Abstract
During the last two decades Red Palm Weevil (RPW, Rynchophorus
Ferrugineus) has become one of the most dangerous threats to palm trees in many parts of
the World. Its early detection is difficult, since palm trees do not show visual evidence of
infection until it is too late for them to recover. For this reason the development of efficient
early detection mechanisms is a critical element of RPW pest management systems. One of
the early detection mechanisms proposed in the literature is based on acoustic monitoring,
as the activity of RPW larvae inside the palm trunk is audible for human operators under
acceptable environmental noise levels (rural areas, night periods, etc.). In this work we
propose the design of an autonomous bioacoustic sensor that can be installed in every palm
tree under study and is able to analyze the captured audio signal during large periods of
time. The results of the audio analysis would be reported wirelessly to a control station, to
be subsequently processed and conveniently stored. That control station is to be accessible
via the Internet. It is programmed to send warning messages when predefined alarm
thresholds are reached, thereby allowing supervisors to check on-line the status and evolution
of the palm tree orchards. We have developed a bioacoustic sensor prototype and
performed an extensive set of experiments to measure its detection capability, achieving
average detection rates over 90%.