.

Kazaure explained that a compressive report, including video clips of the destruction on the farmlands, had been forwarded to relevant authorities in the ministry for further action.

The presence of quelea birds result in dry thornbush grassland, including the Sahel; and its distribution covers most of sub-Saharan Africa. (NAN)