Lockwood, Jeffrey A.

Locust: The Devastating Rise And Mysterious Disappearance Of The Insect That Shaped The American Frontier

New York: Basic Books, 2004. First Edition, First Printing. Hardcover with Dust Jacket.

No Flaws or Blemishes; Gift Quality. 8.5 inches tall; 394 pages with Chapter Notes, Bibliography and Index, Illustrated.

New / New. Item #17968
ISBN: 0738208949

In the nineteenth century, locust swarms ravaged the continent, causing widespread devastation. In 1876, Congress labeled them the biggest obstacle to settling the country. The swarms, spanning from the Dakotas to Texas and California to Iowa, pushed settlers to starvation, prompting the government to engage leading scientists and kickstart entomology.

Suddenly, the Rocky Mountain locust vanished mysteriously over the next decades. Jeffrey Lockwood later investigated this disappearance, uncovering that early settlers inadvertently destroyed the locust's habitats during a natural population decline.

Combining historical records and modern science, 'Locust' illuminates the cultural, economic, and political landscape of late-nineteenth-century America while unraveling this ecological enigma.

Price: $19.95