Weevil
| Weevil | |
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| Acorn Weevil Curculio Species | |
| Scientific classification | |
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| Superfamily: | Curculionoidea Latreille, 1802
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Nemonychidae - pine flower weevils | |
A weevil is any beetle from the Curculionoidea superfamily. They are usually small, less than 6 mm (¼ inch), and herbivorous. Due to the shape of their heads, weevils are commonly known as snout beetles. There are over 60,000 species in several families, mostly in the family Curculionidae (the true weevils). Some other beetles, although not closely related, bear the name "weevil", such as the biscuit weevil (Stegobium paniceum) which belongs to the family Anobiidae.
Many weevils are damaging to crops. The grain or wheat weevil (Sitophilus granarius) damages stored grain. The boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis) attacks cotton crops. It lays its eggs inside unripe cotton bolls, and the young weevils eat their way out. Zyzzyva is a genus of tropical American weevils.
Weevils are most likely to be observed in a domestic setting when opening a bag of flour although they will happily infest most types of grain including oats, barley and breakfast cereals. If ingested, E. coli infection and other various diseases can be contracted from weevils, depending on their diet.
Phylogeny
A phylogeny of the Curculionoidea based on 18S ribosomal DNA and morphological data is suggested below:[1]
Trivia
- In the episode Evil Weevil of Courage the Cowardly Dog a weevil works as the butler for the Bagges, but actually wanted to suck Muriel and Eustace's blood.
References
- ^ A. E. Marvaldi, A. S. Sequeira, C. W. O'Brien & B. D. Farrell (2002). "Molecular and morphological phylogenetics of weevils (Coleoptera, Curculionoidea): do niche shifts accompany diversification?". Systematic Biology. 51 (5): 761–785.
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Gallery
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A weevil of the Belidae family on parsley flowers -
A weevil from India -
An Attelabid weevil from India
