Gall weevil
| Gall weevil | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Mecinus collaris | ||||||||||||
| Germar , 1821 |
The gall weevil ( Mecinus collaris ), also beach plantain gall weevil or white-scaly slender weevil , is a species of beetle from the family of the weevils (Curculionidae).
features
The weevil is 2.8 to 3.7 mm long and has an elongated, long oval shape. Except for the lighter tarsi, it is either solid black or light chestnut brown (uncolored animals). The wings are rounded together at the back and have indented rows of dots and very fine, non-covering hairs. The sides of the front breast , the rear edge of the pronotum and its rear angles are clearly whitish or whitish-yellow. The pronotum is narrower than the elytra and dense and finely punctured.
distribution
In Europe, Mecinus collaris occurs frequently on the coasts of the Atlantic and the North and Baltic Seas. In the interior, however, it is rare. The distribution ranges from Central Europe to Siberia and Mongolia.
habitat
The gall weevil inhabits coasts, silty meadows, dry meadows at inland salt areas , in parts of its range it was also found on forest meadows. It is strongly tied to saline habitats.
ecology
The female gall weevil lays its eggs in the flower stalks of plantain species ( Plantago spp.) From June . Near the coast, the species is bound to the beach plantain ( Plantago maritima ), in other places it also attacks other plantains. Just below the inflorescence, the egg-laying creates an elongated stem gall, in which a beetle larva eats and gradually grows. When the seeds of the plantain ripen, the larvae are fully grown and pupate. From August the young beetles hatch out of the galls through round boreholes.
The species is attacked by several parasitic wasps from the families Eulophidae , Eupelmidae and Pteromalidae .
Individual evidence
literature
- Klaus Koch (Ed.): The beetles of Central Europe. Ecology . Volume 3. Goecke & Evers, Krefeld 1992, ISBN 3-87263-042-3 .
- Joachim Rheinheimer, Michael Hassler: The weevils of Baden-Württemberg. State Institute for the Environment, Measurements and Nature Conservation Baden-Württemberg, regional culture publisher, Heidelberg 2010, ISBN 978-3-89735-608-5 .
Web links
- Gallrüsselkäfer at schutzstation-wattenmeer.de
- Mecinus collaris in Fauna Europaea