Cnestus mutilatus
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| Cnestus mutilatus | |
|---|---|
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| Cnestus mutilatus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Infraorder: | Cucujiformia |
| Family: | Curculionidae |
| Genus: | Cnestus |
| Species: | C. mutilatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Cnestus mutilatus (Blandford, 1894) | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Cnestus mutilatus, commonly known as the camphor shot borer,[1] camphor shoot borer, or sweetgum ambrosia beetle,[2] is a species of ambrosia beetle in the subfamily Scolytinae of the weevil family Curculionidae.[2] It is native to Asia, but has been established as an invasive species in the United States since 1999.[3]
Cnestus mutilatus adult females are mainly black in color, and are large and robust compared to most ambrosia beetles, ranging from 3.4 to 3.9 mm in length, and about 1.7 times longer than wide.[3] This makes C. mutilatus the largest ambrosia beetle species found in North America.[4] Their body shape is also distinctive compared to most ambrosia beetles, with an abdomen that is shorter than the head and thorax, and a sharp slope to the posterior end that gives them a severed or "squished" appearance.[3][4] Adult male beetles are smaller, and flightless.[1]
Distribution
Cnestus mutilatus is native to Asia, where it is known from Burma, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Guinea, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.[5][3] In 1999, it was collected in traps in Mississippi (USA), and subsequent survey work found it to be widely established there.[3] It has since spread throughout much of the eastern United States, from Florida north to Pennsylvania, and west to Illinois and Texas.[4]