The Red Palm Weevil

[SMdS]

IMPORTANT INFORMATION CONCERNING THE “RED PALM WEEVIL”. (from the Ayuntamiento de Torrevieja)
It will prove to be an issue for all towns in The Vega Baja

Due to the recently detected outbreak of palm trees infected by the RED PALM WEEVIL throughout the Vega Baja region, the Ayuntamineto de Torrevieja are taking action aimed at the prevention of the spread of the pests which can quickly destroy palm trees. Public awareness and assistance is essential in this campaign.

The RED PALM WEEVIL (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus) ia a species of beetle. It is of a rusty red colour and fairly large, between two and five centimeters in length. It is the larvae of this beetle which causes the damage by excavating holes of up to a metre long inside the trunk of the palm tree, killing the host plant. As a result, the Red Palm Weevil is the major pest of palm plantations throughout the world. The adult female lays around two hundred eggs on new growth or in open lesions in the plant. The eggs hatch into a white legless larva which feed on the soft fibres and terminal buds, tunneling their way through to the internal tissue. At pupation, after about a month, the larva will leave the tree and form a cocoon built of dry fibres and leaf litter at the base of the tree. This cycle takes between 7 and 10 weeks. The first noticeable symptoms are that the crown, then the lower leaves begin to wilt. However, by the time that these symptoms become visible, it is probably too late to save the tree. Whilst sounds of the larva burrowing can be heard by placing an ear to the trunk of the tree, expert tend to use modern, electronic listening devices to assist in the early detection of infestations. The main method of control is through the application of systematic insecticide applied through a funnel. As the weevil prefers to lay its eggs in softer tissues, avoiding mechanical damage to the tree itself can assist in the reduction of infestation. Dragging of mature leaves should be avoided. An outbreak of infected trees has been noted in the area of Urbanizations La Siesta, El Chaparel, San Luis and Paraje Natural although residents in any area of the town should be vigilant as to the symptoms of infection. The treatment of infected trees and especially their removal and disposal should be done with EXTREME CARE, preferably by a qualified specialist. The Ayuntamiento have recently noted the illegal dumping of infected tree stumps, in many cases, the dumping having been the responsibility of so called “professional gardeners”, on open land and even on the verge alongside a main road! This type of irresponsible dumping is extremely dangerous and will only lead to the further spread of the infection to healthy trees in the vicinity.

IN ALL CASES where it is suspected that a palm tree (in Torrevieja) may be infected by the Red Palm Weevil, the public are asked to IMMEDIATELY notify the POLICIA LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL PATROL by telephoning: 687 520 972. The call will be answered in English if required. The Oficina de Atención al Residente Internacional (oari), telephone 96 570 6159, will also be pleased to assist international residents who are concerned about the problem.

PLEASE TAKE CARE TO ENSURE THAT THE OUTBREAK OF THE RED PALM WEEVIL IN TORREVIEJA & THE VEGA BAJA IS CONTAINED. SEEK PROFESSIONAL HELP.

[foxy]

Do we know if any weevils have been found in San Mig yet?

[SpanishRed]

Yes they are already here, Villas Maria certainly has them.
The authorities have been informed but so far have not responded.
I believe the infestation is already too big to contain.

[foxy]

Not good. 

[SMdS]

Can we ask Juan Román Patiño, our Councillor for MEDIO AMBIENTE Y AGRICULTURA, for a response and proposed action the Administration intends to take to counteract the threat from the Red Palm Weevil? I have sent a link to this posting to the said Councillor. 

[Juan Roman]

   Efectivamente es una plaga que las Administraciones y Universidades están estudiando desde hace años (que yo sepa en el 2004 ya trabajaban grupos de investigación), al tratarse de sanidad vegetal los resultados tardan años en obtenerse, todavía puede quedar un par de años más de investigación.

This concerns a disease outbreak that regional governments and universities have been studying for years (at least since 2004 study groups have been working on it); as it´s a plant disease the results of their work could take years to obtain, so it could still be a couple of years before this is achieved.

