371
Indonesian Journal of Science & Technology 6(2) (2021) 371-384

Indonesian Journal of Science & Technology
Journal homepage: http://ejournal.upi.edu/index.php/ijost/

An Assessment of the Efficacy of Pheromone Traps in
Managing the Red Palm Weevil
Rachid Sabbahi1,2*, Khalil Azzaoui3, Belkheir Hammouti3
1

University of Ibn Zohr, Higher School of Technology, Quartier 25 Mars, P.O. Box 3007, Laayoune, Morocco and
Faculty of Sciences, Laboratory of Plant Biotechnology, P.O. Box 8106, Hay Dakhla, Agadir, Morocco.
2
Agricultural Research Department, Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
3
Laboratory of Applied Chemistry and Environment LCAE, Faculty of Science, First Mohammed University,
P.O. Box 717, 60 000 Oujda, Morocco
Correspondence: E-mail: r.sabbahi@uiz.ac.ma

ABSTRACT
This experiment was performed in date palm farms to assess
the effectiveness of a newly designed pheromone trap (i.e.,
funnel trap) in capturing red palm weevil (RPW) adults and
to compare it to traditional traps. The number of captured
RPWs varied by month, with a total of 3931 adults captured
during the experiment. Analysis of variance demonstrated
significant differences in the number of captures between
the three traps. The funnel traps captured 1627 RPW adults
in total, while the buried and burlap bucket traps captured
1079 and 1225 weevils, respectively. The mean (± SE)
number of captures/trap/weeks was 2.62 ± 0.11 in funnel
traps, which was significantly higher than that of buried
bucket traps (1.73 ± 0.06) and burlap bucket traps (1.97 ±
0.07). Both sexes were attracted to traps; however, the
number of female weevils captured was significantly higher
than that of males with a sex ratio (female/male) of 1.58 ±
0.03. According to the findings, the pheromone-food-bait
funnel trap is a promising solution for reducing RPW
populations and thus protecting date palm trees from
infestations.
© 2021 Tim Pengembang Jurnal UPI

ARTICLE INFO
Article History:
Submitted/Received 07 Dec 2020
First revised 01 Mar 2021
Accepted 15 May 2021
First available online 29 May 2021
Publication
date 01 Sep 2021
____________________
Keyword:
Aggregation pheromone,
Date palm,
Mass trapping,
Monitoring,
Red palm weevil,
Rhynchophorus ferrugineus

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1. INTRODUCTION
The date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) is
recognized as one of the most valuable
commercial fruit species in the United Arab
Emirates (UAE), as well as its social
importance and heritage prestige (Chao and
Krueger, 2007). Coleopteran weevils attack a
diverse range of palm species across the
globe (Kassem, et al., 2020). The red palm
weevil (RPW) Rhynchophorus ferrugineus
Olivier (Coleoptera: Dryophthoridae) is one
of the biggest threats facing palm agriculture
today. This invasive species is originated from
Southeast Asia and Melanesia. By the mid1980s, the pest had spread to the Middle
East, and then it moved into northern Africa
and southern Europe, eventually reaching
North America in 2009 (Faleiro, 2006;
Rugman-Jones, et al., 2013). Ecological niche
models predict that this pest can expand its
range into novel climatic environments (Witt,
et al., 2020). In Morocco, “Bayoud”, a
vascular wilt disease, incited by the soilborne
fungal pathogen Fusarium oxysporum f. sp.
albedinis (FOA), was treated by Asteriscus
graveolens (Forssk.) oil rich by 6 -Oxocyclonerolidol, cis - 8 - acetoxy chrysanthenyl
acetate, cis-chrysantenylacetate, 6-hydroxy
cyclonerol idol, cadinol and oxobisabolene
(0.2–5.5 wt%). Mycelial growth and spore
germination of FOA were found to be
strongly inhibited by the oil when tested
using agar dilution assay (Chibane, et al.,
2020).
Rhynchophorus
ferrugineus
has
significant socio-economic impact on the
date palm production sector and livelihoods
of farmers in affected areas of North Africa
and the Middle East (Faleiro, 2006). This
insect pest attacks over 40 palm species
(Antony, et al., 2021) by using their strong
jaws to burrow from the axils of the leaves to
the crown, where they feed voraciously.
These trees are killed once infested, resulting
in enormous losses of sustainable income

