Milfoil Weevil as a Barrier to Invasive Milfoil
Milfoil weevils could be more helpful to local habitats and mankind than anyone recognizes. This little bug may be very helpful because it eats the invasive flora known as milfoil and poses no menace to humanity.
In the U.S., there are two types of milfoil. Eurasian Milfoil is invasive and non-native and the other is simple native. The native species is not a trouble but the Eurasian one is a major environmental menace. Eurasian Milfoil is the reason the milfoil weevil is so important.
Eurasian milfoil (from this point forward all milfoil will be considered Eurasian milfoil unless otherwise noted) was most in all likelihood introduced to the Us sometime between the late 1800’s to 1940’s as either a stowaway on a Boats ballast or discarded shipping material. Milfoil can easily travel on the undersurface of a boat and grow fast, which causes terrible ecological changes and causes problems for people. Luckily this can spread the milfoil weevil as well.
It propagates quickly and demolishes ecosystems by choking out the native plant life which reduces food for water fowl, reduces habitat for fry, and reducing fishing by beasts. The mats constituted by the milfoil do not allow the wind to bring refreshing oxygen to the water and this will result in the eventual death of fish and a surge in algae growth.
The milfoil is more annoying for humans than harmful because it can lower the amount of water available for yachting, fishing, bathing and waterskiing. In residential areas, the dense mats could cause floods and droughts because of clogged intake or overflow pipes. The mats can be specially damaging to dams by breaking or choking generators and reducing power yield.
The milfoil weevil may well be the answer to this flora epidemic. The fact that it is native favors Eurasian milfoil over indigenous milfoil, and kills the colonies step by step, giving native species time to recover, make this the ideal. With a high reproduction rate and a taste for milfoil, the milfoil weevil and a smart and safe way to remove the unwanted milfoil. When looking at how the milfoil propagates it becomes clear and why milfoil weevils control it so well.
It spreads when small pieces break off and sink to the bottom, there they take root. Aquatic harvesting devices are not productive because they break the flora and pieces come off and replant themselves elsewhere. Vacuum dredging is a small better in that it gets the little pieces, but cause a great deal of water disturbance and leaves the bottom bare, so it will need replanting with indigenous species.
The milfoil weevil will destroy the whole flora by digging into the stem and eating from the inside out, which will kill the flora. Weevils have a short life, living no more than 30 days, so before the winter comes, three generations will live and die before they come ashore for the winter. Milfoil weevils do have wings, but no one has ever seen them fly so no on knows precisely how the come ashore for the winter. The weevils are hearty small bugs and once they are introduced to an area, they can survive the harshest weather.
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