Weevils are beetles belonging to the superfamily Curculionoidea, known for their elongated snouts. They are usually small – less than 6 mm 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. 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, which belongs to the family Ptinidae.
Pest control is the regulation or management of a species defined as a pest; such as any animal, plant or fungus that impacts adversely on human activities or environment. The human response depends on the importance of the damage done and will range from tolerance, through deterrence and management, to attempts to completely eradicate the pest. Pest control measures may be performed as part of an integrated pest management strategy.
Cleridae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. They are commonly known as checkered beetles. The family Cleridae has a worldwide distribution, and a variety of habitats and feeding preferences.
Lasioderma serricorne, commonly known as the cigarette beetle, cigar beetle, or tobacco beetle, is an insect very similar in appearance to the drugstore beetle and the common furniture beetle. All three species belong to the family Ptinidae.
Macrodactylus subspinosus is a North American beetle of the family Scarabaeidae. The members of its genus are known as "rose chafers", not to be confused with the European rose chafer, Cetonia aurata. M. subspinosus occurs from Eastern Canada to Colorado and is considered a pest of many crops and flowers. It is given its common name of rose chafer because it eats the leaves of roses, although it also feeds on many other plants.
Anthonomus eugenii is known as the pepper weevil. This beetle feeds and lays eggs on plants in the genus Capsicum and a few species in the genus Solanum. A. eugenii is native to Mexico, however, it is an important pest of Capsicum in Florida, Puerto Rico, and Central America.
Hypothenemus hampei, the coffee berry borer, is a small beetle native to Africa. It is the most harmful insect pest of coffee worldwide. Spanish common names of the insect include barrenador del café, gorgojo del café, and broca del café.
Home-stored product entomology is the study of insects which infest foodstuffs stored in the home. It deals with the prevention, detection and eradication of the pests.
The rice weevil is a stored product pest which attacks seeds of several crops, including wheat, rice, and maize.
Callosobruchus maculatus is a species of beetles known commonly as the cowpea weevil or cowpea seed beetle. It is a member of the leaf beetle family, Chrysomelidae, and not a true weevil. This common pest of stored legumes has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on every continent except Antarctica. The beetle most likely originated in West Africa and moved around the globe with the trade of legumes and other crops. As only a small number of individuals were likely present in legumes carried by people to distant places, the populations that have invaded various parts of the globe have likely gone through multiple bottlenecks. Despite these bottlenecks and the subsequent rounds of inbreeding, these populations persist. This ability to withstand a high degree of inbreeding has likely contributed to this species’ prevalence as a pest.
Rhyzopertha is a monotypic genus of beetles in the family Bostrichidae, the false powderpost beetles. The sole species, Rhyzopertha dominica, is known commonly as the lesser grain borer, American wheat weevil, Australian wheat weevil, and stored grain borer. It is a beetle commonly found within store bought products and pest of stored cereal grains located worldwide. It is also a major pest of peanuts. The first documentation of wheat infestation by R. dominica was observed in Australia. R. dominica are usually reddish brown to dark brown in coloration, vary in sizes, elongated and cylindrical.
A pheromone trap is a type of insect trap that uses pheromones to lure insects. Sex pheromones and aggregating pheromones are the most common types used. A pheromone-impregnated lure, as the red rubber septa in the picture, is encased in a conventional trap such as a bottle trap, Delta trap, water-pan trap, or funnel trap. Pheromone traps are used both to count insect populations by sampling, and to trap pests such as clothes moths to destroy them.
The maize weevil, known in the United States as the greater rice weevil, is a species of beetle in the family Curculionidae. It can be found in numerous tropical areas around the world, and in the United States, and is a major pest of maize. This species attacks both standing crops and stored cereal products, including wheat, rice, sorghum, oats, barley, rye, buckwheat, peas, and cottonseed. The maize weevil also infests other types of stored, processed cereal products such as pasta, cassava, and various coarse, milled grains. It has even been known to attack fruit while in storage, such as apples.
Callosobruchus chinensis is a common species of beetle found in the bean weevil subfamily, and is known to be a pest to many stored legumes. Although it is commonly known as the adzuki bean weevil it is in fact not a true weevil, belonging instead to the leaf beetle family, Chrysomelidae. Other common names include the pulse beetle, Chinese bruchid and cowpea bruchid. This species has a very similar lifestyle and habitat to Callosobruchus maculatus and their identities are often mistaken for each other. This beetle is a common pest targeting many different species of stored legumes and it is distributed across the tropical and subtropical regions of the world. C. chinensis is one of the most damaging crop pests to the stored legume industry due to their generalized legume diets and wide distribution.
Bruchus rufimanus, commonly known as the broadbean weevil, broadbean beetle, or broadbean seed beetle is a leaf beetle which inhabits crops and fields, as well as some homes. It is a pest of faba beans. The adult beetles feed on pollen, while their larvae tunnel in seeds destroying crops and moving on to new ones once they dry out. The adult beetle, being one of the biggest of its genus, ranges from 3 to 5 mm in length.
Carpophilus is a genus of sap beetles. Several species are agricultural pests, typically causing feeding damage to a variety of fruits, grains and other food products worldwide. The genus contains a great number of species.
Carpophilus lugubris, commonly known as the dusky sap beetle, is a species of beetle in the genus Carpophilus. It is an agricultural pest of corn and tomato.
A storage pest is an insect or other animal that damages or destroys stored food or other stored valuable organic matter. Insects are a large proportion of storage pests with each type of crop having specific insects that gravitate towards them such as the genus Tribolium that consists of insects such as Tribolium castaneum or Tribolium confusum which damage flour crops primarily.
Cosmopolites sordidus, commonly known as the banana root borer, banana borer, or banana weevil, is a species of weevil in the family Curculionidae. It is a pest of banana cultivation and has a cosmopolitan distribution, being found in all parts of the world in which bananas are grown. It is considered the most serious insect pest of bananas.
Diocalandra frumenti, commonly known as the palm weevil borer, the lesser coconut weevil, or four-spotted coconut weevil, is a species of weevil in the family Curculionidae. It occurs in Africa, Southern Asia and Northern Australia, and is a pest of coconut and other palm trees.
