The California Department of Food and Agriculture reports that the red palm
weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus) has been detected in Laguna Beach,
California. This insect is a native of Southeast Asia and is a serious
threat to common types of landscape palms and date palms. The presence of
the red palm weevil in California was initially discovered by a landscape
contractor in September of 2010, who then contacted state officials about
the bug.
Female red palm weevils bore into the trunks of palm trees, forming holes to
lay their eggs. Each female may produce 250 eggs. The larvae (worm-like
stage) emerge after a few days and chew into the tree, making tunnels up to
a yard long. After two months of feeding, larvae pupate inside the tree for
a few weeks before the reddish-brown adults emerge. Adults then live for
two to three months, feeding on palms, mating multiple times and laying more
eggs.
State and federal officials have launched a door-to-door survey of the
Laguna Beach area and set about 250 traps across nine miles. While the red
palm weevil has ravaged palms across Asia and Africa, this as the first
sighting of the red palm weevil in the United States.
How can you help? Keep an eye out for signs of this pest in our Coronado
palm trees. The most visible signs are wilting palm crowns, excessive dead
or dying fronds, chewed sawdust or fiber falling from the tree, oozing brown
sap and exit holes in the tree.
If you see these signs in our street trees, please call the Coronado Public Services
office at 619-522-7380 or the California Department of Food and Agriculture hotline
at Department of Food and Agriculture 1-800-491-1899. Early intervention can help
us protect our Coronado Trees.
