At the Makalena and West Loch golf courses, the coconut trees and other palms are being attacked by the coconut rhinoceros beetles, (CRB). Every time I golf, I see more injured and dead trees. Left alone, it seems like the CRB will stop only when they run out of food. Apparently the local CRB has the Guam genotype and they have no natural enemies.

Fortunately, research at the University of Hawaii has developed a new control tool: systemic pesticide injection. This was field-tested at Iroquois Point and Pearl City Peninsula. Systemic injection uses less pesticide than drenching trees or soil with pesticide. Guam has started to use systemic injection to control the CRB at the ports of entry to prevent the spread to other Pacific communities.

While good landscape and tree hygiene can slow the spread, can we start the discussion on if this tool should be used to protect coconut trees, native loulou palms, royal palms, or ports of entry? Do we need to fund more UH research to develop guidelines for more types of threatened palms?

Jon Yanagida

Mililani

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