Ribwort bile weevil

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ribwort bile weevil
Gymnetron pascuorum Kaldari 01.jpg

Ribwort plantain weevil ( Mecinus pascuorum )

Systematics
Order : Beetle (Coleoptera)
Family : Weevil (Curculionidae)
Subfamily : Curculioninae
Tribe : Mecinini
Genre : Mecinus
Type : Ribwort bile weevil
Scientific name
Mecinus pascuorum
( Gyllenhal , 1813)
Side view
Specimen, dorsal view

The ribwort bile weevil ( Mecinus pascuorum ) is a beetle from the family of weevils (Curculionidae).

features

The beetles are 1.5 to 2.1 millimeters long. Your body is black. They have a round-oval shape. The femora as well as the tip of the claw link and the claws are darkened, otherwise the legs are colored yellow-brown. The antennae are also colored yellow-brown, with the exception of the darkened antenna lobes. The wing covers have double, lying and protruding hairs. Between the 3rd and 8th point stripes there is a reddish to dark brown oblique spot in the rear half of the elytra.

distribution

The beetles are widespread in Europe. In the north the occurrence of the species extends to southern Scandinavia and England. In the south the distribution area extends over the Mediterranean area, in the east over the Middle East to the Caucasus . The species is also represented in the Canary Islands and the Azores . Mecinus pascuorum is considered the most common species of the genus Mecinus in Central Europe .

The species was introduced in North America. The first finds date from 1956. Mecinus pascuorum has established itself in southeastern Canada, in British Columbia and in scattered areas of the United States.

Way of life

The beetles can be seen from March to August. The monophage beetle species uses representatives of the plantain family (Plantaginaceae), especially the ribwort ( Plantago lanceolata ) , as host plants . The larvae eat the seeds in the ripening fruits. The pupation takes place in the inflorescence instead.

Taxonomy

The species was scientifically described in 1813 by Leonard Gyllenhaal under the name Rhynchaenus pascuorum Gyllenhal , 1813. In addition to this designation, the following synonyms can be found in the literature :

  • Gymnetron pascuorum ( Gyllenhal , 1813)
  • Gymnaetron pascuorum ( Gyllenhal , 1813)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Arved Lompe: Mecinus determination table . coleonet.de. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
  2. ↑ a b c d Mecinus pascuorum in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved January 3, 2020
  3. ↑ a b c d Species Mecinus pascuorum . bugguide.net. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
  4. ↑ a b c d Mecinus pascuorum . bladmineerders.nl. Retrieved January 3, 2020.

Web links

Commons : Mecinus pascuorum  - collection of images, videos and audio files