The black vine weevil, Otiorhynchus sulcatus (F.), and the strawberry root weevil, O. ovatus (L), are key pests of nursery and small fruit crops in the western slope areas of the Pacific Northwest. Both species are univoltine, parthenogenetic, flightless, and are omnivorous (>200 species of plants) feeders. In the Pacific Northwest the larvae cause economic injury to many woody ornamentals and strawberries by feeding on the root system. I noticed on numerous casual observations that larval damage was heavier on certain varieties of spruce, yew and strawberries than on other varieties. Even though growers have stated that one species causes greater damage to certain plant species than others, both species are treated the same in regards to pest management strategies. Alberta spruce, bird’s nest spruce, rhododendron, yew, and strawberries were used as host plants to determine how they affected life parameters. O. sulcatus produced the most eggs on strawberry with less produced on rhododendron and even fewer eggs on yew. O. ovatus produced the most eggs on strawberry with fewer eggs when bird’s nest spruce and 0 eggs on yew. When eggs of either species were place in pots that contained the above plants, more O. sulcatus established in strawberries with bird’s nest spruce a far distant second. However, O. ovatus had greater establishment on Alberta spruce than on strawberries. A number of other measurements and a part of this study with adults caged over the plants found contradictory differences between the two species.
Species 1: Coleoptera Curculionidae Otiorhynchus sulcatus (black vine weevil)
Species 2: Coleoptera Curculionidae Otiorhynchus ovatus (strawberry root weevil)
Keywords: host plants
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