Scorpion and Snake Encounters Surge in Morocco as Summer Heat Intensifies

According to Dr. Fatima Daghouane, a toxicology specialist at the Moroccan Poison Control and Pharmacovigilance Center (CAPM), the phenomenon intensifies from spring onwards, due to rising temperatures and the increase in outdoor human activities, reports Le Matin. Her center is recording a sharp increase in snake bite cases, especially in the last two weeks. Each year, Morocco records an average of 200 snake bite cases and about 25,000 scorpion stings, according to national data. The regions most exposed to snakes are Souss-Massa, Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima, Marrakech-Safi, Fez-Meknes, and Beni Mellal-Khenifra.

"Summer is a period when snakes become more active after their hibernation. They come out to hunt, reproduce, or simply regulate their temperature," explains Dr. Daghouane. Other contexts that favor their unwanted movements: the intensification of outdoor human activities: agriculture, gardening, leisure... It’s the same for scorpions. "We see them throughout the year, but stings increase between May and October, with a peak in all summer months, June, July and August," said Dr. Rhizlane El Oufir, a doctor in charge of the scorpion sting program at CAPM.

As for scorpions, the most affected areas are mainly in the center of the country: Marrakech-Safi, Souss-Massa, Beni Mellal-Khenifra and Drâa-Tafilalet top the list. Not to mention the areas of Settat, El Jadida and Sidi Bennour, all regularly facing a high number of stings, but also sometimes fatal cases.