Moneilema semipunctatum

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Moneilema semipunctatum
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Infraorder: Cucujiformia
Family: Cerambycidae
Subfamily: Lamiinae
Genus: Moneilema
Species:
M. semipunctatum
Binomial name
Moneilema semipunctatum
LeConte, 1852
Synonyms
  • Moneilema armigera
  • Moneilema forte
  • Moneilema obtusum
  • Moneilema scabra
  • Moneilema shantzi
  • Moneilema spoliatum

Moneilema semipunctatum is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. [1] It was described by John Lawrence LeConte in 1852. [1] It is known commonly as the cactus borer beetle. Beetles of genus Moneilema are known commonly as cactus longhorn beetles. [2] It is native to North America, where it occurs in the western United States and Mexico. [2]

This species is variable in morphology. It is wingless and black in color, and is usually convex and elongated in shape, shiny to dull, hairless, and textured with puncture-like marks. The female is 1.5 to 3 centimeters long and the male 1.5 to 2.6 centimeters. [2]

This beetle lives in desert habitat, where it feeds on cactus plants, especially species of prickly pear (Opuntia) and cholla (Cylindropuntia). [2] The beetle is a threat to several rare species of cactus, including the Mojave fishhook cactus (Sclerocactus polyancistrus), Wright's fishhook cactus (Sclerocactus wrightiae), Mesa Verde cactus (Sclerocactus mesae-verdae), Winkler's pincushion cactus (Pediocactus winkleri), and San Rafael cactus (Pediocactus despainii). [2]

The adult beetle is nocturnal or crepuscular. It emerges and climbs cactus plants at dusk to feed during the night. It mates during the night and the female deposits eggs near the base of the cactus. The larva feeds on the plant, burrowing into it and causing damage. [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>Pediocactus</i> Genus of cacti

Pediocactus is a genus of cacti. The genus comprises between 6 and 11 species, depending upon the authority. Species of this genus are referred to as hedgehog cacti, though that name is also applied to plants from the genera Echinocereus and Echinopsis. Species may also be referred to as pincushion cacti, a common name which is also applied to other genera.

<i>Sclerocactus</i> Genus of cacti

Sclerocactus is a genus of cacti. It comprises about 15 species, the exact number depending on the authority. These species are very xerophytic. They are sometimes called 'fishhook cactus' or 'little barrels.'

<i>Moneilema</i> Genus of beetles

Moneilema, or cactus longhorn beetles are a genus of large, flightless, black beetles found in North American deserts of the western United States and northern Mexico. M. gigas is native to the Sonoran Desert at elevations below 4900 feet (1500m). The front wings of these beetles are fused forming a single, hardened shell, from which the genus derives its Latin name. The genus includes twenty species.

<i>Ferocactus wislizeni</i> Species of cactus

Ferocactus wislizeni, the fishhook barrel cactus, also called Arizona barrel cactus, candy barrel cactus, and Southwestern barrel cactus, is a species of flowering plant in the cactus family Cactaceae, native to northern Mexico and the southern United States. It is a ball-shaped cactus eventually growing to a cylindrical shape, with spiny ribs and red or yellow flowers in summer.

<i>Sclerocactus johnsonii</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus johnsonii is a species of cactus known by the common names Johnson's beehive cactus and Johnson's fishhook cactus. It is native to the southwestern United States from eastern California to Utah and northwestern Mexico, where it can be found in desert scrub habitat. It produces an egg-shaped or cylindrical stem up to 25 centimetres tall by 10 centimetres wide. It is covered densely in straight and curving spines which may be up to 4 centimetres long and come in shades of yellow, gray, lavender, and pink or red, with up to 24 per areole. The cactus may have yellow or pink flowers; the species is sometimes divided into two varieties on the basis of flower color. Flowers are up to 8 centimetres wide. The scaly, fleshy fruit is up to 1.8 centimetres long.

<i>Sclerocactus polyancistrus</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus polyancistrus is a species of cactus known by several common names, including redspined fishhook cactus, Mojave fishhook cactus, pineapple cactus, and hermit cactus.

<i>Sclerocactus brevihamatus</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus brevihamatus is a species of cactus known by the common name shorthook fishhook cactus.

