Nature of damage:
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•Few small holes with protruding chewed fibrous material and oozing out of a brown liquid from such holes, present in the tree trunk, indicate the early infestation by the pest.
•In the advanced stage of attack the central shoot shows sign of wilting and a large mass of grubs, pupae and adults of the insect could be seen inside the trunk at the affected portion.
•In the grown up trees the crown region alone is infested.
Management
•Remove and burn all wilting or damaged palms in coconut gardens to prevent further perpetuation of the pest.
•Avoid injuries on stems of palms as the wounds may serve as oviposition sites for the weevil.
•Fill all holes in the stem with cement.
•Avoid the cutting of green leaves. If needed, they should be cut about 120 cm away from the stem.
•Setting up of attractant traps (mud pots) containing sugarcane molasses 2½ kg or toddy 2½ litres + acetic acid 5 ml + yeast 5 g + longitudinally split tender coconut stem/logs of green petiole of leaves of 30 numbers in one acre to trap adult red palm weevils in large numbers.
•Install pheromone trap @ 12 per ha.
•Fill the crown and the axils of top most three leaves with a mixture of fine sand and neem seed powder or neem seed kernel powder (2:1) once in three months to prevent the attack of rhinoceros beetle damage in which the red palm weevil lays eggs.
•Plug all holes and inject pyrocone E or carbaryl 1% into the stem by drilling a hole above the points of attack.