and food supplies for thousands (Dembilio, et
al., 2010).
Early detection of R. ferrugineus is
generally difficult since the larva feeds inside
the date palm trees and the related damage
is generally visible only after long-term
infestation (Dembilio and Jacas, 2011).
Furthermore, this feeding behavior provides
significant protection for the larvae against
chemical insecticides (Shi, et al., 2014). As a
result, particular emphasis is placed on the
implementation of an integrated pest
management (IPM) approach by using, in
particular, pheromone mass trapping and
biocontrol methods.
There are many preventive and curative
strategies for controlling RPW populations:
early detection, use of pesticides, removal of
severely-infested
palms,
mechanical
sanitation, and utilization of pheromonefood-bait traps (Al-Dosary, et al., 2016;
Kassem, et al., 2020). Due to the poor
effectiveness of the control measures
mentioned above, this insect still causes
substantial losses to the economy and
landscape (Faleiro, et al., 2019).
Since chemical applications raise serious
concerns about environmental pollution and
have an impact on human health, interest
has now turned to eco-friendly biological
control and to develop an efficient mass
trapping system. Indeed, RPW monitoring
and mass trapping using pheromone-foodbait traps is commonly studied (Faleiro and
Chellapan, 1999; El-Sayed, et al., 2006; Vacas
et al., 2013; Oehlschlager, 2016). In order to
maintain trapping efficiency, it is important
to follow the best trapping protocols
regarding pheromone lure, food-bait, trap
density, placement and servicing (NavarroLlopis et al., 2018; Vacas et al., 2014).
Hallett, et al. (1999) demonstrated that
the synthetic aggregation pheromone see
Figure 1 is more attractive to R. ferrugineus
when coupled with kairomones or volatiles
released from the host plant.

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Figure 1. Spatial chemical structure of ferrugineol (4-Methyl-5-Nonanol) as an aggregation
pheromone for Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Soroker, et al., 2005)
Furthermore, pheromone traps with dates
mixed in water attract high numbers of RPW
adults than other food baits (Faleiro and
Satarkar, 2005). Insecticides can also be
integrated into the pheromone traps to
prevent weevils escaping. Adding water to
traps baited with palm tissues is crucial, as
this attracts significantly more RPW adults
than the dry traps (Vacas, et al., 2013).
Ethanol and Ethyl acetate, as fermenting
compounds, may also enhance the
attractiveness of aggregation pheromones
and
eventually
substitute
natural
kairomones in R. ferrugineus trapping
systems (Oehlschlager, 2016; Vacas, et al.,
2017).
Other variables such as trap design, color,
height and weather conditions all have an
effect on the ability of pheromone-food-bait
traps to catch higher numbers of RPW adults
(Abuaglala and Al-Deeb, 2012; Hallett, et al.,
1999; Navarro-Llopis et al., 2018). Standard
bucket traps are utilized in combination with
pheromone traps to improve their
effectiveness or to add new functions to the
trap (Fanini, et al., 2014; Guarino et al.,
2011). On the other hand, Vacas et al., (2013)
reported that dome shaped traps captured

