Weevils are beetles belonging to the superfamilyCurculionoidea, known for their elongated snouts. They are usually small, less than 6 mm (1⁄4 in) in length, and herbivorous. Approximately 97,000 species of weevils are known. They belong to several families, with most of them in the family Curculionidae (the true weevils). It also includes bark beetles, which while morphologically dissimilar to other weevils in lacking the distinctive snout, is a subfamily of Curculionidae. Some other beetles, although not closely related, bear the name "weevil", such as the biscuit weevil (Stegobium paniceum), which belongs to the family Ptinidae.
Many weevils are considered pests because of their ability to damage and kill crops. The grain or wheat weevil (Sitophilus granarius) damages stored grain, as does the maize weevil (Sitophilus zeamais) among others. The boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis) attacks cotton crops; it lays its eggs inside cotton bolls and the larvae eat their way out. Other weevils are used for biological control of invasive plants.
A weevil's rostrum, or elongated snout, hosts chewing mouthparts instead of the piercing mouthparts that proboscis-possessing insects are known for. The mouthparts are often used to excavate tunnels into grains.[1] In more derived weevils, the rostrum has a groove in which the weevil can fold the first segment of its antennae.
Most weevils have the ability to fly (including pest species such as the rice weevil[2][3]), though a significant number are flightless, such as the genus Otiorhynchus.
Because so many species exist in such diversity, the higher classification of weevils is in a state of flux. They are generally divided into two major divisions, the Orthoceri or primitive weevils, and the Gonatoceri or true weevils (Curculionidae). E. C. Zimmerman proposed a third division, the Heteromorphi, for several intermediate forms.[4] Primitive weevils are distinguished by having straight antennae, while true weevils have elbowed (geniculate) antennae. The elbow occurs at the end of the scape (first antennal segment) in true weevils, and the scape is usually much longer than the other antennal segments. Some exceptions occur, such as Nanophyini, primitive weevils with long scapes and geniculate antennae, while among the true weevils, Gonipterinae and Ramphus have short scapes and little or no "elbow".
A 1995 classification system to family level was provided by Kuschel,[5] with updates from Marvaldi et al. in 2002,[6] and was achieved using phylogenetic analyses. The accepted families were the primitive weevils, Anthribidae, Attelabidae, Belidae, Brentidae, Caridae, and Nemonychidae, and the true weevils Curculionidae. Most other weevil families were demoted to subfamilies or tribes. Further work resulted in the elevation of Cimberididae to family from placement as a subfamily of Nemonychidae in 2017 and the recognition of the Cretaceous age family Mesophyletidae in 2018 from Burmese amber.[7] The oldest weevils date to the Middle-Late Jurassic boundary, found in the Karabastau Formation of Kazakhstan, the Shar-Teg locality of Mongolia, the Daohugou locality in Inner Mongolia, China, and the Talbragar site in Australia.[8] The extinct family Obrieniidae, with species dating from the Ladinian stage of the Triassic through to tentatively the Oxfordian, have sometimes been considered weevils. Genera of the family have been only found in three formations in Kazakhstan, with most named in 1993.[9] However, their phylogenetic position is contested, with others considering it part of Archostemata.[10]
A phylogeny of the Curculionoidea based on 18S ribosomal DNA comparison and morphological data conducted by Marvaldi et al in 2002 is suggested below:[6]
Rhopalapion longirostre exhibits an extreme case of sexual dimorphism. The female rostrum is twice as long and its surface is smoother than in the male. The female bores egg channels into the buds of Alcea rosea. Thus, the dimorphism is not attributed to sexual selection. It is a response to ecological demands of egg deposition.[11]
Another example of extreme dimorphism in weevils is that of the New Zealand giraffe weevil, males measure up to 90 mm (3.5 in), and females 50 mm (2.0 in), although there is an extreme range of body sizes in both sexes.
References
^Moon, Myung-Jin (2015). "Microstructure of mandibulate mouthparts in the greater rice weevil, Sitophilus zeamais (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)". Entomological Research. 45 (1): 9–15. doi:10.1111/1748-5967.12086. ISSN 1748-5967. S2CID 82634306.
^"What Is a Weevil and How Did That Bug Get in My Food?".
^"Weevils on Stored Grain (Department of Entomology)". Department of Entomology (Penn State University).
^E. C. Zimmerman (1994). Australian weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). Volume 1. Orthoceri: Anthribidae to Attelabidae: the primitive weevils. East Melbourne: CSIRO. pp. 741 pp.
