Open AccessDISTRIBUTION AND BIOLOGY OF A NEW BAGOUS WEEVIL (COLEOPTERA: CURCULIONIDAE) WHICH FEEDS ON THE AQUATIC WEED, HYDRILLA VERTICILLATA
Author(s) -
BALCIUNAS J. K.,
PURCELL M. F.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
australian journal of entomology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1440-6055
pISSN - 1326-6756
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-6055.1991.tb00448.x
Subject(s) - hydrilla , biology , weevil , curculionidae , larva , biological pest control , pupa , instar , weed , aquatic plant , botany , ecology , macrophyte
Abstract A new, undescribed species of aquatic weevil, Bagous sp., was found feeding on the submersed aquatic plant, hydrilla, Hydrilla verticillata , at 21 sites, from Kakadu National Park in the N.T., to Grafton in N.S.W. The larvae and adults feed on hydrilla beneath the surface, fragmenting the stems, then continue feeding on floating fragments, and those stranded on the shoreline, where the larvae pupate. Single eggs are laid in hydrilla stems, within which the three larval instars develop. Development from egg to adult takes 12–14 d at 25°C. This Bagous weevil has been exported as a potential biological control agent to the United States, where hydrilla is a pest. Figures illustrating this new species and distinguishing it from the similar Bagous australasiae are provided.