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The coconut rhinoceros beetle, Oryctes rhinoceros (L.), (CRB) is a major pest of coconut and oil palms that causes significant damage in the Asia/Pacific region. Traditional methods for surveillance and detection of CRB involve in‐person inspections, but these are expensive to carry out and were made impossible by travel restrictions during the COVID‐19 pandemic. In this paper, a method to remotely detect possible CRB incursions and assess damage levels using publicly available images is described. The method involves searching for pictures of palms and identifying those with the distinctive V‐shaped cuts in fronds characteristic of CRB feeding. The method was validated by examining palm images from known outbreak areas and those free from the pest. We found evidence of CRB damage in the previously unreported site of Dili, Timor Leste and possible evidence of CRB in the Solomon Islands even before it was first reported in 2015. Potential limitations and broader applications of this approach are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An invasive population of the coconut rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros; CRB) was discovered in Honiara, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands in 2015. The beetle has caused severe damage to coconut palms in the outbreak area and its continued spread threatens the food security and livelihood of thousands of smallholder farmers in the region. Spread and abundance of the beetle were monitored using bucket traps baited with the aggregation pheromone, ethyl-4 methyloctanoate. Beetles were collected from traps approximately bi-weekly for two periods; one during 2017-18 and the other during 2019-2020. Trap catches showed that CRB was present throughout the whole survey region with significantly higher numbers of female CRB trapped than males. Results indicate a significant 1.5-fold increase in CRB trap catch numbers from 2017-2018 to 2019-2020 despite control efforts. The number of CRB adults trapped also varied between sites and months during both time periods but with no clear patterns. Removal of breeding sites along with strong local quarantine should remain the top priority of the local government to contain CRB expansion within Solomon Islands and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]