4 November 2024: small outbreak in Sudan

Key points:
- Overview: A very small outbreak developed in Sudan.
- Current situation: Low numbers of hoppers and adults from Mauritania to Saudi Arabia and Yemen; isolated adults in Egypt, Somalia, Pakistan, and India; groups and small bands in Sudan where a very small outbreak developed in the interior at the end of October.
- Forecast: As vegetation dries out, small groups of locusts will move from Sudan to the Red Sea coast where winter breeding will commence there as well as parts of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Egypt, Eritrea, and Somalia. A few small groups could form in Mauritania and perhaps parts of Mali, Niger, and Chad. Limited control is expected in some countries.
The Desert Locust situation was calm during October. Summer rainfall began earlier than usual, extending further north in the northern Sahel and southern Sahara until late September. This led to low numbers of hoppers and adults from Mauritania to Sudan and Saudi Arabia, with some in southeast Egypt, Yemen’s interior, northwest Somalia, and along the Indo-Pakistan border. Vegetation remained green in Sudan, Mauritania, and Saudi Arabia. By the end of October, a very small outbreak developed in the interior of Sudan where small groups of hoppers and adults and very small bands were present and treated.
During the forecast, locust will decrease as vegetation dries out in the summer areas in the northern Sahel, except in Mauritania, where hoppers and adults will increase slightly in the northwest where breeding and a few small groups could form. In Sudan, adult groups and possibly a few small swarms will move to the Red Sea coast for winter breeding. Locusts number will gradually increase along the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden coasts in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen, and perhaps Somalia. However, seasonal models predict mostly below-normal rains from December onwards. As a result, only small-scale breeding is expected during the winter with some control.
Download the full Desert Locust bulletin.