Rhynchitidae
Encyclopedia
The tooth-nosed snout weevil
s receive this name due to the teeth on the edges of their mandibles. They are small beetle
s (1.5 to 6.5 mm) that are usually found on low vegetation.
The rhynchitids are sometimes treated as a subfamily (Rhynchitinae) within the family Attelabidae
, but are treated as a separate family
by other authorities.
A common member of this group is the rose curculio, Merhynchites bicolor, which feeds on roses.
A number of species from Rhynchitidae are recorded from Britain.
The thief weevil, Pterocolus ovatus, is the only pterocoline (subfamily Pterocolinae) known from North America. It is an obligate egg predator
and nidus kleptoparasite
(nest thief) of some beetles in the family Attelabidae
.
Weevil
A weevil is any beetle from the Curculionoidea superfamily. They are usually small, less than , and herbivorous. There are over 60,000 species in several families, mostly in the family Curculionidae...
s receive this name due to the teeth on the edges of their mandibles. They are small beetle
Beetle
Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...
s (1.5 to 6.5 mm) that are usually found on low vegetation.
The rhynchitids are sometimes treated as a subfamily (Rhynchitinae) within the family Attelabidae
Attelabidae
The Attelabidae or leaf-rolling weevils are a widespread family of weevils. There are more than 2000 species. They are included within the primitive weevils, because of their straight antennae, which are inserted near the base of the rostrum...
, but are treated as a separate family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
by other authorities.
A common member of this group is the rose curculio, Merhynchites bicolor, which feeds on roses.
A number of species from Rhynchitidae are recorded from Britain.
The thief weevil, Pterocolus ovatus, is the only pterocoline (subfamily Pterocolinae) known from North America. It is an obligate egg predator
Predation
In ecology, predation describes a biological interaction where a predator feeds on its prey . Predators may or may not kill their prey prior to feeding on them, but the act of predation always results in the death of its prey and the eventual absorption of the prey's tissue through consumption...
and nidus kleptoparasite
Kleptoparasitism
Kleptoparasitism or cleptoparasitism is a form of feeding in which one animal takes prey or other food from another that has caught, collected, or otherwise prepared the food, including stored food...
(nest thief) of some beetles in the family Attelabidae
Attelabidae
The Attelabidae or leaf-rolling weevils are a widespread family of weevils. There are more than 2000 species. They are included within the primitive weevils, because of their straight antennae, which are inserted near the base of the rostrum...
.
External links
- Pterocolus ovatus, thief weevil on the UFUniversity of FloridaThe University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
/ IFASInstitute of Food and Agricultural SciencesThe University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is a federal-state-county partnership dedicated to developing knowledge in agriculture, human and natural resources, and the life sciences, and enhancing and sustaining the quality of human life by making that information...
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