A Kottayam man seems to have cracked multiple incidents of 'fuel theft' reported from various places in Pathanamthitta.
The culprit, according to urban entomologist and pest management consultant Ashok Babu, could be a species of small beetle.
Reports of vehicle fuel tanks going mysteriously empty caught Babu's curiosity, who studied the various incidents. During the course of study, he found that the rubber fuel tube connecting the tank with the engine had been perforated, draining the fuel.
Further enquiry took Babu to the 'fuel thieves'. He found that camphor shoot borer (Cnestus mutilatus), a polyphagous ambrosia beetle, had been behind the mystery of missing fuel.
The entomologist said the presence of ethanol in fuel might have misled the beetles to believe that the tubes were made of wood, attracting them to the rubber tubes. Mistaking the tube for rotting wood, they bore into the tubes, and after coming into contact with petrol, they either die or flee, Babu said.
Extensive studies would be necessary to establish the findings, he added. There had been reports of camphor shots damaging ships in the US. Babu said he was not sure whether camphor shots targeting fuel pipes have been confined to Pathanamthitta alone.
Kottayam resident Babu is a consultant to several leading organizations in India and abroad.
