Gonipterus pulverulentus

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Gonipterus pulverulentus
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Infraorder: Cucujiformia
Family: Curculionidae
Subfamily: Curculioninae
Genus: Gonipterus
Species:
G. pulverulentus
Binomial name
Gonipterus pulverulentus
Lea, 1897

Gonipterus pulverulentus is a species of weevil in the family Curculionidae. It is commonly known as the eucalyptus snout beetle, the eucalyptus weevil or the gum tree weevil. It feeds and breeds on Eucalyptus trees and is endemic to Australia, though it is also found in South America. [1]

Contents

Description

This weevil is greyish-brown with a light coloured transverse band. It is about thirteen millimetres long and not readily distinguishable from the closely related weevils, Gonipterus gibberus , Gonipterus platensis , and Gonipterus scutellatus , all of which share the same common names, as they have historically been confused with one another. [1]

Host plants

Eucalyptus trees are the only hosts for the gum tree weevil. [1]

Distribution

The gum tree weevil is endemic to Australia where Eucalyptus trees are native. This and other related species in the genus Gonipterus are invasive pests of eucalyptus in Africa, South America, North America, and Europe, and were historically misidentified as G. scutellatus until researchers examined the DNA of the pest species in 2012 and determined that none of the pests were genuine G. scutellatus. [1] Populations formerly misidentified as Gonipterus scutellatus in New Zealand, North America, and western Europe are Gonipterus platensis, and those in Africa and eastern Europe are an undescribed species. [1] . Populations in South America were originally identified as G. scutellatus, and in 1996 were reclassified as G. gibberus, but this was also an error; these populations are now recognized as G. pulverulentus. [1]

Related Research Articles

<i>Eucalyptus</i> Genus of flowering plants in the myrtle family

Eucalyptus is a genus of more than 700 species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. Most species of Eucalyptus are trees, often mallees and a few are shrubs. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including Corymbia and Angophora, they are commonly known as eucalypts. Plants in the genus Eucalyptus have bark that is either smooth, fibrous, hard or stringy, the leaves have oil glands, and the sepals and petals are fused to form a "cap" or operculum over the stamens. The fruit is a woody capsule commonly referred to as a "gumnut".

<i>Eucalyptus regnans</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus regnans, known variously as mountain ash, swamp gum, or stringy gum, is a species of medium-sized to very tall forest tree that is native to the Australia states of Tasmania and Victoria. It is a straight-trunked tree with smooth grey bark, but with a stocking of rough brown bark at the base, glossy green, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of between nine and fifteen, white flowers, and cup-shaped or conical fruit. It is the tallest of all flowering plants; the tallest measured living specimen, named Centurion, stands 100 metres tall in Tasmania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Curculionidae</span> Family of beetles

The Curculionidae are a family of weevils, commonly called snout beetles or true weevils. They are one of the largest animal families with 6,800 genera and 83,000 species described worldwide. They are the sister group to the family Brentidae.

<i>Eucalyptus camaldulensis</i> Species of plant

Eucalyptus camaldulensis, commonly known as the river red gum, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae, and is endemic to Australia. It is a tree with smooth white or cream-coloured bark, lance-shaped or curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven or nine, white flowers and hemispherical fruit with the valves extending beyond the rim. A familiar and iconic tree, it is seen along many watercourses across inland Australia, providing shade in the extreme temperatures of central Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belidae</span> Family of beetles

Belidae is a family of weevils, called belids or primitive weevils because they have straight antennae, unlike the "true weevils" or Curculionidae which have geniculate (elbowed) antennae. They are sometimes known as "cycad weevils", but this properly refers to a few species from the genera Parallocorynus and Rhopalotria.

<i>Eucalyptus gomphocephala</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus gomphocephala, known as tuart, is a species of tree, one of the six forest giants of Southwest Australia. Tuart forest was common on the Swan coastal plain, until the valuable trees were felled for export and displaced by the urban development around Perth, Western Australia. The wood is dense, hard, water resistant and resists splintering, and found many uses when it was available. Remnants of tuart forest occur in state reserves and parks, the tree has occasionally been introduced to other regions of Australia and overseas. Remaining trees are vulnerable to phytophthora dieback, an often fatal disorder, including a previously unknown species discovered during analysis of dead specimens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gonipterini</span> Tribe of beetles

Gonipterini is a tribe of weevils in the subfamily Curculioninae.

<i>Rhynchophorus ferrugineus</i> Pest weevil on palm (oil, coconut, date)

The palm weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus is one of two species of snout beetle known as the red palm weevil, Asian palm weevil or sago palm weevil. The adult beetles are relatively large, ranging between 2 and 4 centimetres long, and are usually a rusty red colour—but many colour variants exist and have often been classified as different species. Weevil larvae can excavate holes in the trunks of palm trees up to 1 metre (3.3 ft) long, thereby weakening and eventually killing the host plant. As a result, the weevil is considered a major pest in palm plantations, including the coconut palm, date palm and oil palm.

