West Indian Sweetpotato Weevil

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**Scientific Name: Euscepes postfasciatus Fairmaire**

Adult West Indian Sweetpotato Weevil.

Diagnostic summary

What they do to plants

- larvae and adults feed and tunnel into the stems and storage roots.

- damaged roots become bitter, emit terpene odour, and are not suitable for human or animal consumption.

- damage continues after harvest in stored roots.

What you see on plants

- damage is characterized by small feeding and ovipositional punctures on the stem and storage root surface and larval tunnels filled with frass inside the stems and storage roots.

- larval feeding causes thickening, drying and cracking of the stem.

Larval stage is the most destructive stage.

Hot, dry weather favours weevil development.

Found in the Americas and Japan.

Taxonomy

Economic importance

Geographical distribution

Damage

Morphology

Biology and ecology

Detection and inspection