Large Swarms of Locusts Move from Mauritania to Morocco

Large swarms of locusts have been reported moving from Mauritania northward to Morocco, driven by strong south-west winds and some sparse individuals of the pest have been reported last February 19 in the north of the High Atlas, in El Jadida, Safi and Essaouira.

Morocco's central coordination post of locust control says large swarms have reached the Draa valley (south) where they started laying eggs.

The central coordination post also says it is carrying on prospecting and spraying operations against locust populations composed of groups of new adults in the southern provinces (Laayoune and Dakhla).

Up to March 04, a total area of 119,000 ha was treated, including 111,600 by copters, in order to stop the advance of swarms and intercept them in desert zone so as to protect ecologically-vulnerable zones.

The source also underlines that the used pesticides are among those recommended by the World Food and Agriculture Organization.

The FAO had warned that several countries are experiencing an increasingly important upsurge of the locust activity, especially Mauritania and Morocco and more recently Algeria, Saudi Arabia and Sudan.