more weevils than bucket traps. In Saudi
Arabia, experiments with the service-less
pheromone trapping options ‘attract and kill’
traps as well as the dry trap that operates on
‘electromagnetic radio waves’ have been
shown to be promising (El-Shafie, et al.,
2011).
A trap designed to capture walking or
flying weevils is important to successfully
manage RPW populations (Cork, et al., 2003).
This study was undertaken to assess the
effectiveness of a newly designed
pheromone trap in capturing R. ferrugineus
adults, to compare it with conventional
bucket traps already used in UAE, and to
determine the importance of pheromonefood-bait traps in control management
programs.
2. METHODS
2.1. Study sites
The experiment was conducted in three
sites on northern, central and eastern region
in UAE from April 29 to December 08, 2014
(Site 1: 25°34'33.77"N, 55°57'19.79"E; Site 2:
25°8'9.36"N,
55°44'30.05"E;
Site
3:
25°20'40.37"N, 56°19'30.45"E) see Figure 2.
Three date palm farms with an area of more
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than 12 ha, and with moderate to severe
infestation and between 10 to 15 years of age
were considered for this experiment. Date
palms under the age of 20 are typically the
most affected, with most of the infestation
being limited to the trunk at a height of one
meter above ground (Kassem, et al., 2020).
2.2. Treatments and experimental design
Three trap types were tested during this
study see Figure 3. In UAE, the buried bucket
trap (Trap ‘A’) has been commonly utilized
for monitoring and mass trapping of R.
ferrugineus adults. This traditional trap
consists of a white plastic bucket with a lid
(10 L, 30 cm height), four equidistant 9 cm2
lateral windows (4 cm below the upper rim of
the bucket), and four identical windows on
the lid. The trap is placed buried in the soil till
the holes are level to the ground to facilitate
the entry of weevils.
The bucket trap with burlap covering (Trap
‘B’) has same characteristics like the buried
bucket trap but the bucket’s outer surface
was roughened with burlap glued to the
exterior to enable RPW adults climb up the
trap quickly and then reach the inside via the
windows, instead of sliding off the smooth
surface of the bucket. The trap was placed on
the ground and part of it was covered with
sand in order to safely fix it in place and to
prevent wind or any other external factors
from overturning the trap.
The newly designed funnel bottle trap
with a single-entry point on lid (Trap ‘C’) was
made by cutting off the neck of the bottle (15
L and 40 cm height) and the entire tapering
part of the top. The cap of the bottle is
removed. The tapering part is mounted
upside down on top of the rest of the bottle,
thus forming a funnel efficiently. The funnel
is then attached to the bottle with black
paper clips (25 mm). The bottle’s outer
surface was wrapped with burlap glued to
the exterior to enable RPW adults climb up
the trap quickly and enter inside. The trap
was placed on the ground and part of it was
covered with sand in order to safely fix it in

place and to prevent wind or any other
external factors from overturning the trap.
All traps were loaded with commercially
available
aggregation
pheromone
(FerrolureTM
700
mg,
ChemTica
International S.A., San Jose, Costa Rica), 350
g of dates as a fermenting fruit bait, 150 ml
of ethyl acetate, and 4 L of water. The
pheromone and ethyl acetate dispensers
were hung by a metal wire from the middle
of the trap cover. Dates that had previously
been immersed in water for 24 h prior were
then squeezed to drain the water before
being used in traps. As needed, water was
replenished to retain adequate moisture and
to drown the weevils in the traps.
Pheromone lure and dates were changed on
monthly basis to maintain trapping efficacy.
The experiment was conducted as a
randomized complete block design with
three treatments (pheromone-food-bait trap
‘A’, ‘B’ and ‘C’) and eight replicates. Each trap
was given a serial number and locations were
numbered on each site from 1 to 24. All traps
were placed 5 m from the border of each
farm, and the distance between them was
approximately 100 m. A perforated ladle was
utilized to collect the captured weevils, and
the trap was shaken to ovoid fungi or mold
from growing. The counts of RPW weevils
were taken every week. After the count, each
trap was rotated so that each trap appeared
at each place for one week period to prevent
location effects on collected weevils (Faleiro,
et al., 2002).
2.3. Statistical analysis
The data on weekly numbers of R.
ferrugineus adult captures per trap were
found to be non-normally distributed and
thus, the Kruskal-Wallis (K-W) one-way
nonparametric test was utilized to verify the
effect of trap type on mean number of
captured weevils per trap. If this test exposed
a significant effect (α = 0.05), differences
among the traps were confirmed by using the
Dunn’s test. SPSS Statistics version 16.0 (SPSS
Inc., Chicago, IL) was used to analyze the
data.
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Figure 2. Locations of study sites for Rhynchophorous ferrugineus trapping experiments. The
inset map indicates the location of the main map in the United Arab Emirates.

Figure 3. The three types of pheromone-food-bait traps used in the experiments: ‘A’: buried
bucket trap; ‘B’: bucket trap with burlap; and ‘C’: funnel bottle trap with single entry point
on lid
3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
3.1. Activity of RPW in date palm farms
From April to December 2014, the average
number of red palm weevils in the first site
(northern region) reached about 2.16 ± 0.15
weevils per trap, compared with 2.05 ± 0.06

