The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Natural Environment has stepped up efforts to combat the Great Capricorn Beetle in order to protect Mallorca’s holm oak forests. More than 7,000 traps have been installed on publicly owned land across the island, leading to the capture of over 7,000 adult specimens—figures similar to those recorded in 2024.
The Great Capricorn Beetle bores into wood and encourages the growth of fungi. Although the species is protected in Europe, its overpopulation in Mallorca led to authorisation for controlled captures, the Department recalled in a statement.
These actions, coordinated by the Directorate General for the Natural Environment and Forest Management through the Forest Health Service, also include the sanitary felling of holm oaks affected by the pest and by charcoal canker fungus.
Between 2023 and 2024, the work was extended to various areas, with interventions carried out in Menut, Binifaldó, Cúber and other forest sites.
The regional government has also launched the ITS project “Phytosanitary improvement of the Balearic Islands’ forest mass: healthier forests”, with a budget of €4.8 million and running until November 2028. The project aims to treat around 700 hectares of public holm oak woodland affected by the banyarriquer and pathogenic fungi.
The first phase has already been completed in Santuïri, in Pollensa, with the removal of 145 damaged trees followed by the replanting of holm oaks.
The measures will also be extended to other parts of the islands, including the s’Albufera des Grau Natural Park in Menorca, as well as areas of Mallorca such as Ses Païsses in Arta, where work is scheduled to begin in January 2026 in coordination with municipal technicians and archaeologists.