Rhynchophorus ferrugineus
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Author: Luigi Barraco
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier, 1790) (red palm weevil)
The weevil attacks palms in various regions. The larvae feed on the young, developing stem tissue at the top of the palm which is usually killed during an attack. The young palm fronds wilt and the crown collapses. The weevil is native to south-east Asia where it feeds mainly on coconut palms. It has spread in the 1980s to the Near East, where it became a major pest of date palms. More recently, it has invaded North Africa and Europe and since 2009 has been reported from the Caribbean. Reports of this species since 2010 from California probably refer to Rhynchophorus vulneratus.
| Vernacular names | |
|---|---|
| • Deutsch: | malaiischer Palmenrüssler |
| • English: | red palm weevil |
| • Español: | picudo rojo de las palmeras curculiónido ferruginoso de las palmeras |
| • Français: | charançon rouge des palmiers |
The adults are around 3-3½ cm long, black underneath and reddish brown on the upper side with variable black marks and colourations (see the illustration below). The life cycle from egg to mature adult last about 2-3 months. The most practical control approach is trapping, combined with the removal of the insects from the attacked palms.
For details see the respective page in Wikipedia.
- Other images of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Wikimedia Commons - click to enlarge)
male
colour polymorphism of adult
larva
pupal case
pupa
Canary Island date palm (Phoenix canariensis) in Italy killed by the weevil
close up of Phoenix canariensis crown destroyed by the weevil
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