Cryptorhynchinae is a large subfamily of weevils (
Curculionidae
The Curculionidae are a family of weevils, commonly called snout beetles or true weevils. They are one of the largest animal families with 6,800 genera and 83,000 species described worldwide. They are the sister group to the family Brentidae.
Th ...
), with some 6000 species. They are found in most
zoogeographic regions, although they are most diverse in the
Neotropics
The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone.
Definition
In biogeog ...
, Australia, and
Oceania
Oceania ( , ) is a region, geographical region including Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Outside of the English-speaking world, Oceania is generally considered a continent, while Mainland Australia is regarded as its co ...
.
They are distinguished by having their
rostrum (snout) backwardly directed between their fore
coxae in repose, and fitting within a protective channel that usually ends in a cup-like structure on the mesoventrite (ventral mid thoracic segment). The ends of the
tibiae also bear an uncus (small hook-like extensions), a character they share with many other groups of
Curculionidae
The Curculionidae are a family of weevils, commonly called snout beetles or true weevils. They are one of the largest animal families with 6,800 genera and 83,000 species described worldwide. They are the sister group to the family Brentidae.
Th ...
that use woody plants for
oviposition
The ovipositor is a tube-like organ used by some animals, especially insects, for the laying of eggs. In insects, an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages. The details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typica ...
. They are merged into the
Molytinae in some treatments, but a recent molecular study shows that Cryptorhynchinae sensu stricto are monophyletic and best kept as an independent subfamily.
Some species of the Cryptorhynchinae are considered agricultural pests, such as the mango seed weevil ''
Sternochetus mangiferae'', but the great majority of species lives in primary forests, often on deadwood and are threatened by
habitat loss
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...
. In Europe, the flightless genus ''
Acalles'' is most diverse, and restricted to woodlands of long-lasting habitat continuity.
According to a biogeographical analysis
[Letsch H., Balke M., Toussaint E.F.A. & Riedel A. (early online) Historical biogeography of the hyperdiverse hidden snout weevils (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Cryptorhynchinae). Systematic Entomology. http://doi.org/10.1111/syen.12396] Cryptorhynchinae ''s.s.'' originated in the Late Cretaceous in South America. Within the ''Acalles ''group and the ''Cryptorhynchus'' group, several independent dispersal events to the Western Palaearctic via the Nearctic occurred in the Late Cretaceous and Early Paleogene. A southern route via Antarctica allowed the colonization of Australia in the Late Cretaceous, where a diverse Indo-Australian clade probably emerged about 73 million years ago.
Selected genera
* ''
Acalles''
Schönherr, 1825 i c g b
* ''
Acallocrates''
Reitter, 1913 i c g b
* ''
Achopera''
Pascoe, 1870 a
* ''
Anaballus''
Blanchard, 1849 c g
* ''
Apteromechus''
Faust, 1896 i c g b
* ''
Asytesta''
Pascoe, 1865 c g
* ''
Blepiarda''
Pascoe, 1865 c g
* ''
Calles''
Kissinger, 1964 i c g b
* ''
Canistes''
Casey, 1892 i c g b
* ''
Cedilaus''
Lea, 1912 c g
* ''
Cnemidoprion''
Marshall, 1933 c g b
* ''
Cophes''
Champion, 1905 i c g b
* ''
Cryptorhynchus''
Illiger, 1807 i c g b
* ''
Didymus''
Kuschel, 1982 c g
* ''
Episcirrus''
Kuschel, 1958 i c g b
* ''
Eubulus''
Kirsch, 1870 i c g b
* ''
Eurhoptus''
LeConte, 1876 i c g b
* ''
Euscepes''
Schönherr, 1844 i c g b
* ''
Eutinobothris''
b
* ''
Faustinus''
Berg, 1898 i c g b
* ''
Gasterocercus''
de Laporte Castelnau La Ferté-Sénectère & Brullé, 1828 c g
* ''
Gerstaeckeria''
Champion, 1905 i c g b (cactus weevils)
* ''
Hohonus''
Kissinger, 1964 i c g b
* ''
Lembodes''
Schönherr, 1844 i c g b
* ''
Liometophilus''
Fall, 1912 i c g b
* ''
Maemactes''
Schönherr, 1837 i c g b
* ''
Neoulosomus''
O'Brien & Wibmer, 1982 i c g b
* ''
Paracamptus''
Casey, 1895 c g b
* ''
Peracalles''
Kissinger, 1964 i c g b
* ''
Poropterus''
Schönherr, 1844 c g
* ''
Psepholax''
A.White, 1843 g
* ''
Pseudoacalles''
Blatchley, 1916 i c g b
* ''
Pseudomopsis''
Champion, 1905 i c g b
* ''
Pseudomus''
Schönherr, 1837 i c g b
* ''
Rhyephenes''
Schönherr, 1837
* ''
Rhynchodes''
White, 1846 c g
* ''
Rhynchus''
Kissinger, 1964 i c g b
* ''
Sternochetus''
Pierce, 1917 i c g b
* ''
Sudus''
Kissinger, 1964 i c g b
* ''
Tepperia''
Kirby, 1910 g
*''
Tragopus''
Schoenherr, 1837 a c g
* ''
Trigonopterus
''Trigonopterus'' is a genus of flightless weevils placed in the Cryptorhynchinae of Curculionidae. It is distributed in Australia, Indonesia and Melanesia. About 90 species had been formally described until March 2013, when a single paper more t ...
''
Fauvel, 1862 c g
* ''
Troezon''
Champion, 1906 c g b
* ''
Tyloderma''
Say, 1831 i c g b
* ''
Xenosacalles''
Stüben, 2024
* ''
Zascelis''
LeConte, 1876 i c g b
* ''
Zygara''
Pascoe, 1885 c g
Data sources: a=AFD, i = ITIS,[ c = Catalogue of Life,][ g = GBIF,][ b = Bugguide.net]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1935924
Polyphaga subfamilies