Description of the larva and pupa of apion brevicorne gerstaecker, 1854 (Coleoptera: Brentidae: Apioninae) with biological information

Abstract

Apion brevicorne Gerstaecker, 1854 (Coleoptera: Brentidae: Apioninae) is an ecologically and economically important weevil that feeds on seeds and tissues of trees in the genus Copaifera L. (Fabaceae). Although the genus Apion comprises 16 species restricted to the Paleartic region, the Neotropical species A. brevicorne is still considered as incertae sedis due to the absence of a systematic study about it. The first descriptions and illustrations of Apion brevicorne are provided here. Diagnostic characters of larva and pupa are included and compared with 13 species from other biogeographic regions. Details of immature Apioninae species associated with host plants from the Neotropical region are described for the first time.