and 2.13 ± 0.06 adults per trap in the second
(central region) and third site (eastern
region), respectively (K–W test; χ2 = 24.89, df
= 2, p <0.0001) see Table 1. Rhynchophorus
ferrugineus was present during the
experiment period, but the numbers of the
captured RPWs varied across the months.
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Figure 4 demonstrates the fluctuation of R.
ferrugineus populations. This fluctuation can
also be noted on a weekly basis. There were
two population peaks during the
experimental period: the first peak being in
May and the second in October, with
monthly mean
numbers of adult
captures/trap of 2.76 and 2.60 adults,
respectively.
Rhynchophorus ferrugineus seasonal
fluctuations can be monitored by analyzing
the numbers of weevils captured in
pheromone traps. Our results indicated high
capture rates during May and October in
2014 which support those reported by AlSaoud (2018). They demonstrated that RPW
captures in UAE reflected similar trends, with
a major peak during the spring and a smaller
one in the fall. Also, two activity peaks of R.
ferrugineus were noticed during April and
November in Egypt (El-Sebay, 2003). El-Garhy
(1996) reported high capture rates of this
insect during the period of April - June, which
slowed down during the winter season.

Likewise, in Saudi Arabia, Abraham, et al.,
(1999) have shown that the high capture
rates of weevils were during May and
September in 1997.
Furthermore, RPW has high activity during
spring rather than autumn (Vidyasagar, et al.,
2000). Eggs laid in autumn are typically
caught in the winter, resulting in fewer
infestations compared to oviposition
occurring during the first peak between
March and May (Faleiro, 2006). However,
RPW reproduction occurs throughout the
year, and as a result damage from this pest is
high and control by chemical insecticides is
difficult to attain, since their application must
cease during the pollination period (midFebruary to the end of March), and during
the crop maturing and harvesting season
(June - October). For adequate control of this
pest, pheromone trapping must be combined
with other IPM techniques, such as regular
inspection of date plantations, removal of
heavily infested trees, and phytosanitary
measures (El-Shafie and Faleiro, 2017).

Table 1. Rhynchophorus ferrugineus response to different pheromone-food-bait traps in
date palm farms, United Arab Emirates from April 29 to December 08, 2014
Number of adult
captures/trap
Site 1
Trap ‘A’
Trap ‘B’
Trap ‘C’
Site 2
Trap ‘A’
Trap ‘B’
Trap ‘C’
Site 3
Trap ‘A’
Trap ‘B’
Trap ‘C’
Total

974
221
284
469
1475
446
460
576
1482
412
481
582
3931

Mean (± SE)
number of adult
captures/trap/week
2.16 ± 0.15a
1.47 ± 0.17
1.89 ± 0.23
3.13 ± 0.34
2.05 ± 0.06b
1.72 ± 0.09
2.00 ± 0.09
2.43 ± 0.12
2.13 ± 0.06b
1.92 ± 0.08
1.98 ± 0.09
2.48 ± 0.13
2.11 ± 0.05

Ratio
(Female/Male)
1.26 ± 0.10a
1.18 ± 0.19
1.40 ± 0.22
1.21 ± 0.09
1.71 ± 0.04b
1.65 ± 0.08
1.77 ± 0.07
1.70 ± 0.06
1.58 ± 0.04b
1.60 ± 0.05
1.57 ± 0.06
1.57 ± 0.06
1.58 ± 0.03

Different letters above the columns denote statistically significant differences at P < 0.05 (Dunn’s test). Site 1:
Al-Hamraniah, northern region; site 2: Qatah, central region; and site 3: Khorfakkan, eastern region. ‘A’: buried
bucket trap; ‘B’: bucket trap with burlap; and ‘C’: funnel bottle trap with single entry point on lid. SE: standard
error of the mean.
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3.2. RPW sex ratio
Sex differences in trap captures have been
noted. Both sexes were attracted to traps;
however, the number of female weevils
captured was significantly higher than that of
males with a sex ratio (female/male) of 1.58
± 0.03 (based on a total of 1866 specimens).
The female/male ratio in the first site was
1.26 ± 0.10, compared with 1.71 ± 0.04 and
1.58 ± 0.04 in the second and third site,
respectively (K–W test; χ2 = 74.19, df =
2, p <0.0001) see Table 1. Trap design did not
influence this ratio (K–W test; χ2 = 2.62, df =
2, p = 0.270) see Table 2.
Results showed that R. ferrugineus
captures were female dominated during the
study period see Figure 4. The sex ratio of the
weevil population is assumed to be 1:1.
However, in various pheromone trapping
experiments, the captures in traps are
dominated by females with a ratio of about
1:2 (males:females) (El-Garhy, 1996; Vacas,

