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State sprays 8m quelea birds destroying rice in Kirinyaga
The ravenous quelea bird. An estimated eight million quelea birds which had been wreaking havoc on rice farms at the giant Mwea Irrigation Scheme in Kirinyaga County have been killed. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- A swam of two million birds can eat as much as 20 tons of grain in a single day.
- The birds usually invade the scheme from September when rice starts maturing.
- Mwea scheme produces 80 percent of the rice consumed in Kenya.
An estimated eight million quelea birds which had been wreaking havoc on rice farms at the giant Mwea Irrigation Scheme in Kirinyaga County have been killed.
The national government in conjunction with Governor Anne Waiguru's administration sprayed the birds after complaints from thousands of farmers.
