- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
South American palm weevils that have made their way north from Mexico are having a destructive impact on palm trees in the San Diego region, reported Abbie Alford on CBS News 8 TV in San Diego.
UC Cooperative Extension specialist Mark Hoddle, the director of the Center for Invasive Species Research at UC Riverside, toured the reporter through the hard-hit Sweetwater Reserve in Bonita, where 10 percent of the palms die every three months.
“We are going to see hundreds, thousands...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
One of Los Angeles' quintessential icons - palm trees - are being threatened by an invasive pest from overseas - the South American palm weevil. KQED Science produced a clever overview on the life and times of this devastating pest, punctuating it with a surprise ending that features UC Cooperative Extension specialist Mark Hoddle.
The story outlines the pest's life cycle, which starts when a female lays its eggs in the crown of a palm. They hatch and larvae eat the plant from the inside out, eventually killing the palm. The larvae pupate, complete...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Communities in Southern California are watching their valued landscape palm trees suffer mortal damage from an invasive pest that is making its way northward from Mexico, reported Marty Graham in San Diego Reader. The South American palm weevil lays eggs in the palm tree's crown, where its grubs destroy tissue that holds the fronds.
"The first sign of infestation is seeing the crown droop and turn brown," said Mark Hoddle, UC Cooperative Extension biological control specialist at UC Riverside. In time, the crown can fall off.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Southern California's iconic palm trees are now threatened by another invasive species, the South American palm weevil, reported Mark Muckenfuss in the Riverside Press Enterprise.
Mark Hoddle, UC Cooperative Extension specialist based at UC Riverside, has been monitoring the pest south of the border and recently visited Tijuana to assess the infestation.
"We found about 130 dead Canary Island palms," Hoddle said. "It's been devastating in Tijuana."
On the way back to Riverside, he stopped in Chula Vista, where he noticed dead palm...
