On a Western Sahara highway, cars push through a locust swarm so thick it blocks the view

In late February, motorists traveling a highway in Western Sahara found themselves driving into an enormous locust swarm, with so many insects in the air that the road appeared to be blocked by a shifting mass of wings.

What happened?

As Fox Weather reported, footage recorded by Salah Abdelhadi and distributed by Storyful shows vehicles moving through the swarm while locusts hit windshields and the sheer density of the insects appears to limit visibility.

On Lanzarote and Tenerife, officials said the wind-carried locusts were not considered an immediate public danger, but reports that the insects had reached the islands also raised concerns about the potential for major agricultural damage.

The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization issued multiple critical updates in early 2026 about the desert locust outbreak. These pests reproduce rapidly, and when conditions are favorable, their populations can quickly grow into a major agricultural threat.

Why does it matter?

Desert locusts are among the most destructive migratory pests in the world. When swarms move into an area, they can strip vegetation, damage crops, and destroy the grazing land livestock rely on.

Farmers can lose harvests, ranchers can lose feed, and communities can face higher food prices and economic stress.

Even for drivers, the risks are serious, as a swarm dense enough to reduce visibility can create dangerous road conditions in moments.

The FAO has warned that a single 0.39 square mile (1 square kilometer) of desert locusts "can contain up to 80 million adults, with the capacity to consume the same amount of food in one day as 35,000 people."

What's being done?

The FAO has monitored desert locust populations for decades and helped countries respond before outbreaks worsen. As of right now, it doesn't have any plans to stop or slow down its work.

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