Plum Curculio—Conotrachelus nenuphar
The plum curculio is a very destructive pest of plums, apples, peaches, pears, cherries and other wild and cultivated fruits. Injury occurs in three ways: from spring and early fall feeding by adult weevils; by egg-laying in the fruit by females; and from the feeding of larvae within the fruit. They overwinter as adults in the soil within the orchard or in nearby woodlands.
Larvae develop inside fruit. Fully grown larvae (grub) is about 3/8 long, C-shaped, yellowish-white, legless, with a brown head.
The adult weevil. is dark brown with whitish-gray patches and four humps on the wing covers. It is about 1/4 inch long with a long snout. The egg-laying site is a small cavity, next to which is made a crescent-shaped cut.
Late season feeding by adults causes scarring.
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Identification and Control Information
- Fact Sheet: Plum Curculio (PDF)—University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service
- Tree Fruit IPM: Plum Curculio (PDF)—New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Geneva
- Plum Curculio in Apple (PDF)—University of Virginia Entomology
- Fact Sheet: Plum Curculio (PDF)—Cornell Cooperative Extension–Suffolk County
[Photos, left to right: AgriLife Research & Extension Texas A&M; Utah State University Cooperative Extension; University of Kentucky Entomology]