Snout Beetle (Lixus)

Alice Springs Desert Park

The weevil pictured here is from the genus Lixus, family Curculionidae . This family are commonly called True Weevils or Snout Beetles. Here in Alice Springs they have been called Wattle Pigs, although this is also the common name for another genus Leptopius, subfamily Entiminae.

Within this group is the genus Lixus, which has about 950 described species.

The adult weevil have the elongation of the head to form a rostrum and modified and reduced mouth parts. Their antennae are usually clubbed and elbowed. All species in this genus are plant feeders.

This weevil pictured here feed on the flowers of various Acacias, so not sure what it is doing on the Poached Egg Daisy (Polycalymma stuartii), unless it was supping on the nectar in the flower.

The grubs are wood-borers. They’re usually in the roots or the bottom of the stem. You can eat them like witchetty grubs.

Arrernte people use the word ‘arrentye’ to refer to a range of creepy crawlies. It literally means ‘devil’.
Source: Alice Springs Desert Park signage

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Class: Insecta
Informal: Pterygotes
Order: Coleoptera
Suborder: Polyphaga
Superfamily: Curculionoidea
Family: Curculionidae
Subfamily: Molytinae
Tribe: Lixini
Genus: Lixus
Species:
- Lixus albolineatus Lea, 1899
- Lixus breweri Pascoe, 1874
- Lixus cardui Olivier, 1807
- Lixus immundus Boheman, 1859
- Lixus imponderosus Lea, 1911
- Lixus linearis Olivier, 1807
- Lixus mastersii Pascoe, 1874
- Lixus tasmanicus Germar, 1848

Footnote & References

Many thanks for ID to Tony Eales, member of Australasian Beetles Only, Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/1180404322409639
Many thanks for ID to Andrew Parker, member of NT Field Naturalists’ Club Inc, Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/ntfieldnaturalistsclub/
Lixus Fabricius, 1801, Atlas of Living Australia, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/Lixus
Genus Lixus, iNaturalistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/71157-Lixus
Genus Lixus, ausemade, iNaturalistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/observations/189313196
All Weevil (Curculionoidea) sightings, NatureMapr, https://canberra.naturemapr.org/categories/239

ASDP InsectsASDP Insects Index ASDP Ants ASDP Camponotus denticulatus ASDP Opisthopsis sp ASDP Bees Amegilla chlorocyanea Bee Braunsapis sp Exoneurella eremophila Bee Lasioglossum (Chilalictus) Lasioglossum (Chilalictus) Mating Lasioglossum (Homalictus) ASDP Beetles Blessed Leaf Beetle (Paropsisterna beata) Bush Cockroach (Ellipsidion humarale) Rhytiphora dallasi Snout Beetle (Lixus) Transverse Ladybird ASDP Butterflies & Moths Banksia Moth – Caterpillar Caper White Butterfly Chequered Swallowtail (Papilio demoleus ssp sthenelus) Day Flying Moth / Mistletoe Moth Heliotrope Moth (Utetheisa pulchelloides) Noctuinae (Caterpillar) Processionary Caterpillar Southern Moon Moth (Dasypodia selenophora) ASDP Diptera Bee Fly (Australiphthiria sp) Bee Fly (Ligyra cingulata) ASDP Gyromantis ASDP Hemiptera / Heteroptera Crusader Bug (Mictis profana) Ground Shield Bug Leptocoris Bug Podsucking Bug (Melanacanthus scutellaris) ASDP Orthoptera ASDP Katydid (Taeniomenae) Variable Stropis Grasshopper ASDP Tropidoderus gracilifemur ASDP Wasps Bembicinae and Bembix Chrysididae Cuckoo Wasp Potter Wasp Delta latreillei (Potter Wasp) Delta philantes Radumeris radula (Yellow Hairy Flower Wasp) Torymus Chalcid Wasp

ASDP FaunaASDP Arachnida ASDP Spiders ASDP Birds ASDP Insects ASDP Marsupials ASDP Mammals ASDP Reptiles Monotreme – Short-beaked Echidna

Alice Springs Desert ParkFauna Flora Nature Theatre Nocturnal House