The red palm weevil
Rhynchophorus
ferrugineus
We
Know the Solution
Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs)

Introduction – Spread:
Rhynchophorus
ferrugineus (red
palm weevil) belongs to the family of Curculionidae (Coleoptera).
The red palm weevil has become the most important pest of the date palm
in the world (Gomez & Ferry, 1998).
The cause of the high rate of spread of this pest is human intervention,
by transporting infested palm trees of various sizes and offshoots from
contaminated to uninfected areas. Originally from tropical Asia, the red
palm weevil has spread to Africa and Europe, reaching the Mediterranean
in the 1980s, and was first recorded in Spain in 1994. The weevil was
first reported in Greece (Crete, Rodos) in 2006.
Biology
– morphology:
Overlapping
generations with all life stages can be present within the same palm
tree.The life cycle of the insect is about 4 months. Adult females lay
about 200 eggs at the base of young leaves or in wounds to the leaves
and trunks; the grubs feed on the soft fibers and terminal bud tissues.
The length of the full grown larva is 50 mm and the width is 20 mm. The
larval period varies between 1-3 months.
Except just before
pupating, larvae move towards the interior of the palm making tunnels
and large cavities. They can be found in any place within the palm, even
in the very base of the trunk where the roots emerge. Pupation occurs
generally outside the trunk, at the base of the palms. The larva pupates
in a cocoon made of brown dried palm fibres.
The damage:
The damage is caused
by the larvae,
starting from the
top of the palm tree and moving inside the palm making tunnels and large
cavities. Usually the damage caused by the larvae is visible only long
after infection, and by the time the first symptoms of the attack
appear, they are so serious that they generally result in the death of
the tree. Some symptoms that may be visible at the early stages of
infestation are the destruction of the new vegetation and the bending of
old leaves (umbrella).
Control -
Prevention: Entomopathogenic
nematodes (EPNs)
Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs)
are beneficial
organisms, live inside the body of their host, and so they
are designated endoparasitic.
They can identify their target, killing him quickly while being
completely safe for humans and other organisms. In nature does not occur
in such large numbers to effectively control populations of harmful
insects.
Application:
The application of
nematodes are simple and easy. The packaging sachets are mixed with
inert material. The content is mixed in water and made locally by
injecting the solution of nematodes directly at the base of the crown
of the palm tree. Applied to 5
million nematodes per palm per month. Nematodes can survive in the
preudotrunk for three to four weeks and if there are larvae, nymphs or
fully grown insects nematodes multiply, so successfully
increasing the effectiveness of the inoculums.
Nematodes should also be
applied to the soil in the area around the base of the palm tree in
order to infect nymphs that have fallen from the tree but also adult
insects which may be in the area.
The Entomopathogenic
Nematodes can be applied both curative and preventive.
In both cases
the results are
spectacular.
Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs)
Treatment: mortality 82%
Preventive treatment:
mortality 98% |