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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Systematic Entomology Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #332829
Research Project: Beetle Taxonomy and Systematics Supporting U.S. Agriculture, Arboriculture and Biological Control

Location: Systematic Entomology Laboratory

Title: First description of the immature stages of Poteriophorus Schoenherr: the larva, pupa and biology of P. uhlemanni (Curculionidae: Dryophthorinae: ) discovered through Dawu traditional ecological knowledge

Author
item Chamorro, Maria
item HUANG, CHIA-LUNG - National Taiwan University

Submitted to: The Coleopterists Bulletin
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/23/2019
Publication Date: 6/20/2019
Citation: Chamorro, M.L., Huang, C. 2019. First description of the immature stages of Poteriophorus Schoenherr: the larva, pupa and biology of P. uhlemanni (Curculionidae: Dryophthorinae: ) discovered through Dawu traditional ecological knowledge. The Coleopterists Bulletin. 73(2):283-299.

Interpretive Summary: Dryophthorinae include some of the most economically important weevil pests. Feeding damage occurs primarily during the endophytic larval stage. Approximately five percent of dryophthorine genera have associated developmental stages. This paper provides the first description of the immature stages of the Oriental dryophthorine genus Poteriophorus. Illustrated morphological and life history information is provided to help identify the weevil. Detection and rapid identification of this weevil is crucial towards its monitoring. This publication will be used by entomologists, botanists, foresters, conservation biologists, identifiers and the general public.

Technical Abstract: Dryophthorinae includes some of the most economically important weevil pests. Feeding damage on host plant occurs primarily during the endophytic larval stages. The immature stages of only approximately 5% of dryophthorine genera are currently known. Traditional Ecological Knowledge of the Dawu People of the island of Lanyu led to the discovery of the immature stages and host plant of the dryophthorine weevil genus Poteriophorus Schoenherr. The larva, pupa, and biology of Poteriophorus uhlemanni (Schultze, 1922) are described for the first time. The newly discovered larva is compared to closely related taxa, including two of the most economically important and commonly encountered genera in Sphenophorina: Metamasius Horn, 1873 and Sphenophorus Schoenherr, 1838. Discovery of the associated larval and pupal stages of P. uhlemanni provides suites of characters for morphologically based phylogenetic studies, insights into the larva’s functional morphology of feeding, tunneling, and cocoon-making behavior, and the ability to accurately identify the species at all stages. Knowledge of host preference will inform management strategies for poorly studied endemic species in the area.