After experiencing several political upheavals and natural disasters, Liberia is now facing another kind of problem, this time a biological invader.   Small but highly destructive armyworms have made their way to several Liberian farms, and are munching away happily at the crops.   The peasant farmers of Liberia – most of that country’s population – are wringing their hands in despair at seeing their lush crops being eaten away.

The area in Liberia that has been most affected by armyworms is the Zota District in the Bong County, where about 400,000 people are affected by the infestation.

Armyworms are called so because they always move about in large groups.   They are herbivorous worms that depend on leaves of plants for their survival.   Armyworms are tropical worms and are found in large numbers in the belt between the USA and Argentina.   They are not very prevalent in the African country of Liberia, but it seems they have somehow migrated there and multiplied in large numbers.  This is becoming a source of much concern to the Liberian rural economy.

These worms do not eat the fruits and flowers of the plants; they feed only on the leaves.   But that is little consolation to the farmers, who know that once the leaves are eaten, it is only a matter of days before the fruits will perish also.   The favorite crops of the armyworms seem to be banana plants, and since the Liberian agrarian economy is largely dependent on the banana, the situation seems to be quite precarious.

Also, armyworms prefer living in the shade.   If the farms are located close to the homes of the farmers, these worms can make their way into the farmers’ homes, where the wormsfind temporary homes in places such as crevices in the walls, under the beds, and such.   This can be very distressing to the farmers’ families, because it is very difficult to get the worms out of the house once they have infested the area.   Spraying the homes with chemicals requires an evacuation, which is also a very uncomfortable situation for the farm families.

The usual procedure for getting rid of these worms is to spray chemicals, such as carbaryl and permethrin, on them when they are still in their caterpillar stage.   Most of these chemicals need to be sprayed from a close range.

The onslaught of armyworms upon the human population is not limited to destroying crops.   Authorities must completely irrigate and sanitize the area, because the feces of the worms can reach the water in the farms and give rise to several waterborne diseases.

Serious attempts are being made by the Liberian authorities to contain the armyworm infestation in Liberia.   However, the worms are making their way to Guinea and Sierra Leone.   This is is true to their nature; typically they devastate a particular area and then move on to another.