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Plum Curculio
(John Obermeyer, Purdue University)

Common Name: Plum Curculio

Order: Coleoptera

Family: Curculionidae

Pest Status: Plum curculio is a significant pest of the fruit industry.

Appearance: Adults are small (1/4-inch long), hard-bodied, brown- black beetles. They always have the prominent snouts characteristic of all weevils.

Life Cycle: Adults overwinter in ground litter or other protected places and become active in early spring. The females deposit their eggs in holes cut in the fruit and hatch in about five days. The larvae feed in the fruit for three weeks and then tunnel out to enter the soil. They construct small, earthen cells and pupate after about two weeks. There are usually two generations per year.

Where to Collect: Plum curculio is found around fruit-bearing trees. They may be collected as they crawl about on food sources looking for mates or oviposition sites.