The exceptionally wet rainy season in South Africa allowed rapid breeding of brown locusts and led to the biggest infestation the country has seen in decades. In December 2021, many parts of the country experienced the heaviest rains since records began in 1921.
NASA-funded researchers examined satellite-based soil moisture and soil composition in the hope to predict optimal breeding sites of locust swarms. The team is now working to integrate the data into the FAO locust support to be better prepared for the next major…
Swarms of locusts that invaded the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, and Syria, may reach Turkey next if the country does not take action, an expert warned on April 30, 2021. As of May 3, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization…
Large swarms of locusts flew into southern Israel over the past weekend, April 24 and 25, 2021. Yellow insects flew into the areas surrounding Eilat, with some even coming from the sea. Their yellow color is an indication of their age as these bugs are mature and…
Kuwait registered a temperature of 44.6 °C (112.3 °F) on Thursday, March 25, 2021 — the hottest March temperature for the country and the entire Arabian Peninsula. The heat came amid swarms of locust infesting the country, as well as dust storms, creating…
Immature swarms continue to decline in Kenya and Ethiopia due to the ongoing control operations, according to an update by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on Tuesday, March 16, 2021. However, swarms are persisting in the absence of rainfall….
Crops and livelihoods in Ethiopia are at high risk as locust plague persists in the country, with the highest number of swarms reported in the northern and central region. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), immature swarms are currently…
Somalia has announced a state of emergency on Wednesday, February 4, 2021, as the nation battles a new generation of desert locust swarms that have already caused major damage to farmlands. Meanwhile, infestations are ongoing in Saudi Arabia, posing risks that any…
Massive locust swarms have invaded Saudi Arabia while a bigger and deadlier attack is ongoing in the Horn of Africa, which is set to descend on large parts of Ethiopia and Kenya, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned Sunday, January 24, 2021. In…
Ethiopian farmers are battling the country's worst locust invasion in 25 years, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which urged officials to scale up survey and control operations in its situation update on November 9, 2020. More than…
