Natural control of the eucalyptus borer, Phoracantha semipunctata (F.) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), by the Syrian woodpecker

Abstract Screened and unscreened eucalyptus trap-logs infested by Phoracantha semipunctata (F.) were used to examine the excavating habits of the Syrian woodpecker (Picoides syriacus), its annual course of predation and its effect on the survival rate of Phoracantha semipunctata larvae in Israel. The bird excavated predation holes only in trap-logs with larvae within the bark. Predation holes density increased during the spring and summer. Towards the autumn, egg-masses were killed too. The average mortality due to predation was 29·21% of total larval mortality and 78·7% among larvae that survived intraspecific competition. The mortality caused by the woodpecker decreased with increasing density of larvae. The natural control of P. semipunctata in Israel and the borer-woodpecker ecosystem are discussed.