Insect density will also be reduced by improving holm oak forests through the felling or removal of trees affected by the pest.
The Regional Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Natural Environment is allocating a total of €4.8 million, funded through the Sustainable Tourism Tax (ITS), to control and combat forest pests.
The Directorate-General of Natural Environment and Forest Management, through the Forest Health Service, has reinforced and expanded efforts to control the holm oak longhorn beetle (Cerambyx cerdo) in Mallorca. This year, over June, July, and August, more than 7,000 traps will be installed to capture adult beetles on various public estates across the island, including Binifaldó, Cúber, Son Moragues, Puig de Santuïri, Sa Bassa, Comuna de Bunyola, Comuna de Biniamar, and Gabellí Petit (Ses Fonts Ufanes).
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The Balearic Government Strengthens Efforts to Control the Holm Oak Longhorn Beetle with the Installation of 7,000 Traps on Public Lands in Mallorca
Another key action to reduce insect density involves improving holm oak woodlands by felling or removing infected trees. With this strategy, the regional government continues its commitment to combating forest pests. It is worth highlighting that a total of €4.8 million from the Sustainable Tourism Tax (ITS) will be invested in pest control efforts until 2027 — the largest allocation ever made for this purpose in the Balearic Islands.
Anna Torres, Director-General of Natural Environment and Forest Management, stated that the holm oak longhorn beetle, declared a pest in Mallorca, has significantly impacted the island’s oak forests.
“It is essential to continue control campaigns to tackle this insect, which bores internal galleries into the wood and also transmits various pathogenic fungi,” she noted.
Torres added:
“This beetle, part of the cerambycid family, promotes decay that leads to branch and trunk breakage. Although it is a protected species in Europe, due to its overpopulation and the damage it causes, its capture has been authorized in Mallorca since 2016.”
In 2024 alone, nearly 7,000 specimens were captured on the island.
Torres also emphasised that the Forest Health Service is responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive forest improvement system, with a control plan based on rigorous scientific and technical studies.
Comprehensive Oak Forest Improvement Plan at Gabellí Petit Estate
Among all actions taking place across the archipelago, special mention goes to the comprehensive improvement plan at the Gabellí Petit estate, carried out by the Balearic Institute of Nature (IBANAT), under the authority of the Directorate-General of Natural Environment and Forest Management.
Key actions include:
- Biotechnological control through the installation of 369 attractant traps (50 traps/ha) to capture adult beetles before egg-laying.
- Installation of 15 bat refuge boxes.
- Monitoring of 25 bird nest boxes for insectivorous species.
- Placement of protective guards on young oak saplings to prevent grazing by wild goats (minimum 50 guards/year).
- Control of the feral goat population to reduce damage to forest regeneration.
- Sanitary felling of the most severely affected or dead oaks due to rot fungi and beetle damage, marked one by one by forest rangers, with an average of 40–50 trees felled per year.
- Installation of 10 baited G-traps to monitor pine processionary caterpillars (Lymantria dispar).
Additionally, environmental education activities are being conducted with volunteers, guided and advised by Xarxa Forestal technicians, also under the Directorate-General of Natural Environment and Forest Management.
For more information, visit the official website:
🔗 https://sanitatforestal.caib.es