12162d6b338b220aa7f7d06c0d3ff3bf

TitleRhynchophorus ferrugineus
Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/
Rating3
VettedTrusted
Description
This beautiful but very nasty weevil is responsible for killing a great number of palm trees here in Crete. It lays its eggs into the palm trunks where the larvae develop and basically devour the palm tree from the inside. There is little hope for the tree once this beetle has decided to use it as a kindergarten - cutting down the palm tree and burning it at least prevents the larvae to develop and infest the next tree. The beetle is about 3-4cm big, and its larvae are even bigger, sometimes finger-sized (and they are eaten in Papua New Guinea!). The red palm weevil originally comes from Asia but during the last years has invaded nearly all Mediterranean countries, infesting palm trees where it finds them...
Original URLhttps://farm3.staticflickr.com/2479/3548554353_36a2b70be3_o.jpg
photographersarah faulwetter
providerFlickr: EOL Images
Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith