Kona, Hawaiʻi Island – Two breeding sites for the invasive coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB) have been located in Kona on the west side of Hawaiʻi Island following surveys conducted last week. This discovery has triggered the launch of a heightened state and county interagency response effort, bringing together partners including the DLNR, University of Hawaiʻi, Big Island Invasive Species Committee (BIISC), Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity (DAB), and the County of Hawaiʻi to manage and eradicate the pest.
Active management of CRB on Hawaiʻi Island has been ongoing since the first detection in Waikoloa in 2023. The current intensive trapping effort in Kona began in March 2025 after an adult beetle was captured by a trap installed at the Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport. To date, 30 adult beetles have been caught in the area, with one beetle trapped as far north as Kiholo Bay.
Recent actions to protect west Hawaiʻi and prevent the spread of CRB extend beyond government agencies, involving residents, local businesses, and community organizations. These activities include the removal of green waste and other decaying plant matter that serve as ideal breeding grounds for CRB, deploying more traps in the surrounding area, and organizing multiple surveys with specialized scent detection dogs.
Since March, thousands of cubic yards of potential host material have been meticulously inspected. So far, only two breeding sites have been confirmed in Kona, bringing the Hawaiʻi Island total to three. Treatment for these newly found sites is already underway, and detection surveys for other potential breeding sites are ongoing across the affected region.
To underscore the severity of the threat posed by this invasive species, the County of Hawaiʻi and DAB have issued a three-month voluntary compliance order. This order aims to halt the movement of CRB host materials and is effective through September, applying specifically to the area of west Hawaiʻi where CRB detections have occurred in the last six months.
“Intra-agency collaboration is critical to preventing the invasion and establishment of CRB on the Big Island,” said Parawinder Grewal, Dean of the University of Hawaiʻi College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience. “We must use all our available resources and intellect. Failure is not an option.”
Combined efforts on Hawaiʻi Island have led to the deployment of nearly 400 traps and the treatment of 1,300 palm trees to prevent CRB damage. Public outreach and awareness campaigns are continuing in the Kona area to ensure greater community engagement in the ongoing eradication efforts.