Agricultural authorities in several parts of North and West Africa are maintaining surveillance for desert locust activity following recent reports of small swarms detected near Algeria’s southwestern border. The monitoring reflects the importance of the western Sahara corridor as an important ecological zone in the western part of the desert locust range, where populations can emerge and spread across multiple countries.
The region stretching from Mauritania through Western Sahara, southern Morocco, and into southwestern Algeria forms part of the western range of the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria. This species inhabits arid and semi-arid environments across North Africa, the Sahel, and the Arabian Peninsula.
Within this range, certain areas periodically become suitable breeding grounds when rainfall creates temporary vegetation in otherwise dry desert landscapes. Mauritania, in particular, has long been recognized as one of the primary breeding zones in the western part of the locust distribution area.
When environmental conditions allow, locust populations can expand rapidly and move across national borders. The corridor linking Mauritania with Western Sahara and southern Algeria has historically served as one of the routes through which locust populations spread northward.
How Locust Outbreaks Begin
Desert locust populations normally exist in a “solitary phase,” with insects dispersed over wide areas in low numbers. In this state, they pose little risk to agriculture.nHowever, after periods of rainfall that generate vegetation in desert regions, the insects may gather in larger numbers in areas where they find suitable breeding conditions. As densities increase, locusts undergo behavioral and physiological changes that shift them into a “gregarious phase.” In this stage, they form bands and swarms capable of traveling long distances.
A single swarm can cover large areas and consume substantial quantities of vegetation. Because of their mobility and reproductive capacity, early detection is considered critical for preventing larger outbreaks.
Recent Monitoring in Southwestern Algeria
Authorities in Algeria’s Tindouf province recently conducted surveillance operations in several wadis and border areas following reports of locust activity near the frontier. Small swarms were detected earlier in the year in the Hassi Abdallah area and later near Gara Djebilet, a remote area in southwestern Algeria better known for its mining projects but now also monitored for locust activity. Ground teams from agricultural services and plant health inspection units were deployed to assess the situation and carry out pesticide spraying. Local officials reported that approximately 300 hectares were treated initially using ground equipment.
Because of the remoteness of the terrain and the size of the affected area, local reports indicate that aerial spraying operations were subsequently conducted with the support air assets from the Algerian armed forces. Additional areas were treated while ground teams continued monitoring the region.
Field inspections conducted afterward, according to Algerian agricultural services, indicated that the swarms identified in the area had been eliminated. Authorities nonetheless indicated that surveillance efforts would continue across the province, particularly in southern and border zones where locusts could potentially enter from neighboring regions.
Regional Monitoring Efforts
Countries across the western part of the locust range maintain monitoring systems designed to detect early signs of locust breeding or swarm formation. Mauritania regularly conducts field surveys in desert areas that can become breeding sites after rainfall. Morocco also operates surveillance and control programs in its southern provinces to monitor potential movements from the Sahara.
Algeria’s agricultural services similarly maintain monitoring networks in southern provinces where ecological conditions occasionally support locust activity. Cooperation between agricultural services, plant protection agencies, and local communities is a key element of these efforts, as nomadic populations and remote settlements often provide early warnings of insect movements.
Across the Sahel, countries such as Mali and Niger also conduct monitoring operations because desert locust populations can shift between Sahelian and Saharan breeding zones depending on rainfall patterns.
The detection of small swarms and the subsequent pesticide treatment in Tindouf illustrate the preventive approach typically used in locust management.
Rather than waiting for large swarms to form, agricultural authorities attempt to identify and eliminate localized infestations before the insects reproduce and multiply. This strategy reduces the risk that populations will expand into broader regional outbreaks.
Monitoring of desert locust activity in North Africa and the Sahel is often coordinated with international tracking systems and regional cooperation programs that share information about weather conditions, vegetation growth, and insect movements.
At present, the situation reported in southwestern Algeria appears to involve limited and localized activity that has been brought under control, according to local officials. However, agricultural authorities across the region continue to maintain surveillance, particularly in desert zones where environmental conditions can rapidly change.
Because desert locust populations are closely linked to rainfall patterns and vegetation growth, monitoring efforts remain focused on detecting any new breeding activity that could signal the early stages of a larger population increase.
