Nettle Root Weevil vs Short-winged Spondylid

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Nettle Root Weevil Short-winged Spondylid
Scientific Name Phyllobius virideaeris Spondylis buprestoides
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Curculionidae Cerambycidae
Size 3-5 mm 12-24 mm
Habitat Hedgerows Forests
Diet Herbivores Root Feeders
Regions Europe Europe, North Africa, Siberia, Japan
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Nettle Root Weevil

A bright green-scaled weevil found on nettles and other vegetation in spring. Extremely common but the scales wear off with age revealing black cuticle. Adults chew leaf edges.

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Did You Know?

Fresh specimens are brilliant metallic green, but old worn individuals look like completely different black beetles.

Short-winged Spondylid

A cylindrical, entirely black cerambycid that resembles a buprestid beetle more than a typical longhorn. Its antennae are short and beadlike, unusual for the family. Larvae develop in dead pine roots and stumps.

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Did You Know?

Its short antennae and cylindrical shape are so unlike a typical longhorn that it was once placed in its own family.