University of Alberta Museums Search

Larvae are legless, creamy white, curved, and have brown heads (Gov. of Canada). The adult is reddish to brownish black, 6 – 8 mm long, and has hairy elytra (Warner and Negley 1976). The apex of its tibia is rounded (Warner and Negley 1976), it is smaller than O. sulcatus, but larger than O. ovatus, and its femora are not toothed, differentiating it from O. sulcatus and O. ovatu (O'Donnell 1984). The adult's elytra are fused, the weevil is flightless, and has elbowed antennae. Its rostrum is medium in length, shorter than that of O. sulcatus, but longer than that of O. ovatus (Warner and Negley 1976).

This species is parthenogenetic, and there are no males in North America (Warner and Negley 1976). Overwintered adults emerge as early as May, and overwintered larvae develop into adults between late May and early July (Gov. of Canada). Both oviposit for seven weeks just beneath soil surface with an incubation period of 10 to 20 days, and all oviposition ends by early September (Gov. of Canada). During the spring and early summer, the larvae prepare themselves roomy little spaces in the soil where they pupate (Gov. of Canada). Dispersal of this flightless species is dependent on the distances it walks and on shipments of horticultural products (Entomol. Soc. of Wash. 1999). It inhabits greenhouses, nurseries, vineyards, and other agricultural crops ( Entomol. Soc. of Wash. 1999), and is well known for entering homes in large numbers (O'Donnell 1984).

This species is polyphagous, larvae feed on roots, and adults feed nocturnally on the foliage, buds and young shoots of a wider range of host plants (Warner and Negley 1976). North American host plants include cyclamen, strawberry, holly, privet and raspberry (Warner and Negley 1976). European host plants include top primrose, rose, raspberry and cyclamen (Warner and Negley 1976).

This species does not occur in Alberta, but is present in Southern British Columbia, Southern Ontario, Nova Scotia (Warner and Negley 1976), and Quebec (Entomol. Soc. of Wash. 1999). In the United States, it occurs in the Mid-Atlantic states, and Western states (Warner and Negley 1976). Specimens were collected from South America's west coast (Warner and Negley 1976), and it also occurs in Australia, New Zealand and Europe (O'Donnell 1984).