Newsademic British English edition 260

18th February 2016 
N ew sadem ic.com
™
 - British English edition 
page 
7
By the early 1970s most countries 
had banned its use. After the DDT 
ban, osprey numbers increased.
By 1916 there were no os­
preys in the UK. The birds were 
hunted and collectors stole many 
o f their eggs. In 1954 a pair of 
ospreys 
arrived 
in 
Scotland. 
They probably came from Nor­
way or Sweden. The birds then 
returned to their nest each year. 
A special operation was organised 
to protect them. Barbed wire was 
used to stop egg collectors. The 
two ospreys were watched day and 
night. Slowly, their numbers in 
the UK increased. Now, there are 
thought to be 240 breeding pairs 
in the country. M ost have been 
tagged.
Ospreys become adults, or are 
able to breed, after three or four 
years. Wildlife officials say that 
it is not unusual for younger birds 
to stay in Africa and not return to 
northern Europe. Blue YD is now 
four years old. The officials there­
fore hope that, this summer, the bird 
will return to Scotland. □
U
nderstanding
locusts
A team o f researchers from the 
UK and Australia have completed 
a study on locusts. They have cre­
ated a computer model. This helps 
to predict how large swarms of 
locusts behave.
Locusts are a type of grasshop­
per. They are found in most parts 
o f the world. Normally, locusts act 
and behave like grasshoppers. They 
eat plants and stay on the ground. 
The insects use their powerful 
back legs to jum p long distances. 
There are several types o f locust. 
The ones that cause most problems 
are the desert locust and the plague
locust. These insects live in drier