Dispersal of the date stone beetle Coccotrypes dactyliperda (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Scolytinae) in a managed rural landscape

There are only limited experimental or observational data on vertical and horizontal flight capacity of Coccotrypes dactyliperda Fabricius, 1801 (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Scolytinae), a major pest in date palm plantations throughout the Mediterranean and Middle East. This paper provides a set of proxy data, using actual observations of colonisation rates of Phoenix canariensis (Chabaud, 1882) (Arecales, Arecaceae) seeds in a linear planting array at Alma Park (NSW, Australia). The majority of dispersal movements occurs between adjacent or near adjacent seeds, followed by palms in close proximity with movements less than 4–5 m. While the maximum observed dispersal distance is 350 m, data suggest that a 36 m gap between two groups of palms is beyond the flight/dispersal range of most C. dactyliperda individuals and that colonisation over such distances would be a rare event. Since seed location is aided by temperature-sensitive alcohol-mediated kairomones, the chances of a beetle finding a new seed to colonise over longer distances are increasingly diminished during the summer months, thereby reducing reproductive success.