Sharlene E. Sing, ssing@fs.fed.us1, George P. Markin, gmarkin@fs.fed.us1, Robert M. Nowierski, rnowierski@reeusda.gov2, David K. Weaver, weaver@montana.edu3, and Cale W. Davis, daviscale@yahoo.com4. (1) U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, 1648 S. 7th Avenue, Bozeman, MT, (2) USDA-CSREES, 800 9th Street, SW, Washington, DC, (3) Montana State University, Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences, Bozeman, MT, (4) Montana State University, Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences, Insect Research Lab South, Bozeman, MT
The toadflax stem mining weevil Mecinus janthinus was first released in the U.S., in Montana, in 1996. Subsequent releases have been made throughout the state, with the result that the early, limited establishment of this agent has now become widespread. Multiple releases of M. janthinus have presented researchers with a unique opportunity to evaluate the efficacy of this agent in diverse habitats and under a variety of environmental conditions. The results presented here summarize findings from long-term field data, illustrating not only the impact of M. janthinus on the target weed, Dalmatian toadflax, but also on correlated plant community dynamics.
Species 1: Coleoptera Curculionidae
Mecinus janthinus (toadflax stem mining weevil)
Species 2: Scrophulariales Scrophulariacea
Linaria dalmatica (Dalmatian toadflax)
Keywords: herbivory, biological control