   En nuestra zona se ha propagado tan rápidamente por que en la palmera canaria se reproduce generación tras generación hasta destruir totalmente la planta, cuando ataca otros tipos de palmera como por ejemplo la palmera datilera no llega a matarla o por lo menos no lo hace con tanta rapidez.

In this area it has propogated itself very quickly, due to the fact that in the Canarian palm it reproduces rapidly until the plant is totally destroyed, but when it attacks other types of palms such as the date palm, it doesn´t usually kill the plant, or at least not so quickly

   Debido al otoño tan caluroso la plaga se reprodujo con extrema rapidez y esto colapso el servicio de lucha contra la plaga de la Generalitat debido a la gran cantidad de avisos que recibieron, entre ellos también de San Miguel.

Due to the very warm autumn we had it has reproduced extremely quickly, and the Valencian Government team assigned to fight the outbreak cannot cope due to the huge quantity of outbreak reports they have received, including from San Miguel

   En mi opinión la mejor herramienta de lucha es la información. Ya que el escarabajo tiene un radio de vuelo de más de tres kilómetros, por lo tanto todos debemos luchar contra la plaga, administraciones y particulares. De nada servirá que el Ayuntamiento gaste dinero en tratar las palmeras públicas si los particulares no hacen lo mismo con las de su propiedad.

In my opinion, the best weapon is information.  Because the beetle has a flight radius of more than 3 km, both town halls and individuals need to do their bit to combat the spread of the disease.  It will be pointless for the Town Hall to spend money treating the public palm trees if private individuals don´t do the same with their own palm trees.

   Los pasos que estamos dando son:

- En la web del Ayuntamiento podéis encontrar toda la información que nos llega sobre la plaga y la que conseguimos de compañeros y universidades. Aquí se pueden encontrar los teléfonos de aviso. En los últimos meses estos documentos se han descargado cientos de veces.

The steps that we are taking are the following:

- In the Town Hall web page (http://www.ayuntamientosanmiguel.com/) we have published all the information that we have received about the outbreak both from colleagues and universities.  You can find the phone numbers to ring on this web page.  In recent months, these documents have been downloaded hundreds of times.

- Hace un mes designamos un jardinero coordinador entre Ayuntamiento y Generalitat. Que ha visitado todos vecinos afectados (que tenemos constancia) y les ha informado sobre las recomendaciones actuales de lucha contra la plaga. Este jardinero municipal es quien coordinará las labores de retirada de las palmeras afectadas una vez que los propietarios las corten. Por ahora la Generalitat corre con estos gastos.

A month ago we appointed a gardener to co-ordinate between the Town Hall and Regional Government.  He has visited all the residents that we have a record of having reported the disease, and has informed them regarding the current recommendations about the fight to combat the disease.  This municipal gardener will co-ordinate the work of removing the affected palms once the owners have cut them down.  For now, Regional Government is paying for this work.

- Desde la Agencia de Desarrollo Local el lunes estaban preparando una campaña informativa para Administradores de fincas, Jardineros y Empresas de servicios principalmente.

- The Local Development Agency has been preparing an information campaign since Monday, for finca administrators, gardeners and businesses principally.

- La semana pasada contacté con Radio San Miguel para hacer una campaña informativa, espero que esté en marcha en unos días.

- Last week I contacted Radio San Miguel to ask them to do an information campaign, which I hope will start within the next few days.

- El jardinero municipal también está informando a los vecinos cuando detecta que tienen palmeras afectadas y si no están les deja información en su buzón de correos.

- The municipal gardener is also informing residents when he detects that they have infected palms, and if they aren´t in, is leaving information in their letterboxes.

   Por lo dicho al principio los protocolos de actuación y recomendaciones de lucha están cambiando junto con los avances en las investigaciones por lo que recomiendo a cualquier vecino que se informe en el Ayuntamiento o pregunte a técnicos cualificados antes de llevar a cabo cualquier acción de lucha.

Having said all that, the recommended protocols for combatting the outbreak are subject to change as the study of the disease continues, therefore I recommend that you keep yourselves informed via the Town Hall or ask qualified personnel before taking any action yourselves.

