The biological control program for diffuse knapweed, Centaurea diffusa Lamarck, a Eurasian plant that has invaded large areas of grasslands in western North America, has gone on for over 35 years. This program involved the release of 12 biological control agents of which four are numerous and widely distributed; two species of Tephritid flies, Urophora affinis and Urophora quadrifasciata, the r...

Data and explicit taxonomic ranking criteria, which minimize taxonomic change, provide a scientific approach to modern taxonomy and classification. However, traditional practices of opinion-based taxonomy (i.e., mid-20(th) century evolutionary systematics), which lack explicit ranking and naming criteria, are still in practice despite phylogenetic evidence. This paper discusses a recent propose...

The guild of stem-infesting insect pests of sunflower, Helianthus annuus L., within the central Plains is a concern to producers chiefly due to losses caused by plant lodging from the sunflower stem weevil, Cylindrocopturus adspersus (LeConte) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and Dectes texanus texanus LeConte (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae). The incidence of a root boring moth, Pelochrista womonana (Ke...

biology of amaranth stem-boring weevil, hypolixus pica (fabricius) on red root pigweed, amaranthus retroflexus l. was investigated under natural conditions in a citrus orchard in dezful. each red root pigweed was covered by a wooden cage of 50×50×100cm dimentions screened by muslin. three to four adult females and males were introduced into each cage. after 3-4 days past the weevils were remove...

The introduced plant Miconia calvescens (Melastomataceae) poses a grave threat to Hawaii's native ecosystems and biodiversity. One potential candidate for classical biological control is Cryptorhynchus melastomae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Cryptorhynchinae), a stem-boring weevil from Central and South America. This weevil feeds on M. calvescens in its native Costa Rica and has been successfull...

Deep level insect relationships are generally difficult to resolve, especially within taxa of the most diverse and species rich holometabolous orders. In beetles, the major diversity occurs in the Phytophaga, including charismatic groups such as leaf beetles, longhorn beetles and weevils. Bark and ambrosia beetles are wood boring weevils that contribute 12 percent of the diversity encountered i...

Listronotus bonariensis (Argentine stem weevil) is a stem-boring weevil that has become a major pasture pest in New Zealand, and cool climate turf grass in Australia. This species is also frequently found in native tussock grassland in New Zealand. Laboratory and field trials were established to determine the risk posed to both seedlings and established plants of three native grass species comp...

The recent decline and death of young cedar, Cedrela odorata L. (Sapindales: Meliaceae), plantations in Vietnam is caused by Aclees sp. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), a wood-boring brown weevil. A field study was undertaken in three-year-old plantations in two districts in Thanh Hoa province in August 2008. Trees were heavily impacted by the weevil, Aclees; the infestation level (P) ranged from 8...

Stem-boring insects and methyl jasmonate (MeJA) are thought to induce similar complex chemical and anatomical defenses in conifers. To compare insect- and MeJA-induced terpenoid responses, we analyzed traumatic oleoresin mixtures, emissions of terpenoid volatiles, and expression of terpenoid synthase (TPS) genes in Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) following attack by white pine weevils (Pissodes...

Siraton devillei Hustache, 1934, described from a single specimen collected on the island of Elba in Italy, is determined to be conspecific with the Australian cycad weevil Melanotranes internatus (Pascoe, 1870). Consequently, Melanotranes Zimmerman, 1994 is a new junior synonym of Siraton Hustache, 1934 and Siraton devillei Hustache, 1934 a new junior subjective synonym of Tranes internatus Pa...