| Scolopterus penicillatus | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Infraorder: | Cucujiformia |
| Family: | Curculionidae |
| Genus: | Scolopterus |
| Species: | S. penicillatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Scolopterus penicillatus | |
Scolopterus penicillatus, also known as the black spined weevil, is an endemic beetle of New Zealand. [2]
In appearance it is a shining black colour with a purplish tinge and looks very similar to its close relative Scolopterus tetracanthus . S. penicillatus can be distinguished from S. tetracanthus as the spines on the shoulders of the former are much less pointed. [2]
The beetle is present throughout New Zealand and can be discovered by beating native flowering plants in the summer months. [2] Adult black spined weevils have been collected from Hedychium gardnerianum [3] and caught in the flowers of Helichrysum lanceolatum . [4] The larvae of S. penicillatus are known to develop in the recently dead bark of the various species of Pseudopanax . [5]
R A Crowson of Glasgow University spent some time in New Zealand in 1956 and 1957 during which period he found larvae associated with pupae and teneral adults under the bark of a dead branch of a Nothopanax . The larvae were found at Parahaki and Nelson and were later identified by him and Sir G. A. K. Marshall as Scolopterus penicillatus. [6]
