Annual attacks by the bush cricket (Acanthopolus discoidalis/. Iris 1992) cause severe losses in pearl millet production in Owamboland, Namibia, of approximately 10 000 t yr-1, e.g., 30% of the total harvest in 1993. Research in this study is geared to the development of an integrated pest management (IPM) system based on the biology and ecology of the cricket relevant to the socioeconomic environment of communal farmers in Namibia. Understanding of the biology and population dynamics of the cricket should provide adequate knowledge for the development of integrated pest management components with special emphasis on (a) the development of a population forecasting method; (b) the development of yield loss evaluation methods in farmers' fields, involving the quantification of damage caused by the insect at different stages in its growth cycle; and (c) the development of cultural, biological, and chemical control methods. The data reported comprise selected results from second-season trials and are therefore subject to later reassessment.