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The Red PalmWeevil (RPW) Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier 1790) is an invasive pest from southeastern Asia and Melanesia that in the last 30 years has spread widely in the Middle East and Mediterranean Basin. Its stem-boring larvae cause great damage to several palm species of the Arecaceae family, many of which are economically important for agricultural and ornamental purposes. Therefore, great attention has recently been focused in studying this species to identify sustainable and effective eradication strategies, such as sterile insect technique (SIT). The rapid spread of RPW is associated with its high reproductive success. To evaluate the suitability of a SIT strategy, particular physiological and behavioral aspects ofRPWreproduction, such as the presence of polyandry and post-copulatory sperm selection mechanisms, were investigated. To determine paternity of progeny from multiply mated females, double- crossing experiments were carried out confining individual females with either a wild-type male or a γ-irradiated male (Co-60). Fecundity and fertility of females were scored to evaluate post-copulatory sperm selection. Results showed that progeny were almost exclusively produced by the sperm of the second male, suggesting that a last-male sperm precedence is expressed at high levels in this species, and providing interesting insights for an area-wide RPW management strategy such as the SIT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The flight ability and patterns of an insect influence its spread, and the study of its behaviour can be used to improve the strategies to control the pest. Regarding Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier) (Coleoptera: Dryophthoridae), one of the worst threats to palm trees worldwide, laboratory experiments have been conducted to analyze their flight potential. However, these data must be complemented with tests that allow us to know its flight behaviour and dispersal patterns under field conditions. Two mark-release-recapture experiments were conducted in areas with R. ferrugineus infestations. In the first, the effects of weevil sex, temperature, solar radiation, and relative humidity, on the take-off and flight mobility of adults were analyzed. The second experiment aimed to determine the maximum flight distance covered by adults in field. The take-off rate for R. ferrugineus males was significantly greater than for females, and was positively influenced by temperature (optimum take-off around 25°C) and solar radiation, both factors being highly correlated. Female weevil recaptures were significantly higher, especially as temperatures increased (optimum recapture around 21°C). Dispersal distances of weevil adults increased when temperatures rose, and while this insect tended to fly short distances (<500 m), it was able to cover up to 7 km. The dispersal of R. ferrugineus adults mainly occurred during the first 7 days after their release, and when relative humidity increased, their dispersal time was reduced. The results obtained will permit a more effective implementation of certain measures used to control R. ferrugineus, such as olfactory trapping or intensive surveillance around pest outbreaks. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Rhynchophorus ferrugineus, known as the Red Palm Weevil (RPW), is reported as a pest of up to 40 palm species. However, the susceptibility degree and the defense mechanisms of these species against this weevil are still poorly known. In Europe, the RPW is a major pest of Phoenix canariensis while other palm species, including the congeneric Phoenix dactylifera, seem to be less suitable hosts for this insect. The aim of our study was to compare the defensive response of P. dactylifera, Chamaerops humilis and Washingtonia filifera against R. ferrugineus and try to define the mechanisms of resistance that characterize these species. Bioassays were carried out to evaluate the mortality induced on RPW larvae by extracts from the leaf rachis of the studied palm species. Tests at semi-field scale were also conducted, based either on forced palm infestation, with larvae of RPW, or on natural infestation, with adult females. Rachis extracts from C. humilis and W. filifera caused 100% larval mortality after 2 days of exposure, while extracts of P. dactylifera did not impair larval survival. Independently of the effect of the leaf extracts, the weevils were unable to naturally infest the three palm species, although larval survival was high after forced infestation of the plants. We concluded that the observed lack of infestation of P. dactylifera by RPW is due to factors other than antibiosis. In W. filifera and C. humilis, although the presence of antixenosis mechanisms cannot be excluded, resistance to R. ferrugineus seems to rely on the presence of antibiosis compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) is the most destructive pest of palm trees worldwide containing it invasive areas, such as the southern part of China. It is always emphasized to develop integrated pest management based on biological agents, but their success is not very exciting. Presently, the immune defenses of this pest against biological agents attract scarce attention. It is still unclear whether immune priming also generally occurs in insect pests and in response to different pathogens. Our results indicated that previous challenge of bacteria pathogen enhanced the magnitude of phenoloxidase activity and antibacterial activity in R. ferrugineus larvae against the secondary infection. Furthermore, trans-generational immune priming was also determined in this pest, and only challenged R. ferrugineus mothers transferred the immune protection to their offspring which suggested males and females of this pest might have evolved different strategies on the investment of delivering immune protection to their offspring. Importantly, our data provide the evidence to suggest that different kinds of biological control agents might be used alternatively or in combination to fight against R. ferrugineus because of the existence of immune priming with low species-specific level. On the other hand, for this invasive pest, the immune priming may also facilitate its adaptation and dispersal in the new regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The red palm weevil, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Olivier) (Coleoptera: Dryophthoridae), native to tropical Asian regions, has become a serious threat to palm trees all over the world. Knowledge of its flight potential is vital to improving the preventive and curative measures currently used to manage this pest. As R. ferrugineus is a quarantine pest, it is difficult to study its flight potential in the field. A computer-monitored flight mill was adapted to analyse the flying ability of R. ferrugineus through the study of different flight parameters (number of flights, total distance flown, longest single flight, flight duration, and average and maximum speed) and the influence of the weevil's sex, age, and body size on these flight parameters. Despite significant differences in the adult body size (body weight and length) of males and females, the sex of R. ferrugineus adults did not have an influence on their flight potential. Neither adult body size nor age was found to affect the weevil's flying abilities, although there was a significantly higher percentage of individuals flying that were 8–23 days old than 1–7 days old. Compared to the longest single flight, 54% of the insects were classified as short-distance flyers (covering <100 m) and 36 and 10% were classified as medium- (100–5000 m) and long-distance (>5000 m), respectively. The results are compared with similar studies on different insect species under laboratory and field conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]