5 August 2025: Summer breeding starts slowly

Key points

• Overview: Desert Locust outbreaks declined significantly in the northern areas of the Western Region.
• Current situation: Hopper and adult groups decreased in Algeria and disappeared from Tunisia and Morocco. Adult groups and scattered adults in Mauritania. Isolated adults in Chad and Niger. In the Central Region, a few groups remained in Egypt. Scattered adults in Sudan. A few adults are present in Pakistan along the India-Pakistan border.
• Control operations: Decreased in July (6 421 ha) compared to June (23 014 ha).
• Forecast: Adult groups could still emerge in the Sahel in August. Summer breeding will continue in Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, Sudan, and may start in southern Algeria and Eritrea. Very small-scale breeding may occur along the India-Pakistan border.

In July, locust outbreaks in northwestern Africa declined significantly. However, due to incomplete information from some countries, it remains uncertain whether the outbreaks have fully ended. There is still a possibility that locust groups may emerge in August in Sahelian countries. In Algeria, some adult and hopper groups were still present, along with many scattered and isolated adults. In Morocco, a few isolated and scattered adults were reported, while Tunisia had very few isolated adults remaining. Across the Sahel, isolated adults were detected in Niger and Chad. Mauritania continued to host many scattered and isolated mature adults, and a few adult groups were also observed. The increased rainfall in July across the Sahel has created favourable breeding conditions for dispersed locust populations. Continued surveillance will be essential to monitor potential developments, and preventive control operations will likely be necessary. In the Central Region, a few adult groups were still present in Egypt. Isolated and scattered adults were present in Sudan, where small-scale summer breeding may have begun. Breeding is expected to continue in Sudan and may also start in Eritrea and Yemen. In the Eastern Region, heavy monsoon rains continued along the India–Pakistan border, where only a few isolated adults were present in Pakistan. Very small-scale breeding is likely to occur, though no significant developments are expected.

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