FILE PHOTO OF DUCKS MAKE THEIR WAY TO MARKET, 1998-01-27 (photo)

A flock of ducks waddle down a lane on their way to one of Hanoi's many meat markets January 27, 1998. China is enlisting armies of ducks to prevent a plague of locusts engulfing swathes of valuable cropland, but the birds will probably end up in restaurants. The Manasi locust station in the northwest is about to unleash 4,000 hungry ducks into surrounding fields to munch their way through as many of the insects as they can. The locust station's spokesman Xiao Hongwei said, "After two or three months, they typically weigh around two kilos and can be sold to markets and roast duck restaurants" to be eaten wrapped in thin pancakes with plum sauce and spring onions. REUTERS/Dylan Martinez