FAO :: Locust Watch :: Archives :: Upsurges :: 1996-1998 :: Jun-Oct '97
Desert Locust upsurge: June - October 1997
 

Saudi Arabia
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No swarms were reported in Saudi Arabia but those seen in Sudan in May had probably originated in Saudi Arabia.

Yemen
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Locusts also moved southwards into the summer breeding area of Yemen from June where low density populations with small-scale breeding persisted until November 1997. No control was necessary.

Egypt
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Low density populations were present around Lake Nasser and in wadis in the southeastern desert close to the Sudanese border in most months between July 1996 and September 1997. Small scale breeding was noted in March and July 1997 but control was not required.

Sudan and Eritrea
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Locust campaigns were on a much smaller scale in Sudan and Eritrea until the autumn of 1997 when more important populations occurred. Three immature swarms, probably from Saudi Arabia, were seen in mid May 1997 on the Sudanese coastal plains. They apparently dispersed into the Red Sea Hills. At the end of the month, an unconfirmed report of an immature swarm came from the Baiyuda Desert west of Atbara. In June and July, swarm reports came from Wadi Malik in northern Kordofan and near Geneina in northern Darfur. Breeding conditions were good in large parts of these provinces. In addition, non-swarming populations were widespread throughout the summer breeding area. Control against hoppers began in August and the first swarms appeared between Derudeb and Kassala in early September. Nearly 7,800 ha were treated at the end of summer breeding in the interior of Sudan. Some Desert Locusts had remained on the Eritrean coast during the summer and 400 ha was treated in August.