Summary
The South American palm weevil is spreading into new areas and killing palm trees from the inside out. Deep Look shows how this large invasive beetle attacks palms and reshapes the places it invades.
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All ages
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Teaching resources
Discussion questions
Talk about it
Palm weevils bore into palm trees to lay eggs, and their larvae eat the tree's heart until it dies. Because the weevil is new to the area, local palms have no defenses -- a habitat change with real damage to the trees.
- How does the palm weevil harm palm trees?
- Why are local palms unprepared for this invader?
- How does losing palm trees change the habitat?
Quick work-a-long
Vocabulary: invasive, weevil, habitat, native.
Try it: Draw a healthy palm and a weakened one. Write how an invading weevil changes the habitat by harming the trees.