[SMdS]

That is very swift and very helpful Juan Roman... thank you. I realise you are fully aware of this problem. It might be useful to know what measures the Administration will take to advise and help residents with infestation of The Red Palm Weevil on PRIVATE PROPERTY... the Administration may deal with infestations in the public domain but to fail to offer some sort of remedy to the owners of property who have such palms would be ineffective to any municipal strategy to deal with the problem.

As always Juan Roman, I, on behalf of all residents, am very grateful for your interest... we must work together for the common interest.
Always your friend (sincerely), David   

[Juan Roman]

   Resaltar que, en este momento, la Generalitat asume los gastos de trasporte de la palmera desde el origen hasta el lugar de destrucción, en el caso de las palmeras muertas que corten los propietarios, siempre que se coordine su recogida a través del Ayuntamiento. Esto tiene un coste importante.

To re-emphasise, at the moment Regional Government is assuming the costs of transportation of infected palms from where they were growing to their place of destruction, in the case of dead palms, provided that their collection is arranged via the Town Hall.  The costs involved are significant.

   Los gastos de cuidados, tratamientos fitosanitarios y corte o tala de las palmeras son asumidos por los dueños de las mismas.

The costs of taking care of, disease treatments, pruning and chopping down of the palms are to be assumed by the owners.

   También quiero resaltar que con los cuidados adecuados se están recuperando y salvando muchas de las palmeras atacadas por el picudo rojo. Esto lo puedo asegurar por mi hermano jardinero que por ahora ha conseguido recuperar y mantener a salvo unas palmeras en una zona completamente infectada.

I would also like to emphasise that with the right steps, it has been possible to restore and save many of the palms that have been attacked by the red palm weevil.  This has been confirmed to me by brother who is a gardener, who has already managed to save several palms that had been completely infected.

[SpanishRed]

Is there a recommended treatment method that residents can follow?
Is there an insecticide especially for the red palm weevil?

If there is it may be a good idea for urbanisations to arrange their own spraying en mass rather than individually. Perhaps the Ayuntamiento could help with the project.

[foxy]

I have taken the liberty of translating Juan Roman´s comments into English (in bold).

P.S SMdS has also sent Juan Roman a request for comment on SpanishRed's posting 

[Juan Roman]

Gracias por ayudar con la traducción Andy.

Not at all ! (de nada)


Tengo unas recomendaciones pero quiero contrastar con un experto, al que por cierto hoy le he ayudado a colocar una trampa para picudo.

I´ve got some advice, but I want to check it with the expert that I helped to set a weevil trap for today.

Cuando reciba las correcciones de este ingeniero pondré estas recomendaciones, como siempre, en la web municipal a disposición de todos los interesados. Este es el mejor punto de información.

When I receive his corrections, I´ll publish his recommendations, as usual, on the town hall website so that everyone can read them.  This is the primary point of information.

Adjunto las fotos de la trampa como curiosidad, no para animar a ponerlas ya que podríamos atraer el escarabajo hacia zonas que no están infectadas. Como siempre mi recomendación es asesorarse bien por expertos antes de realizar cualquier acción, ya que se emplean productos químicos más o menos tóxicos, lo que requiere adoptar las medidas de prevención y manipulación adecuadas.

I´m attaching the photos of the trap for your interest, not to encourage you to set them yourselves yet, because you could end up attracting the weevils to areas that aren´t yet affected.  As always, my recommendation is to only take action as advised by experts, especially as it involves fairly toxic chemicals, which require proper handling.

[SpanishRed]

Here is a summary of my neighbours’ experience with the Red Palm Weevil in Villas Maria.
 
Last October they had a problem with the palm weevil.  A palm tree became infested and by the time they had realised, the tree had died. That was within 48 hours.  They informed the Ayuntamiento in San Miguel who gave them a telephone number of someone who was collecting data about infected trees in the province of Alicante (660 547 327). 