<i>Sclerocactus mariposensis</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus mariposensis, synonyms including Echinomastus mariposensis and Neolloydia mariposensis, is a rare species of cactus known by the common names Lloyd's fishhook cactus, golfball cactus, silver column cactus, and Mariposa cactus. It is native to a section of territory straddling the border between Brewster County, Texas, in the United States, and the states of Coahuila and Nuevo León in northeastern Mexico. It has been federally listed as a threatened species in the United States since 1979.

<i>Pediocactus sileri</i> Species of cactus

Pediocactus sileri is a rare species of cactus known by the common names Siler's pincushion cactus and gypsum cactus. It is native to southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona in the United States. It is limited to a specific type of soil, individuals are often spaced far apart, and the species is threatened by a number of human activities such as off-road vehicle use, poaching, and uranium mining. This is a federally listed threatened species of the United States.

<i>Pediocactus bradyi</i> Endangered species of cactus

Pediocactus bradyi is a very rare species of cactus known by the common names Brady's pincushion cactus, Brady's hedgehog cactus, and Marble Canyon cactus. It is endemic to Arizona in the US, where it is restricted to Marble Canyon in Coconino County, though its exact distribution is not generally advertised due to poaching concerns. It is limited to a specific type of soil, it has a small distribution, and the species is threatened by a number of human activities. This has been a federally listed endangered species of the United States since 1979.

<i>Pediocactus peeblesianus</i> Species of cactus

Pediocactus peeblesianus is a rare species of cactus known by the common names Navajo pincushion cactus. It is endemic to the state of Arizona in the United States. The species is named after the Arizona botanist Robert Hibbs Peebles.

<i>Sclerocactus brevispinus</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus brevispinus is a rare species of cactus known by the common name Pariette cactus. It is endemic to Utah in the United States, where it is known only from the Pariette Draw, a draw in Duchesne County. It is threatened by a number of processes and human activities.

<i>Sclerocactus glaucus</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus glaucus is a rare species of cactus known by the common name Colorado hookless cactus. It is endemic to Colorado in the United States, where it is known only from the area between Grand Junction and Montrose. It is a federally listed threatened species.

<i>Sclerocactus wetlandicus</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus wetlandicus is a rare species of cactus known by the common name Uinta Basin hookless cactus. It is endemic to Utah in the United States, where it is known only from the Uinta Basin. It may also be called the Pariette cactus, but this name is more appropriate for Sclerocactus brevispinus, the species endemic to the Pariette Draw of Duchesne County.

<i>Sclerocactus wrightiae</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus wrightiae is a rare species of cactus known by the common names Wright's little barrel cactus and Wright's fishhook cactus.

<i>Townsendia aprica</i> Species of flowering plant

Townsendia aprica is a rare species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common name Last Chance Townsend daisy. It is endemic to Utah in the United States, where it is known from three counties. It faces a number of threats and it is a federally listed threatened species of the United States.

<i>Sclerocactus papyracanthus</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus papyracanthus is a species of cactus known by the common names paperspine fishhook cactus, grama grass cactus, paper-spined cactus, and toumeya. It is native to North America, where it occurs from Arizona to New Mexico to Texas and into Chihuahua, Northeastern Mexico.

Sclerocactus johnsonii subsp. erectocentrus, synonyms including Echinomastus erectocentrus, is a subspecies of cactus, known by the common names redspine fishhook cactus, redspine butterfly cactus, acuña cactus, needle-spine pineapple cactus, red pineapple cactus, and purple-spine viznagita. It is native to Arizona in the United States.

<i>Sclerocactus sileri</i> Species of cactus

Sclerocactus sileri, the Siler fishhook cactus, is a rare and very small cactus found mostly in mineral-rich desert areas of intermediate elevations, notably in the American states of Utah, Nevada, and northern Arizona.

<i>Pediocactus paradinei</i> Species of cactus

Pediocactus paradinei, also known as bristly plains cactus, Houserock Valley cactus, Kaibab pincushion cactus, Paradine cactus, and Park pincushion cactus is a rare species of cactus found in Arizona.

References

  1. 1 2 Moneilema semipunctatum. Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS).
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Moneilema semipunctatum. Invasive Species Compendium. CABI.