Bug FAQStrawberry blossom weevil
Anthonomus rubi · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Curculionidae
Source: Wikipedia
Adults are tiny, only 2 to 4 mm long, black and covered with fine grey hairs, while larvae are about 3 mm, white and curved. Females lay a single egg inside each unopened strawberry flower bud, then cut the bud’s stalk so the larva can feed on the wilting tissue, often causing severe crop loss.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Adults are dull black and have a fine grey fuzz covering their bodies.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adult weevils measure 2 to 4 mm (0.08 to 0.16 in) in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Is it a pest in the house?
In Europe it can cause up to 80 % loss of strawberry crops, making it a serious agricultural pest.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It feeds on members of the rose family, especially cultivated strawberry and raspberry. In British Columbia it also uses wild hosts such as salmonberry and thimbleberry.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adults chew strawberry leaves, and females insert one egg into each unopened flower bud before severing the bud’s stalk; the larvae then feed on the dying bud tissue.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Adults are drawn to strawberries by plant-released chemicals. Males emit a three-component aggregation pheromone that attracts other weevils to traps.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The strawberry-blossom weevil is native to Europe and western Asia.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 1 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Washington.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: introduced in North America; introduced in United States; introduced in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
How does the weevil damage strawberry plants?
Females lay eggs inside unopened flower buds and cut the stalk, so the hatching larvae feed on the wilting bud tissue, destroying the flower and reducing fruit set.
Source: Wikipedia
What crops are affected by the strawberry blossom weevil?
It primarily attacks strawberries and raspberries, but in some regions it also feeds on wild rosaceous plants like salmonberry and thimbleberry.
Source: Wikipedia
How can I identify an adult strawberry blossom weevil?
Look for a tiny (2 to 4 mm) dull black beetle covered in fine grey hairs.
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/Anthonomus_rubi
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.