Management of Red Palm Weevil with Hook™ RPW

Pheromone (Ferrugineol) traps have been used to monitor and mass trap The red palm weevil (RPW), Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in area-wide integrated pest management programs (IPM). However, these conventional food baited pheromone traps (FBPTs) have to be periodically serviced (change of food bait and insecticide solution) which is labor intensive. A bait-free method to ‘attract and kill’ RPW adults, Hook™ RPW, has been developed for weevil control in date palm. We tested this formulation against FBPTs for controlling RPW in a date plantations. Weevil captures similar in the Hook RPW- and FBPT-treated plots, indicating that both sustained the same trapping efficiency during the test period of 3 mo. Using Hook RPW in and around heavily infested plantations could substantially reduce the cost of an area-wide IPM program due to elimination of trap servicing associated with FBPTs. Additionally, Hook RPW demonstrated the same level of attractiveness with or without the presence of food bait, suggesting that the formulation may be applied directly to non-susceptible date palm trees without the risk of bait-lure synergy which could potentially incite damage to healthy trees.

Key Words: Bait-Free Attract and Kill Technology (Hook™ RPW), Specialized Pheromone and Lure Application Technology (SPLAT™), Food Baited Pheromone Traps (FBPT), Phoenix dactylifera