Sitona lineatus

Sitona lineatus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Curculionidae
Genus: Sitona
Species: S. lineatus
Binomial name
Sitona lineatus

Sitona lineatus, commonly known as the pea leaf weevil is a species of weevil with a Paleartic distribution. It is a common pest of beans, peas, and other plants in the family Fabaceae.[1]

Description

Adult beetles of S. lineatus measure 3.4-5.3 mm in length. They are characterised by a series of coloured scales arranged in alternating lines (striae) on the elytra; it is from this characteristic where the species gets its name lineatus meaning 'lined' or 'striped'. The head and pronotum also have fine pointed setae amongst the scales. The antennae are clubbed, pointed and preceded by 7 segments. The femora is dark, but tibiae and tarsi are red.[2]

Behaviour and ecology

Adults may be abundant on peas, clovers, and other legumes in the spring and autumn. Adults hibernate over winter, emerging in the spring to breed and eat the leaf margins of host plants leaving them with frilly edges. Larvae feed in root nodules of host plants.[3]

References

  1. ↑ "Datasheet: Sitona lineatus (pea leaf weevil)". CABI. 17 March 2017. Retrieved 2017-04-11.
  2. ↑ "Sitona lineatus (Linnaeus,1758)". Watford Coleoptera Group. Retrieved 2017-04-11.
  3. ↑ Chinery, Michael (2012). Insects of Britain and Western Europe (Domino Guides) (Revised third ed.). Bloomsbury. p. 286. ISBN 978-1-4081-7948-2.


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