<i>Eucalyptus grandis</i> Species of eucalyptus

Eucalyptus grandis, commonly known as the flooded gum or rose gum, is a tall tree with smooth bark, rough at the base fibrous or flaky, grey to grey-brown. At maturity, it reaches 50 metres tall, though the largest specimens can exceed 80 metres tall. It is found on coastal areas and sub-coastal ranges from Newcastle in New South Wales northwards to west of Daintree in Queensland, mainly on flat land and lower slopes, where it is the dominant tree of wet forests and on the margins of rainforests.

Scottsdale Reserve is a 1,328-hectare (3,280-acre) nature reserve on the Murrumbidgee River in south-central New South Wales, Australia. It is 79 kilometres (49 mi) south of Canberra, and 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) north of Bredbo. It is owned and managed by Bush Heritage Australia (BHA), which purchased it in 2006. The purchase was supportive of projects aiming to connect existing fragmented remnant habitat such as K2C. Since the 1870s up until 2006, the land was used for agriculture – primarily sheep grazing with some minor cropping. A significant component of the Reserve has been cleared of native vegetation.

<i>Sitona</i> Genus of beetles

Sitona is a large genus of weevils in the family Curculionidae native to the Nearctic and Palaearctic regions. Over 100 species have been described. Sitona is easily distinguished from related genera by flat, recumbent scales on the mandibles, by the absence of an oval scar on the mandibles, by short and broad rostrum with a deep, longitudinal, median groove, and by dense scales on the body.

<i>Leptocybe invasa</i> Species of wasp

Leptocybe invasa, the blue gum chalcid wasp or eucalyptus gall wasp, is a chalcid wasp which is the only species in the monotypic genus Leptocybe in the subfamily Tetrastichinae, of the family Eulophidae. It is a gall wasp which causes the formation of galls on a number of species of Eucalyptus, it was described in 2004 after galls were found in river red gums in the Mediterranean and Middle East and has since been found to be a widespread species where its host trees are planted. It is indigenous to Australia.

<i>Gonipterus gibberus</i> Species of beetle

Gonipterus gibberus is a species of weevil in the family Curculionidae. It is commonly known as the eucalyptus snout beetle, the eucalyptus weevil or the gum tree weevil. It feeds and breeds on Eucalyptus trees and is endemic to Australia.

Gonipterus scutellatus is a species of weevil in the family Curculionidae. It is commonly known as the eucalyptus snout beetle, the eucalyptus weevil or the gum tree weevil. It feeds and breeds on Eucalyptus trees and is endemic to Australia.

<i>Gonipterus</i> Genus of beetles

Gonipterus is a genus of weevils in the family Curculionidae. There are approximately 20 described species in the genus, most of which are native to Australia. They are all plant feeders and many are specific to a single host species. Gonipterus platensis, Gonipterus pulverulentus, and an undescribed species infest a number of species of Eucalyptus and have spread to other parts of the world where these trees have been planted.

<i>Rhynchophorus vulneratus</i> Species of beetle

The palm weevil Rhynchophorus vulneratus is one of two species of snout beetle known as the red palm weevil, Asian palm weevil, or Sago palm weevil. The adult beetles are relatively large, ranging between 2 and 4 centimetres long, and vary from a rusty red colour to almost entirely black; many colour variants exist and have led to considerable confusion with other species. Weevil larvae of these species can excavate holes in the trunk of a palm tree up to 1 metre long, thereby weakening and eventually killing the host plant. As a result, these weevils are considered major pests in palm plantations, including the coconut palm, date palm and oil palm.

<i>Rhynchophorus</i> Genus of beetles

Rhynchophorus, or common name palm weevils, is a genus of beetles in the weevil family, Curculionidae. Palm weevils are major pests of various trees in the family Arecaceae throughout the tropics including: coconut, Areca catechu, species of the genus Phoenix, and Metroxylon sagu. Two species are invasive pests outside their native ranges, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Rhynchophorus palmarum.

Anaphes nitens is a species of fairyfly, a chalcid wasp in the family Mymaridae. Native to Australia, it is an egg parasitoid of the gum tree snout beetle, a pest of Eucalyptus trees, and has been used in biological pest control of that species.

<i>Lixus pulverulentus</i> Species of beetle

Lixus pulverulentus is a species of weevil belonging to the family Curculionidae. The species was scientifically described in 1763 by Giovanni Antonio Scopoli as Curculio pulverulentus Scopoli, 1763.

<i>Gonipterus platensis</i> Species of beetle

Gonipterus platensis is a species of weevil in the family Curculionidae. It is commonly known as the eucalyptus snout beetle, the eucalyptus weevil or the gum tree weevil. It feeds and breeds on Eucalyptus trees and is endemic to Australia, though it is also found in New Zealand, North America, Hawaii, and western Europe.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Mapondera, T.S., Burgess, T., Matsuki, M. and Oberprieler, R.G. (2012), Identification and molecular phylogenetics of the cryptic species of the Gonipterus scutellatus complex (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Gonipterini). Australian Journal of Entomology, 51: 175-188. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1440-6055.2011.00853.x