Baridinae is a

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classifica ...

of true weevils (Curculionidae). It was established by Carl Johan Schönherr in 1836. Some 4,300

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

in 550 genera are placed here, most of which occur in the New World. A few are economically significant pests, while others are in turn used for biocontrol of invasive plant pests. This subfamily also contains a few endangered species.

Description and ecology

Baridinae are typically small to mid-sized short-legged

weevil Weevils are beetles belonging to the superfamily Curculionoidea, known for their elongated snouts. They are usually small, less than in length, and herbivorous. Approximately 97,000 species of weevils are known. They belong to several families, ...

s, with a characteristic round or ball-like shape. Usually colored black all over at least on the upperside, they are neither highly glossy or metallic, nor dull, but moderately shiny, like polished leather. Some have small dots or bands of lighter scales that can be rubbed off, in particular on the elytrae; yet again others are dusted with an irregular sprinkling of such scales. The elytrae are often decorated with neat lengthwise rows of small pits. The pronotum is not highly arched and may be outright flattened; it has rounded corners and it is about as wide as the elytrae. The rostrum ("snout") is long, markedly curved, and directed more or less straight downwards. The

antenna Antenna ( antennas or antennae) may refer to: Science and engineering * Antenna (radio), also known as an aerial, a transducer designed to transmit or receive electromagnetic (e.g., TV or radio) waves * Antennae Galaxies, the name of two collid ...

attach near the tip of the rostrum; they are bent in the center and have a knop at the tip, as in other

true weevil True most commonly refers to truth, the state of being in congruence with fact or reality. True may also refer to: Places * True, West Virginia, an unincorporated community in the United States * True, Wisconsin, a town in the United States * ...

s. The

proximal Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position ...

antenna segment is stick-shaped. There are 12 antennal segments. These weevils feed on

plant Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae excl ...

s as

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. ...

e and imagines, mainly on the green parts. The larvae are often stem borers. Their foodplants can be found almost all over the Mesangiospermae; they are often of the cabbage family (Brassicaceae), e.g.

cabbage Cabbage, comprising several cultivars of ''Brassica oleracea'', is a leafy green, red (purple), or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage ( ''B.&n ...

s ('' Brassica napus''

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

s) and Rapeseed (''B. oleracea''). Another type of foodplant are mignonettes (''Reseda''), Resedaceae and thus close relatives of the Brassicaceae. ''Acuthopeus cocciniae'' is used for biocontrol of Ivory Gourd (''Coccinia grandis''), a Cucurbitaceae which belongs to a lineage of rosids well distant from the Brassicaceae. Some Baridinae are found on ''

Helianthus ''Helianthus'' () is a genus comprising about 70 species of annual and perennial flowering plants in the daisy family Asteraceae commonly known as sunflowers. Except for three South American species, the species of ''Helianthus'' are native t ...

'' (typical sunflowers) of the

Asteraceae The family Asteraceae, alternatively Compositae, consists of over 32,000 known species of flowering plants in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. Commonly referred to as the aster, daisy, composite, or sunflower family, Compositae ...

, which are asterid eudicots quite unrelated to the cabbage family. And ''Orchidophilus'' is particular to Epidendroideae orchids – especially '' Dendrobium'' and '' Phalaenopsis'' –, which are

monocot Monocotyledons (), commonly referred to as monocots, (Lilianae '' sensu'' Chase & Reveal) are grass and grass-like flowering plants (angiosperms), the seeds of which typically contain only one embryonic leaf, or cotyledon. They constitute one ...

s and thus even more distant relatives of the usual Baridinae foodplants.

Systematics

This subfamily includes the following tribes (some notable genera are also listed): * Ambatini * Anopsilini * Apostasimerini (includes former Madopterini) * Baridini Schönherr, 1839 ** '' Baris'' Germar, 1817 * Madarini ** '' Acythopeus'' ** '' Eumycterus'' Schönherr, 1838 ** '' Orchidophilus'' Buchanan, 1935 * Neosharpiini * Nertinini * Optatini * Pantotelini * Peridinetini Similar to the Molytinae, the Baridinae are sometimes circumscribed in a narrow sense like here, and sometimes more widely, with several otherwise independent weevil subfamilies being included as "tribus groups" in the Baridinae. These taxa included in the Baridinae '' sensu lato'' are the Ceutorhynchinae, Conoderinae, Orobitidinae and Xiphaspidinae.

References

:''This article draws heavily on the corresponding article in the Bokmål Wikipedia, accessed in the version of 18 September 2008.'' {{Taxonbar, from=Q1789026 Polyphaga subfamilies Articles containing video clips