Adults found throughout the year in FL but usually more noticeable in the late spring and early summer(4)(2)
Food
Hosts include many palms (Arecaceae), but larvae are esp. destructive to cabbage palm: they tunnel the trunk, may kill the growing point, and cause the top of the palm to fall off(4)(2)
Life Cycle
Multiple generations can occur; life cycle takes ~3 months under optimal conditions (2).
Eggs are laid in the bases of leaves or in wounds in a dying host palm and hatch in ~3 days. Larvae have tend to feed primarily on the soft tissue surrounding the apical meristem. Mature grubs migrate to the periphery of the stem or petioles, build a cocoon from palm fibers and pupate. The adult emerges in a few weeks and may immediately break free of the cocoon or spend several days within the cocoon. The entire life cycle (egg to adult) takes ~84 days. Adults may live for several weeks (up to 26 weeks in captivity)(4)