Plum Curculio vs Snail-killing Fly Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Plum Curculio Snail-killing Fly Beetle
Scientific Name Conotrachelus nenuphar Drilus flavescens
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Curculionidae Drilidae
Size 4-6 mm 7-15mm
Habitat Orchards Underground
Diet Fruit Feeders Predators
Regions Eastern North America from Canada to the Gulf states Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Plum Curculio

A dark brown snout beetle covered in warty bumps that is a major pest of stone fruits. Females carve a crescent-shaped scar around each egg they lay in developing fruit.

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Did You Know?

The distinctive crescent-shaped scar it cuts around each egg prevents the growing fruit from crushing the larva inside.

Snail-killing Fly Beetle

A brown beetle with soft elytra where males are winged but females are larviform and never develop wings. It specializes in hunting snails.

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Did You Know?

The larva enters a snails shell and slowly consumes it alive over several days before pupating inside the empty shell.