Squash that Bug!

At the South Pacific Memorial Peace Park in Yigo, I tried to get a good picture of the praying hands memorial and the coconut tree in the foreground caught my attention. 

This tree was ravaged by the disgusting Rhino beetle.  The technology that was created to eradicate this invasive species is not working. 

An excerpt from Guam Pacific Daily News,

Rhino Beetle caught in tekken, net

First a virus that has helped control previous infestations of rhino beetles in other islands doesn’t affect the ones found here, accordingto researchers. It seems the beetles in Guam have developed immunity to the virus known as Oryctes nudivirus, said Aubrey Moore, a University of Guam entomologist.

Rhino beetle bore holes into trunk

The virus is the most effective means to take care of the beetles, Moore said. Other methods include using a fungus that attacks the beetles. This method has been effective with the Guam rhino beetles, but doesn’t have as great an impact as the virus, he said.

Tekken wrapped around trunk of coconut tree

Bundles of  tekken, or gill net, material are photographed attached to a coconut tree outside the Agriculture and Life Science building at the University of Guam. Roland Quitugua, University of Guam's Cooperative Extension Outreach extension agent, says the method, which he calls the bowtie method, has been found to be effectiveness to a point, of protecting the trees from the invasion of coconut rhinoceros beetles. Quitugua found that some beetles looking to nest or feed on the tree, become entangled in the netting. (PDN)

“Failure to act will result in the rapid spread of the beetle with damage to economic activity and food security through many of the most vulnerable parts of the tropical world,” Trevor Jackson of AgResearch New Zealand said.

This is very disheartening news because many Island nations use the coconut for means of safeguarding their culture.  In turn, if we squash this beetle we can preserve our culture because I believe culture is how we thrive as a human and how we deal with challenges in the future.