Invertebrate Pests of Oil Palm in the Provinces of West New Britain and New Ireland, Papua New Guinea, and Aspects of their Management

Oil palm is the main agricultural crop in Papua New Guinea (PNG). In West New Britain Province (WNBP) and New Ireland Province (NIP) oil palm are attacked by a variety of insect pests including long-horned grasshoppers (katydids) from two genera, Segestes and Segestidea (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae),and a stick insect: Eurycantha calcarata (Phasmatidae: Eurycanthinae). The rhinoceros beetles: Scapanes australis and Oryctes rhinoceros, Taro beetle: Papuana woodlarkiana, Chafer beetle: Dermolepida spp. (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), two weevil species (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and to a lesser extent, lepidoptera, (Hesperiidae, Lymantriidae, Noctuidae, Peleopodidae and Psychidae) are also of importance. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques are successfully utilised to manage these pests, including the use of a systemic insecticide using targeted trunk injection (TTI) when infestations become widespread. A range of parasitoids are reared and released on a regular basis. The Principles and Criteria of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) are followed in all aspects of palm oil production. Keywords: Oil palm, Orthoptera, Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, integrated pest management (IPM), Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).