Investigating the degree of importance of environmental factors and their levels on the Moroccan locust (Dociostaurus maroccanus) from the point of view of indigenous knowledge in the northern pastures of Golestan province

Locusts are an important part of food chains and networks in pastures, but in high density they cause damage to pastures and agricultural products. Golestan province is one of the centers of the Moroccan locust (Dociostaurus maroccanus) in Iran. This research examines the degree of importance of environmental factors and their levels on the Moroccan locust from the point of view of local experts in Golestan province. This research was conducted in 2020 by interviewing a questionnaire from 200 experts, farmers, ranchers, nomads of the region and local experts who have collaborated for years in the fight to reduce the density of Moroccan locusts in the province. The information collected from the questionnaire about the degree of importance of the influence of 15 ecological factors on the locust was entered into PAST statistical software and multivariate factor analysis was used for analysis. The results showed that the degree of importance of 6 factors of soil moisture, soil texture, type of vegetation, rainfall, relative humidity and temperature is more than other factors and these factors are effective in the habitat and increase of density of Moroccan locust .