Hypera zoilus

Large Clover Kokonrüssler

The Great Clover Clover Gespinstrüssler Kokonrüssler or even clover rodents ( in the Fauna Europaea Donus Zoilus, the standard work Joy Harde - Lohse Hypera Zoilus in Reitter Phytonomus punctatus ) is a beetle of the weevil family.

The beetle is unremarkable in its original area of ​​distribution. He has, however, this extended to North America and Japan, and there occurs occasionally in alfalfa and clover as a pest. The larvae spin a cocoon to pupate in a.

The species is subject in Germany no protection

Remarks about the name and systematics

The species was described in 1775 by Scopoli under the name Curculio Zoilus first time. Regardless published in the same year Fabricius description of the same species under the name Curculio punctatus. Zoilus was a Greek orator, whose name is used several times in entomology as a species name. The Latin description of Scopoli contains no reference to the reason for the naming. Fabricius points out in his description points to the spotted wing-cover. This explains in his description of the beetle the species name punctatus (Latin punctatus dotted).

Since later some local varieties have been described as species, there are numerous synonyms:

• Phytonomus falaciosus Desbrochers 1896
• Phytonomus lineellus Gerth 1910
• Curculio linzensis Gmelin 1790
• Curculio medius Marsham 1802
• Curculio pictus Fourcroy 1785
• Phytonomus proximus Carmagnola 1833
• Curculio punctatus Fabricius 1775
• Phytonomus rufus Bohemann 1884
• Curculio austriacus cabinet 1781

While the multiple splitting of the genus Curculio species was added to the genera Phytonomus, Hypera, Brachypera and Donus. Here, the species name assigned by Linnaeus was usually used. The genus name Donus is not derivable. The name of the subgenus Antidonus means ( altgr. αντί anti against, instead of ) similar to the genus Donus.

The closely related genera Donus and Hypera are represented in Central Europe with about 31 species. The large clover - Kokonrüssler belongs to the subgenus Antidonus, which is represented in Europe by eleven species. The genus Donus is represented in Europe with two sub- genera and 36 species. Worldwide, about 60 species are distinguished. The genus Hypera is also rich in species. The position of the subgenus Antidonus is controversial, it is placed either in the genus Donus, in the genus Hypera or in the genus Brachypera.

Characteristics of the beetle

The stocky built beetle reaches a length of about six to nine millimeters. The brown body is covered with appressed scales and projecting shed hair.

The head is elongated trunk-like forward. The trunk is conspicuously short and thick, more than twice as long as wide. The sensors are turned in near the snout tip. They consist of a long basal joint ( scape ). At this kinked follows a nine-membered scourge with subsequent leg. The Scapus can be inserted into the sensor channel and then reaches to eye center. The sensor channel starts on the trunk top and runs on the trunk side to the lower margin of eyes out. The eyes are laterally and oval, the horizontal extent is less than the vertical.

The pronotum is seamlessly fused with the rest of the front chest. He is only slightly rounded at the sides and about the same length as wide. To the front it tapers more than the rear.

The gray brown elytra have well-trained shoulders and together significantly wider than the pronotum. They are densely scaly. The elytra are shed behind truncated, but not stripped pointed at the rear corners. Between Dandruff occurs long projecting hair bristles (Fig. 1). The rows of dots significantly compressed dots extend in parallel and are separated by wider gaps ( clearly visible in Figure 2). The first, third, and fifth interspace is usually scaly brighter, as the seventh to eleventh on the elytra (fig. 1). In the first, third, fifth and seventh interspace sit moderately elevated darker, velvety points ( grid spots). However, this feature alone is not sufficient for a determination, because on the one hand and of associated species occur (for example, Hypera vidua ( Donus vidua ) ), on the other hand, the squamation be rubbed off ( Fig. 2).

The first sternite the abdomen has an extension which extends between the rear waist and wider than a rear waist. The rails wear on the inside of each one Enddorn. The tarsi are all four members. The jaws are not fused at the base.

Biology

You can find the Beetle throughout the year on a wide range of leguminous plants. The larvae (Fig. than weblink) can be damaging to clovers and alfalfa. They develop freely on their host plants. They have similar to the butterfly caterpillars belly slider. They pupate in a cocoon attached to the plant. This consists of irregular meshes of coarse, brownish threads. It reaches a length of eight millimeters. The stitches are pretty tight, but leave the dark doll inside the cocoons recognize.

The females lay between two and three hundred eggs in or on the stems of the host plant. The following information resulted in a study in Madrid ( Spain) in Luzernekulturen and in the laboratory. The adults appear in late May, early June and feed intensively on alfalfa, then they go on the floor and hide under stones, branches or other objects on the edge of the fields. There they spent without further food intake and immobile during the summer. After the summer diapause beetles begin eating again, and soon after the eggs are laid in series in the stems of alfalfa. The amber-colored eggs are ellipsoidal and about 1 mm long. After about twenty days slip the whitish larvae. They feed on freshly formed tissue. Over the winter months, the larvae develop slowly because of the low temperatures and lack of food. They use the food intake the warmer days, but they reach in March, the third or fourth instar. During the last larval stage, the larva is green to straw yellow with a thin white line on the back. This is limited by very fine reddish lines which are interrupted between the segments. These red lines are missing the similar larvae of Hypera postica. In April, the first cocoons that are spun at the lower portion of the stem appear. In it traces the pupation of the fourth instar. The end of May appear the first females.

In a study in the U.S. overwintering larva is also found as a normal case. Imago decreases after hatching, three to four weeks on diet. The maximum ingestion takes place about five days after hatching, by about 11 days the amount of food consumed significantly.

The development of larvae in the winter at various temperatures were examined in Japan. Low temperatures inhibit larval development.

In the study in Spain, the adult animals died later than October, from other regions of the overwintering adult animals is reported. Also be reported overwintering in the egg stage from the USA.

Dissemination

The species is distributed throughout the Palearctic and not infrequently also has been introduced in other parts of the world. Since the end of the 19th century it is also native to North America and has spread rapidly there. Since 1978, the species is also reported from Japan.