et al., 2013; Aldryhim and Ayedh, 2015). In
this study, the overall average of sex ratio
(females/males) was 1.58 ± 0.03 which is
slightly lower ratio than those found in the
literature. The number of female captures
per trap is almost higher than that of males
(Faleiro, 2006), which could be attributable
to the fact that females disperse more rather
than males looking for suitable food sources
for their offspring (Soroker, et al., 2005). In
addition, the male-released aggregation
pheromone might attract more female
weevils than males. RPW females lay about
250-350 eggs within the palm tissue (Kassem,
et al., 2020), and the offspring will be spread
from an infested tree to infest others in few
months. A significant number of date palms
can be destroyed by R. ferrugineus in a short
period of time due to the insects’ fecundity
and dispersal capacity. High female captures
in mass trapping programs help to reduce the
RPW outbreaks (Oehlschlager, 2007).

Figure 4. Average monthly catch of Rhynchophorous ferrugineus adults per pheromonefood-bait trap in date palm farms located at the northern, central and eastern regions of the
United Arab Emirates from April 29 to December 08, 2014
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Table 2. Trapping efficacy of different pheromone-food-bait traps in capturing red palm
weevil adults in the United Arab Emirates from April 29 to December 8, 2014.
Number of adult
captures/trap
Trap ‘A’
Site 1
Site 2
Site 3
Trap ‘B’
Site 1
Site 2
Site 3
Trap ‘C’
Site 1
Site 2
Site 3
Total

1079
221
446
412
1225
284
460
481
1627
469
576
582
3931

Mean (± SE)
number of adult
captures/trap/week
1.73 ± 0.06a
1.47 ± 0.17
1.92 ± 0.08
1.72 ± 0.09
1.97 ± 0.07a
1.89 ± 0.23
1.98 ± 0.09
2.00 ± 0.09
2.62 ± 0.11b
3.13 ± 0.34
2.48 ± 0.13
2.43 ± 0.12
2.11 ± 0.05

Ratio
(Female/Male)
1.55 ± 0.05a
1.18 ± 0.19
1.60 ± 0.08
1.65 ± 0.06
1.56 ± 0.04a
1.40± 0.22
1.77 ± 0.07
1.57 ± 0.06
1.63 ± 0.05a
1.21 ± 0.09
1.70 ± 0.06
1.75 ± 0.06
1.58 ± 0.03

Different letters above the columns denote statistically significant differences at P < 0.05 (Dunn’s test). ‘A’:
buried bucket trap; ‘B’: bucket trap with burlap; and ‘C’: funnel bottle trap with single entry point on lid. Site 1:
Al-Hamraniah, northern region; site 2: Qatah, central region; and site 3: Khorfakkan, eastern region. SE: standard
error of the mean.

3.3. Impact of trap designs on number of
captured weevils
During the field experiment, a total of
3931 R. ferrugineus adults (2.11 ± 0.05
individuals per trap per week) were captured
see Table 1. The trap design had a significant
effect on weevil captures at sampling sites
(K–W test; northern: χ2 = 13.70; df = 2; p <
0.001; central: χ2 = 18.48; df = 2; p < 0.0001;
and eastern: χ2 = 8.38; df = 2; p = 0.015).
According to the results of Dunn’s test,
significantly more weevils were captured in
pheromone-food-bait funnel traps than in
buried or burlap bucket traps see Table 1.
Collectively, the comparison between the
means (± SE) for the total numbers of adult
captures per trap in all sites by using each of
the different trap designs see Table 2
confirms the aforementioned findings (K-W
test; χ2 = 36.32, df = 2, p <0.0001). The funnel
traps captured a total of 1627 RPWs, while
the buried and burlap bucket traps captured
1079 and 1225 weevils, respectively. The
mean weekly trap catch of R. ferrugineus

