What are the signs of an infested palm?

Symptoms include holes in leaves, leaves that appear to be cut in a straight line with scissors, drooping leaf or leaves, dry leaf or leaves, vinegar smell, cocoons in trunk or wedged between leaves, old cocoons on the floor or you may just see lots of weevils flying around - they are attracted by other weevils.

More red palm weevils in spring and autumn

A few dedicated weevil trappers in Alhaurin el Grande and Cartama have been collecting data for over a year.  Here are the results for our catches in 2010.  It is interesting to note that during the hotter months of July and August  and the colder month of January the number of weevils trapped was lower than the milder months in Spring and Autumn. December was particularly mild which could explain the high numbers caught so late in the year.

These figures are a good indication of the number of weevils in flight and in search of new palms to infest throughout the year and it will be interesting to see this years results for a comparison.  In my own personal trap the figures are already higher than last year(we trapped 90 in January), and as we observe so many  deceased palms, everything suggests that this pest is approaching epidemic proportions!

Trapping Red Palm Weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus) can help reduce and monitor populations

These traps are most effective burried in the ground, soil level with holes in the side.

Spring is here – well almost!  The temperature this morning, just before 9, is already 14^oC and the bees can be heard buzzing happily on some of the flowering shrubs.  They aren’t the only insects that get moving with the warmer weather.  The weevils are out there too.  I am, of course, talking about the Red Palm Weevil – the evil weevil destroying so many palms, young and old. We have caught 11 in my small trap over the past couple of days.  Not such a big catch compared to the 82 we found when the sun shone for a few days in January, but with all the rain and generally lower temperatures, the 11 is a sure sign that THEY ARE OUT THERE – and in their millions.  I have been trapping for over a year now, and this year am catching many more.  This could be because of the dreadful rain we had last year – or simply because there are more weevils about.