Palm Protect Conference Strategies for the eradication and containment of the invasive pests Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Olivier and Paysandisia archon Burmeister Neil Audsley (Food and Environment Research Agency, UK)

Agenda 10:05 – 10:35Plenary lecture Overview of a successful eradication programme conducted in the Canary Islands. Dña. Rosa Martín Suárez, Gobierno de Canarias 10:35 – 11:20Biology of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Paysandisia archon 11:20 – 11:50Coffee break 11:50 – 12:35Detection of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Paysandisia archon 12:35 – 13:00Control of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Paysandisia archon 13:00 – 13:15The economic impact of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus 13:15 – 14:00Demonstrations (outside) Injections/CPLAS 14:00 – 15:30Lunch (not provided)/ Posters/Networking 15:30 – 16:30Open questions 16:30Close of meeting

Background  Palm trees (in Europe) under threat from larvae of the red palm weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus ) and the palm borer moth (Paysandisia archon).  Introduced accidentally, import of infested palms.  Larvae bore into trees and feed on succulent plant material.  Resulting damage often only visible long after infestation, often resulting in death of the tree. Paysandisia archon Rhynchophorus ferrugineus

Red Palm Weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus  Native to southern Asia and Melanesia.  Attacks > 20 species of palms worldwide  First report in Spain in 1996, now present throughout Europe where susceptible palms grown. Range includes much of Asia, Oceania, North Africa, Mediterranean basin, the Caribbean and North America.

Palm Borer Moth Paysandisia archon  Native to South America, but not considered a pest.  Europe, first report in France and Spain in Italy, Cyprus Crete, Greece Czech Republic  Large host range.  Rarely kills date or canary palms.  May encourage weevil attack.

Control: inadequate and ineffective  Larvae concealed within the plant  detection  delivery of pesticide.  Restricted use of pesticides  legislation  environmental concerns  High rate of spread  Inadequate containment and eradication  private gardens  re-infestation  Lack of effective early detection methods

Impact  Exotic palms, urban landscape  French Riviera  Italian Adriatic coast  Native palms  Canary Islands  Crete  Elche in Spain  Food production  Date palms Economic importance  Estimated annual losses several € 100M  Israel, sale and export of palms and dates, > € 100M per annum  c. 4,500 hectares of date palms ( = c. 500,000 trees), 27,000 tons fruit/year  Spain  > 50,000 trees destroyed, estimated cost €800/tree  > €45M on eradication and control

Palm Protect  3-year project  January 2012 to December 2014 Strategies for the eradication and containment of the invasive pests Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Olivier and Paysandisia archon Burmeister

Partners Agricultural Research Organisation, Israel Egypt Benaki Phytopathological Institute Greece Slovenia Spain Italy France

Objectives To develop methods to eradicate, control and contain R. ferrugineus and P. archon, to restrict their further invasion of EU territories. Control Detection Biology Management Dissemination Risk and impact

Objectives Biology Didier Rochat, INRA, France. To provide improved and new means for the detection and control of R. ferrugineus and P. archon through a better understanding of their biology, olfactory guided behaviours and their natural enemies. Detection and Monitoring Victoria Soroker, Agricultural Research Organisation, Israel. To help prevent the spread and establishment of R. ferrugineus and P. archon by developing tools for their early detection in quarantine and in the field

Objectives Control Josep Jacas, Universitat Jaume I Identify, develop and validate control methods to eradicate and/or contain the red palm weevil and the palm borer moth. Valuing what is at risk and estimating impacts and estimating impacts Alan MacLeod, Fera Describe the market of amenity palms and palm products and estimate the value of palm trees in the Euro-Mediterranean region. Identify the potential socio-economic impacts of R. ferrugineus and P. archon. Estimate costs of implementing pest management options.

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Acknowledgements Dña. Rosa Martín Suárez, Gobierno de Canarias Antonio Gonzolez Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Water Josep Jacas, Oscar Demblio (Universitat Jaume I) Claire Charlton, Sara Sanchez Hernandez (Fera) This work has received funding from the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme under grant agreement No. FP7 KBBE (Palm Protect)