throughout the world. As they are host-plant

specific, some are minor crop pests or potential

vectors of crop diseases, while others have been used

with some success for biological control of invasive

weeds such as gorse and broom. The Sweet Potato

Weevil Cylas formicarius is a significant pest of sweet

potato throughout the warmer regions of the world.

cases on plant galls, and the larvae, which

develop inside the plant, are restricted to a

single species or a few related plant species

notes

Males of some species of Brentinae display

remarkable size variation and are among

the few groups of weevils where males

compete with one another. The females are

smaller and often lack the exaggerated

ornamentation of some males

The brentid subfamily Ithycerinae has only

one living species, the large, gray and white New

York Weevil, Ithycerus noveboracensis. Found only in

eastern USA and southern Canada, it seems to

have no known close relatives.

opposite | Apion rubiginosum

(Apioninae) Feeding on sheep’s

sorrel throughout northern Europe,

this is a typical member of the large

subfamily Apioninae.

left | Cyphagogus

Breeding in dead

wood, in this case

in Singapore, many

Cyphagogus have

bizarre modifications

of the head, thorax,

and legs.

below |

Lasiorhynchus

barbicornis Up to

90 mm long, the

New Zealand

Giraffe Weevil is one

of the world’s largest

Brentidae, as well

as one of the few

Brentinae to inhabit

a temperate climate.