The resulting trunk damage does not usually kill the tree but restricts its future growth due to irreversible damage. If infected then ring the trunk base with insecticide on a wick rope. Termites are killed when they cross the barrier to get water from the soil.
Woodpecker Produces massive damage to the trunk when nesting.
The entrance hole is 3 in. The result is 'penciling' or 'pencil top' where there is a gradual reduction in trunk diameter under the crown and the fronds shorten as the tree cannot feed itself sufficiently anymore. This is a giant 3 in. It likes to colonize in a tree's crown and it lays its eggs at the base of the inside of the petioles or in wound holes in the trunk. The head of the palm needs to be split open and all larvae destroyed.