Elephant weevil - Orthorhinus cylindrirostris, Subfamily Molytinae

This page contains information and pictures about Elephant weevils in subfamily Molytinae that we found in the Brisbane area, Queensland, Australia.

Members in this subfamily are usually have relatively long legs and long rostrum. On all legs, apex of tibiae produced into curved hook.

This is a large subfamily, however, we only found one species at this moment.
Elephant weevil - Orthorhinus cylindrirostris


Body length 15mm

This weevil and their larvae feed on different plants include most Eucalypts. Searching the internet found that this weevil is not welcome by the Grape and Wine industry. It feed on grape vine and make a lot of damages. This weevil is native to Australia anyway.



Photos were taken in Karawatha Forest on Feb 2008. The weevil was hiding on a small tree alone.



When we were taking those photos, the weevil did not camera-shy. It seemed found us too annoying so it slowly walk away. After many camera flashes, it lost its patient. It walked to the tip of a leaf, open its wings and flied away.



Found this weevil on a Comb-footed Platform Spider's web. This indicated this weevil can fly.

Reference:
1. Insects of Australia, CSIRO, Division of Entomology, Melbourne University Press, 2nd Edition 1991, p 682.
2. Elephant Weevil - lifeunseen.com, Insects and Spiders of Sunshine Coast, Southeast Queensland, Australia, by Nick Monaghan.
3. Northern Territory Insects, A Comprehensive Guide CD - Graham Brown, 2009.

Subfamily Molytinae