^ abA. E. Marvaldi, A. S. Sequeira, C. W. O'Brien & B. D. Farrell (2002). "Molecular and morphological phylogenetics of weevils (Coleoptera, Curculionidae): do niche shifts accompany diversification?". Systematic Biology. 51 (5): 761–785. doi:10.1080/10635150290102465. PMID 12396590.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Dave J. Clarke; Ajay Limaye; Duane D. McKenna; Rolf G. Oberprieler (2018). "The weevil fauna preserved in Burmese amber—snapshot of a unique, extinct lineage (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea)". Diversity. 11 (1): Article 1. doi:10.3390/d11010001.
^Legalov, A. A. (April 2022). "Review of the Jurassic Weevils of the Genus Belonotaris Arnoldi (Coleoptera: Nemonychidae) with a Straight Rostrum". Paleontological Journal. 56 (2): 199–207. doi:10.1134/s0031030122020071. ISSN 0031-0301. S2CID 248303405.
^Legalov, A. A. (2010). "Checklist of Mesozoic Curculionoidea (Coleoptera) with description of new taxa". Baltic Journal of Coleopterology. 10 (1): 71–101.
^Legalov, A. (2020). "Fossil History of Curculionoidea (Coleoptera) from the Paleogene". Geosciences. 10 (9): 358. Bibcode:2020Geosc..10..358L. doi:10.3390/geosciences10090358.
^G. Wilhelm; et al. (2011). "Sexual dimorphism in head structures of the weevil Rhopalapion longirostre: a response to ecological demands of egg deposition". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 104: 642–660. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8312.2011.01751.x.
Further reading
Bright, Donald E.; Bouchard, Patrice (2008). Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Entiminae: Weevils of Canada and Alaska Volume 2. Insects and Arachnids of Canada Series, Part 25. Ottawa: NRC Research Press. ISBN978-0-660-19400-4.
External links
Media related to Curculionoidea at Wikimedia Commons
May 06, 2023
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This article is about the beetles For other uses see Weevil disambiguation Weevils are beetles belonging to the superfamily Curculionoidea known for their elongated snouts They are usually small less than 6 mm 1 4 in in length and herbivorous Approximately 97 000 species of weevils are known They belong to several families with most of them in the family Curculionidae the true weevils It also includes bark beetles which while morphologically dissimilar to other weevils in lacking the distinctive snout is a subfamily of Curculionidae Some other beetles although not closely related bear the name weevil such as the biscuit weevil Stegobium paniceum which belongs to the family Ptinidae WeevilsTemporal range Middle Jurassic Recent PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg NEastern Pine Weevil Pissodes nemorensis Scientific classificationKingdom AnimaliaPhylum ArthropodaClass InsectaOrder ColeopteraSuborder PolyphagaInfraorder CucujiformiaClade PhytophagaSuperfamily CurculionoideaLatreille 1802FamiliesAnthribidae Attelabidae Belidae Brentidae Caridae Curculionidae Mesophyletidae Nemonychidae ObrieniidaeMany weevils are considered pests because of their ability to damage and kill crops The grain or wheat weevil Sitophilus granarius damages stored grain as does the maize weevil Sitophilus zeamais among others The boll weevil Anthonomus grandis attacks cotton crops it lays its eggs inside cotton bolls and the larvae eat their way out Other weevils are used for biological control of invasive plants A weevil s rostrum or elongated snout hosts chewing mouthparts instead of the piercing mouthparts that proboscis possessing insects are known for The mouthparts are often used to excavate tunnels into grains 1 In more derived weevils the rostrum has a groove in which the weevil can fold the first segment of its antennae Most weevils have the ability to fly including pest species such as the rice weevil 2 3 though a significant number are flightless such as the genus Otiorhynchus One species of weevil Austroplatypus incompertus exhibits eusociality one of the few insects outside the Hymenoptera and the Isoptera to do so Contents 1 Taxonomy and phylogeny 2 Families 3 Sexual dimorphism 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksTaxonomy and phylogeny EditBecause so many species exist in such diversity the higher classification of weevils is in a state of flux They are generally divided into two major divisions the Orthoceri or primitive weevils and the Gonatoceri or true weevils Curculionidae E C Zimmerman proposed a third division the Heteromorphi for several intermediate forms 4 Primitive weevils are distinguished by having straight antennae while true weevils have elbowed geniculate antennae The elbow occurs at the end of the scape first antennal segment in true weevils and the scape is usually much longer than the other antennal segments Some exceptions occur