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The red palm weevil (RPW), Rhynchophorus ferrugineus, is a snout beetle insect that has caused severe and widespread damage to coconut, date and oil plantations. Several approached to eradicate the problems as been attempted, with little sustainable results. The weevil larvae spend its entire four-month life cycle within the trunk of the palm tree. These larvae bore deep into the palm trunk, crowns, and offshoots, thereby hollowing the inside until the tree dies. The female RPW distributes her eggs within the cavities of a tree, typically at the base of the leaves, crowns, and adjacent to the offshoots. The larvae remain undetected, allowing several generations of weevil to develop within a single tree. As young palm trees are traded between countries, the pest spreads between plantations worldwide. Thus, to prevent the heavy implementation of potentially harmful pesticides, early detection, eradication treatment, and prevention methods are necessary to mitigate infestations.

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