They told my neighbour that they would remove the tree within 20 days, but in the meantime they had to cover the tree so that the weevils would not escape.  After 20 days they had heard nothing.  They continued to ring them almost every day but only reached an answerphone. 

After 2-3 weeks, and leaving many messages, they again spoke to someone in the Ayuntamiento.  He said he would contact Valencia for them but again they heard nothing.

In December because of the horrible smell of the rotting tree they investigated paying a company to remove the tree.  They called Paddy (Palm Farm – 628 532 044) and were told it would cost them €200.  It is a registered company for removing the trees and disposing of them properly. 

They asked Nordist Garden Centre who told my neighbour that €9 million was allocated to Valencia for this purpose, but nothing seems to have happened.  Now they believe that they have to take responsibility for removing their own tree, at their own cost.

Inevitably, if this is the case, infected trees will just be dumped further exacerbating the problem.

[foxy]

Vicente, from the Via Augusta hiking group, has found a great website by a local chap who has been inspired by the recent threat to the palm trees to photograph and document examples of old and neglected buildings and their accompanying palm trees for posterity.

http://casaconpalmera.blogspot.com/

The accompanying text is highly readable too, I just wish I had all morning to read it all, but here´s a translation of one small part:

Cada Casa con Palmera ha adquirido su propia belleza. A primera vista solo son Casas en ruina, abandonadas, o medio deshabitadas. Ya quedan unas pocas, pero las escasas que han sobrevivido y digo sobrevivir porque después de observarlas largo tiempo y admirarlas he aprendido a ver la vida que tienen, me he acostumbrado a hablar con ellas y la verdad sea dicha, (y siendo consciente de mi apariencia de locura), si uno se sienta frente a una casa de estas, lo mas probable sea que le pase lo que a mí, se les ve la vida, son capaces de contarte su historia, y habiendo descubierto y aprendido como comunicarme con estas Casas con Palmeras, he decidido abrir este Blog para pedir ayuda

Every House with Palmtree has aquired it´s own beauty.  At first sight, they are just houses in ruins, abandoned or practically uninhabited.  There are only a few left, but the few that have survived and I say survive because after observing them for a long time and admiring them I have learnt to see the life they have, and have got used to talking to them, and if the truth be known (and being conscious of how mad I must look), if one sites in front of one of these houses, probably the same will happen as happens to me, you see the life in them, and they are capable of telling you their story, and having discovered and learnt how to communicate with these Houses with Palm Trees, I have decided to start this Blog to ask for help......

[SMdS]

Celia and I had an interesting conversation about this problem with Paco, Municipal Parks & Gardens of Torre de Horadada. He is responsible for the management of several hundred palms, including those along the promenade of which he has lost none to The Red Palm Weevil. He told us that he has a strict programme of pruning and spraying 8 times a year (he didn't tell us which product) 25 days apart in the periods when the pest is most active. The real problem, he told us, is 'private' palms, those in gardens and on land. Many private owners are absent for periods of the year and do nothing to prevent infestation and this was evident by a number of dead palms in gardens along the seafront, within yards of his healthy ones. Equally he said, palms on tracts of private agricultural and developers land simply aren't treated at all and there is nothing municipalities can do about this.

Driving around San Miguel de Salinas it is more than evident that many palms have succumbed to The Red Palm Weevil, I see more and more as I am aware of the issue... all are on private land!   

[SpanishRed]

I hope we can get someone to translate what is said at this meeting. It would be good to get the information out ASAP.

El proximo lunes dia 26 de abril, a las 12,30 horas tendra lugar una charla sobre el Picudo Rojo de la palmera. En la Casa de la Cultura de San Miguel de Salinas para hablar sobre detección y los medios de control y lucha contra la plaga. Dirigido a técnicos y profesionales del sector.

La charla la impartirán técnicos expertos de la Generalitat Valenciana.

Next Monday April 26 p.m. 12,30 will place a talk about the Red Palm Weevil. In the House of the culture of San Miguel de Salinas to discuss detection and means of control and the fight against the plague. Aimed at technicians and professionals of the sector.

The talk is taught by technical experts of the Valencian Generalitat