such as Nanophyini primitive weevils with long scapes and geniculate antennae while among the true weevils Gonipterinae and Ramphus have short scapes and little or no elbow A 1995 classification system to family level was provided by Kuschel 5 with updates from Marvaldi et al in 2002 6 and was achieved using phylogenetic analyses The accepted families were the primitive weevils Anthribidae Attelabidae Belidae Brentidae Caridae and Nemonychidae and the true weevils Curculionidae Most other weevil families were demoted to subfamilies or tribes Further work resulted in the elevation of Cimberididae to family from placement as a subfamily of Nemonychidae in 2017 and the recognition of the Cretaceous age family Mesophyletidae in 2018 from Burmese amber 7 The oldest weevils date to the Middle Late Jurassic boundary found in the Karabastau Formation of Kazakhstan the Shar Teg locality of Mongolia the Daohugou locality in Inner Mongolia China and the Talbragar site in Australia 8 The extinct family Obrieniidae with species dating from the Ladinian stage of the Triassic through to tentatively the Oxfordian have sometimes been considered weevils Genera of the family have been only found in three formations in Kazakhstan with most named in 1993 9 However their phylogenetic position is contested with others considering it part of Archostemata 10 A phylogeny of the Curculionoidea based on 18S ribosomal DNA comparison and morphological data conducted by Marvaldi et al in 2002 is suggested below 6 NemonychidaeAnthribidaeBelidaeAttelabidaeCaridaeBrentidaeCurculionidaeFamilies EditAnthribidae fungus weevils Attelabidae leaf rolling weevils Belidae primitive weevils Brentidae straight snout weevils Caridae Curculionidae true weevils Mesophyletidae Nemonychidae pine flower weevils ObrieniidaeSexual dimorphism EditRhopalapion longirostre exhibits an extreme case of sexual dimorphism The female rostrum is twice as long and its surface is smoother than in the male The female bores egg channels into the buds of Alcea rosea Thus the dimorphism is not attributed to sexual selection It is a response to ecological demands of egg deposition 11 Another example of extreme dimorphism in weevils is that of the New Zealand giraffe weevil males measure up to 90 mm 3 5 in and females 50 mm 2 0 in although there is an extreme range of body sizes in both sexes References Edit Moon Myung Jin 2015 Microstructure of mandibulate mouthparts in the greater rice weevil Sitophilus zeamais Coleoptera Curculionidae Entomological Research 45 1 9 15 doi 10 1111 1748 5967 12086 ISSN 1748 5967 S2CID 82634306 What Is a Weevil and How Did That Bug Get in My Food Weevils on Stored Grain Department of Entomology Department of Entomology Penn State University E C Zimmerman 1994 Australian weevils Coleoptera Curculionidae Volume 1 Orthoceri Anthribidae to Attelabidae the primitive weevils East Melbourne CSIRO pp 741 pp G Kuschel 1995 A phylogenetic classification of Curculionoidea to families and subfamilies Memoirs of the Entomological Society of Washington 14 5 33 a b A E Marvaldi A S Sequeira C W O Brien amp B D Farrell 2002 Molecular and morphological phylogenetics of weevils Coleoptera Curculionidae do niche shifts accompany diversification Systematic Biology 51 5 761 785 doi 10 1080 10635150290102465 PMID 12396590 a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Dave J Clarke Ajay Limaye Duane D McKenna Rolf G Oberprieler 2018 The weevil fauna preserved in Burmese amber snapshot of a unique extinct lineage Coleoptera Curculionoidea Diversity 11 1 Article 1 doi 10 3390 d11010001 Legalov A A April 2022 Review of the Jurassic Weevils of the Genus Belonotaris Arnoldi Coleoptera Nemonychidae with a Straight Rostrum Paleontological Journal 56 2 199 207 doi 10 1134 s0031030122020071 ISSN 0031 0301 S2CID 248303405 Legalov A A 2010 Checklist of Mesozoic Curculionoidea Coleoptera with description of new taxa Baltic Journal of Coleopterology 10 1 71 101 Legalov A 2020 Fossil History of Curculionoidea Coleoptera from the Paleogene Geosciences 10 9 358 Bibcode 2020Geosc 10 358L doi 10 3390 geosciences10090358 G Wilhelm et al 2011 Sexual dimorphism in head structures of the weevil Rhopalapion longirostre a response to ecological demands of egg deposition Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 104 642 660 doi 10 1111 j 1095 8312 2011 01751 x Further reading EditBright Donald E Bouchard Patrice 2008 Coleoptera Curculionidae Entiminae Weevils of Canada and Alaska Volume 2 Insects and Arachnids of Canada Series Part 25 Ottawa NRC Research Press ISBN 978 0 660 19400 4 External links Edit Media related to Curculionoidea at Wikimedia Commons Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Weevil amp oldid 1149382240, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
