- Latin Name: Sciopithes obscurus
- Latin Family Name: Curculionidae
- Common Name: Obscure root weevil
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
This is a native species in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S.
Biology:
Like many other ornamental weevils the females of this species create a small egg chamber by folding over the margin of a leaf, then depositing several eggs in that chamber. It feeds on a wide variety of ornamental and agricultural plants, the adults feeding on the foliage and the larvae feeding on the roots. They are a particular pest on rhododendrons in the Pacific Northwest, as well as on strawberries and in nurseries and greenhouses.
Identification:
Adult beetles are from 5-7 mm long and cylindrical in appearance. They have a very short snout with the elbowed antennae arising near the end of the snout well in front of the eyes. They are an overall mottled brown color with a distinctive wavy darker band across the wing covers near the back end. Larvae are typical of root weevils and weevils in general in that they are white with dark heads, curved to a shallow “C” shape, and without legs.
Characteristics Important to Control:
Control with insecticides is aimed at killing the adult beetles, as the larvae are generally going to be in the soil. Contact insecticides applied to the foliage when adult beetles are present can be helpful.
