Centaurea is a genus of between 350 and 600 species of herbaceous thistle-like flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Members of the genus are found only north of the equator, mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere; the Middle East and surrounding regions are particularly species-rich. In the western United States, yellow starthistles are an invasive species. Around the year 1850, seeds from the plant had arrived to the state of California. It is believed that those seeds came from South America.
Weevils are a type of beetle belonging to the superfamily Curculionoidea. They are usually small, less than 6 mm (0.24 in), and herbivorous. About 97,000 species of weevils are known. They belong to several families, with most of them in the family Curculionidae. Some other beetles, although not closely related, bear the name "weevil", such as the biscuit weevil, which belongs to the family Ptinidae.
Echinops is a genus of about 120 species of flowering plants in the daisy family Asteraceae, commonly known as globe thistles. They have spiny foliage and produce blue or white spherical flower heads. They are native to Europe, east to central Asia, and south to the mountains of tropical Africa. Globe thistle is the host plant of weevil Larinus vulpes.
Cirsium arvense is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, native throughout Europe and northern Asia, and widely introduced elsewhere. The standard English name in its native area is creeping thistle. It is also commonly known as Canada thistle and field thistle.
Centaurea solstitialis, yellow star-thistle, is a member of the family Asteraceae, native to the Mediterranean Basin region. The plant is also known as golden starthistle, yellow cockspur and St. Barnaby's thistle The plant is a thorny winter annual species in the knapweed genus.
Lixinae is a subfamily of true weevils, included in the Molytinae in many older treatments. They are mainly root feeders, although some develop in flower buds or stems. Several species are used in biological control of invasive weeds, namely knapweeds (Centaurea).
Larinus minutus is a species of true weevil known as the lesser knapweed flower weevil. It is used as an agent of biological pest control against noxious knapweeds, especially diffuse knapweed and spotted knapweed.
Larinus obtusus is a species of true weevil known as the blunt knapweed flower weevil. It is used as an agent of biological pest control against noxious knapweeds, especially spotted knapweed.
Larinus is a genus of true weevils, comprising about 180 species, mostly in the Palaearctic region. Turkey appears to have a significant diversity of the group, with more than 50 species recorded in the Eastern part of the country.
Larinus curtus is a species of true weevil known as the yellow starthistle flower weevil. It is native to Southern Italy, Southern Europe, the Middle East and the Caucasuses. It is used as an agent of biological pest control against the noxious weed yellow starthistle in the United States.
Cirsium undulatum is a species of thistle known by the common names wavyleaf thistle and gray thistle. It is native to much of central and western North America from British Columbia east to Manitoba and south as far as the State of Durango in Mexico. It has also been found outside of its native range as an introduced species.
Urophora affinis is a species of tephritid or fruit flies in the genus Urophora of the family Tephritidae. It has been released in the United States and Canada as a biocontrol agent to control spotted knapweed. U. affinis became established in Montana in 1973.
A Larinus planus is an insect of the Curculionidae family. They are oval shaped, dark brown or black, and about 5-10 millimeters long. While native to Europe, it is also common in North America. It feeds on floral buds, primarily of thistles, with the larvae stage being the most destructive to them. In North America, it has been used as a biocontrol agent. It is also known as Larinus carlinae.
Larinus sibiricus is a species of true weevil found in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
Larinus filiformis is a species of true weevil found in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Bulgaria.
Larinus latus is a species of true weevil. It is used as an agent of biological pest control against Onopordum thistles in Australia.
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.
Larinus pollinis is a species of cylindrical weevils belonging to the family Curculionidae, subfamily Lixinae.
Cirsium perplexans is a species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common names Rocky Mountain thistle and Adobe Hills thistle. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States, where it occurs in the Colorado and Gunnison River Valleys in the Rocky Mountains.
Larinus turbinatus is a species of true weevil in the family of beetles known as Curculionidae.
