Swarm appears in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
An immature swarm appeared over Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 14 May. The swarm originated from breeding earlier this year on the northwest coast of Somalia where numerous small swarms started to form in early March. As vegetation dried out, the swarms moved up the escarpment, crossed the Somali plateau near Hargeisa, and continued to the Jijiga area in eastern Ethiopia. Ground and aerial control operations were launched immediately in Ethiopia but swarms continued to arrive during April. The swarms are highly mobile and have spread to Dire Dawa, the Awash Valley and, by the end of the month, there was an unconfirmed report from the edge of the highlands in Nazareth, southeast of Addis Ababa.
Breeding is expected to occur in areas of recent rainfall mainly in the eastern region near Dire Dawa and Jijiga, and hatching and band formation is likely in May. There remains a risk that a few additional swarms may appear in the highlands.