adults was 2.62 ± 0.11 in funnel traps,
significantly higher than those captured by
buried bucket traps (1.73 ± 0.06) and burlap
bucket traps (1.97 ± 0.07) see Table 2. The
highest trap catch was on October 02, 2014,
where 25 adults were captured per funnel
trap, 20 adults per buried bucket trap, and 9
adults per burlap bucket trap.
Palm weevils are found in relatively small
numbers in most date palm farms and have a
longlife span (Abdel-Azim, et al., 2019). These
features make it possible for intensive
trapping to be an effective control strategy as
the trapping of low numbers will have an
impact on subsequent populations and a
considerable percentage of a weevil
population can be caught over a long time
period, they are vulnerable to traps baited
with the synthetic pheromone and food
materials. Since RPW is considered as a
strong flyer, pheromone traps can be widely
spaced (Hoddle, et al., 2015) and trapping is
more effective than spraying to control R.
ferrugineus populations (Oehlschlager,
2007). Consequently, the traps of greatest
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efficacy are those that facilitate the entry of
weevils; Traps should then be constructed
taking into account the RPW behavior.
The current study on trapping RPW adults
in date palm farms in UAE reveal that capture
rates were significantly affected by the trap
design. Our results demonstrate that the
funnel traps are more effective in trapping R.
ferrugineus weevils than the traditional ones
(bucket traps). Collectively, the percentages
of captured weevils per trap in the three sites
were 41, 31, and 27 % for funnel traps, burlap
bucket traps, and buried traps, respectively.
With regards to the trap design, the fourwindow bucket trap was commonly used to
trap RPW. In contrast to bucket traps, domeshaped traps catch more weevils (Vacas, et
al., 2013). However, even though the domeshaped trap is successful, the required time
to service this trap can be longer. Bucket
traps set on the ground have been recorded
to be the most efficient since they make
easier the entry of R. ferrugineus adults
(Hallett, et al., 1993; Faleiro, 2006).
Moreover, the bucket traps captured a
higher number of RPW adults than pyramidal
traps (Al-Saroj, et al., 2017). The inverted
bucket trap was less efficient as compared to
the straight bucket trap, possibly due to the
fact that the moisture which is essential to
catch RPWs could be lost quickly. In contrast,
straight buckets are easy to service and
retain moisture for a long period. Even more,
straight bucket traps with a roughened outer
surface were the most successful. In Saudi
Arabia, the upright bucket trap surrounded
by a mat is the preferred trap for R.
ferrugineus (Hoddle, et al., 2013), and the
bucket trap with a molded rough surface is
usually utilized in UAE.
As R. ferrugineus flies, lands and then
walks into the trap, a roughened outer
surface of the trap is required to allow the
weevil to climb comfortably into the trap.
Notoriously, most trap types are unable to
catch all the weevils that are drawn to their
vicinage, due to the weevil escape or the

difficulty to reach the inside of the trap.
Escape ratios ranging from 2 to 43 % were
also noticed when comparing the efficacy of
different trap types to capture other
coleopterans such as the sweet potato
weevil, Cylas formicarius (Coleoptera:
Brentidae), and the West Indian sugarcane
weevil, Metamasius hemipterus sericeus
(Coleoptera: Dryophthoridae) (Giblin-Davis,
et al., 1996; Jansson, et al., 1992). As
demonstrated in the present study, funnel
traps captured significantly more RPW adults
than the standard bucket model. It was
expected that once R. ferrugineus weevils
enter inside the funnel trap, escape of the
captured adults is prohibited because of the
existence of a single-entry point which is in
the middle. Furthermore, this trap’s outer
surface was wrapped with burlap glued to
the exterior to enable RPW adults climb up
the trap quickly and enter inside.
4. CONCLUSION
Mass-trapping using pheromone-foodbait traps is very promising to monitor R.
ferrugineus and reduce its populations in
date palm farms. The present work provides
a new hand-made funnel trap design, which
shows good efficacy in capturing RPW adults.
Further work needs to be done on optimizing
the use of this trap under field conditions,
such as the position and distribution pattern,
and the duration of the trapping period.
Additional considerations that lead to
difficulties in managing RPW include high
dispersal ability and fecundity of the pest,
high host density in certain regions, and poor
capacity to detect infested palm trees before
damage occurs. Each of these challenges
should be addressed in subsequent research.
5. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors acknowledge Mohamed
Mousa Al-Ameeri, Director of Agricultural
Department, and Salah Abdullah Mousa,
Head, Al-Hamraniah Research Station, from
the Ministry of Climate Change and
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Rachid Sabbahi, et.al. An assessment of the efficacy of pheromone … | 380

Environment, UAE, as well as Majdi Hassan,
Ali Mukhtar, Abdelrazig El-Yasa, Mohammed
Motassim, Khaled Chaouki and all others in
the Research Station for their laboratory and
field assistance. This work was supported by
the Ministry of Climate Change and
Environment, UAE.

6. AUTHORS’ NOTE
The authors declare that there is no conflict
of interest regarding the publication of this
article. Authors confirmed that the paper
was free of plagiarism.

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