Muscled out?

Locusts might become
endangered
following the recent
approval of
the world's first
bioinsecticide
against the insects.
Named Green
Muscle, the fungal
pesticide spray,
made by South Africa
(SA)-based
Biological Control
Products has
been cleared for sale
in the country.
The spray contains
spores of
Metarhizium
anisopliae, a fungus
that invades and
kills locusts and
grasshoppers but is
harmless to
beneficial insects.
It kills nine out of
every 10 locusts
within 21 days of its
spraying, says
researcher David
Dent, who helped
develop Green
Muscle (New
Scientist, Vol 160,
No 2162).