Swarms of locusts continue to sweep across rural areas in the Australian state of New South Wales.

A low density swarm could be seen in the central-western district of New South Wales near Condobolin.

Other swarms were spotted near Wagga, Gundagai and Narrandera.

Ian Macdonald, New South Wales Primary Industries Minister said:
"Reports of swarm activity coming in to us from a number of areas of the state, particularly in the south and in the central west. A couple of these swarms have reached significant size, one of which is about six kilometres long and about 170 metres deep. This is quite a significant swarm.

MacDonald says farmers need to report locust swarms to their local Rural Lands Protection Board so it can be taken care of.

He also said there was no need to panic at this stage.

Locusts feed mainly on green vegetation, and this is the time of year when many farmers are preparing to harvest their crops.

In some areas, it is the first precious crop in several years, after many seasons of drought.

AP