Boll weevil

Boll weevil
Adult on a cotton boll
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Curculionidae
Genus: Anthonomus
Species:
A. grandis
Binomial name
Anthonomus grandis
Boheman, 1843

The boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis) is a species of beetle in the family Curculionidae. The boll weevil feeds on cotton buds and flowers. Thought to be native to Central Mexico,[1] it migrated into the United States from Mexico in the late 19th century and had infested all U.S. cotton-growing areas by the 1920s, devastating the industry and the people working in the American South. During the late 20th century, it became a serious pest in South America as well. Since 1978, the Boll Weevil Eradication Program in the U.S. allowed full-scale cultivation to resume in many regions.

  1. ^ Jones, Robert (2000-01-21). "Evolution of the Host Plant Associations of the Anthonomus grandis Species Group (Coleoptera: Curculionidae): Phylogenetic Tests of Various Hypotheses". Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 94 (1): 51–58. doi:10.1603/0013-8746(2001)094[0051:EOTHPA]2.0.CO;2.