Quantification of the Life Time Flight Capabilities of the South American Palm Weevil, Rhynchophorus palmarum (L.) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

The life time flight capabilities of an invasive palm pest, , were assessed using flight mill assays under controlled conditions in the laboratory. A total of 101 weevils were used for experiments and subjected to repeat flight assays. A total of 17 flight trials were run, of which the first 14 prov...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Insects (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2021-02, Vol.12 (2), p.126
Main Authors: Hoddle, Mark S, Hoddle, Christina D, Milosavljević, Ivan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Controlled conditions
Dispersal
Experiments
Flight
flight mill
Humidity
Insects
Kurtosis
Laboratories
Pests
Quarantine
Rhynchophorus palmarum
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Summary:The life time flight capabilities of an invasive palm pest, , were assessed using flight mill assays under controlled conditions in the laboratory. A total of 101 weevils were used for experiments and subjected to repeat flight assays. A total of 17 flight trials were run, of which the first 14 provided useful data prior to weevil death. Male and female weevils exhibited a strong capacity for repeat long distance flights. Flight metrics of interest were not affected by weevil sex or mating status. Cumulative lifetime flight distances for male and female averaged ~268 km and ~220 km, respectively. A maximum lifetime cumulative flight distance of ~758 km and ~806 km was recorded for one male of unknown mating status and one unmated female weevil, respectively. Dispersal data for individual flights (i.e., trials 1 through 9, 10-14 combined) and all flight trial data (i.e., flights 1-14 combined) exhibited platykurtic distributions. The results presented here may have important implications for modeling the spread of this invasive pest and for the development of monitoring and management plans.
ISSN:2075-4450
2075-4450
DOI:10.3390/insects12020126