Bug FAQGold-dust Weevil
Hypomeces pulviger · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Curculionidae
Source: Wikipedia
The gold-dust weevil is about 14 mm long and covered in iridescent green or yellow-dusty scales that give it a metallic look. Both larvae and adults feed on plants, with larvae eating roots in the soil and adults chewing foliage, often defoliating young bushes and nursery trees.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The beetle’s body is covered in iridescent green or yellow-dusty scales. Its thorax and wing cases are grey and dusted with golden or greenish flattened setae.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults are roughly 14 mm (0.6 in) long.
Source: Wikipedia
Is it a pest in the house?
Both life stages can damage crops and young trees in forest nurseries.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It lives in forests and also in open areas such as agricultural fields.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Both larvae and adults are considered crop pests. Larvae feed on living plant roots in the soil.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Larvae develop underground, feeding on roots and pupating in the soil. Adults live for a long time and damage foliage, sometimes completely defoliating young bushes and nursery trees.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It is native to southeastern Asia, ranging from Pakistan and India eastward to Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines and Indonesia.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
What does the gold-dust weevil look like?
It is about 14 mm long and covered with iridescent green or yellow-dusty scales, while its thorax and wing cases are grey with golden or greenish flattened setae.
Source: Wikipedia
How does it damage plants?
Larvae feed on plant roots underground, and adults chew foliage, often stripping leaves from young bushes and nursery trees.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Curculionidae)
Green Immigrant Leaf WeevilPolydrusus formosusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Black Vine WeevilOtiorhynchus sulcatusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Nettle weevilPhyllobius pomaceusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Asian Oak WeevilCyrtepistomus castaneusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Strawberry Root WeevilOtiorhynchus ovatusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Common Leaf WeevilPhyllobius pyriDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypomeces_pulviger
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.