The Pine Root-Collar Weevil, Hylobius radicis Buch., in Southern Ontario

Abstract

Interest in this insect was first aroused by the reports of Felt (1926a, 1926b) and York (1933), who attributed injury to several species of pines in the State of New York to Hylobius pales (Hbst.). Later it became apparent that the injury reported was not caused by H. pales, but by a new species that Huchanan (1934) described as H. radicis. This insect was first reported in Canada at Angus, Ont. (Wallace, 1954), and has since become abundant in pine plantations totalling about 500 acres in Simcoe County. This County supports the principal infestations in Ontario, but other widely separated infestations have been reported near Sault Ste. Marie and from five plantations totalling 50 acres in Renfrew County. H. radicis is now known to be widely distributed. In addition to New York State and Ontario, the insect has been reported from Virginia, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Manitoba.