Abstract
Stator limbatus is a phytophagous beetle native to warm regions of North and Central America, feeding on Fabaceae seeds and one of the most polyphagous species within the subfamily Bruchinae, here reported for the first time in Europe and on new hosts. Adult beetles emerged from Acacia spp. seeds collected in the islands of Corsica (France), and Sardinia (Italy). The wide presence in Sardinia and Corsica supports the hypothesis that this alien species was introduced several years ago. In both islands, S. limbatus emerged from Acacia mearnsii seeds, with infestation rates of up to 74.2 and 90.8% in 2019 and 2020, respectively. This seed beetle also emerged from two previously unreported host species, Acacia saligna and A. pycnantha, showing highest infestation rates of 4.0 and 95.1%, respectively. Both Acacia species are reported as new host associations with S. limbatus. Overall, seed infestation rates recorded in 2019 and 2020 indicate that S. limbatus is well established and that Mediterranean bioclimatic conditions are suitable for its population increase in size. This study lays the foundations for further research on known and potential host species and the spread and distribution of S. limbatus in Europe.
Highlights
The global movement of people and goods and climate change are dramatically promoting the introduction of alien species in non-native environments in the Anthropocene (Kueffer 2017), resulting in a continuous accumulation of these species worldwide (Seebens et al 2017; Venette and Hutchison 2021)
The main aim of the present study was to investigate the establishment of S. limbatus in Sardinia and Corsica according to the traits described by Yus-Ramos et al (2014) for alien seed beetles, as well as its host association and infestation levels
The comprehensive host range of S. limbatus is provided with up-to-date nomenclature of host species on Table 1
Summary
The global movement of people and goods and climate change are dramatically promoting the introduction of alien species in non-native environments in the Anthropocene (Kueffer 2017), resulting in a continuous accumulation of these species worldwide (Seebens et al 2017; Venette and Hutchison 2021). This indicates that current measures to avoid new introductions of alien species are not always effective. Among seed-feeding insects, the subfamily Bruchinae (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) beetles, renowned as bean weevils, is highly specific and likely the most important (van Klinken 2005) This family includes about 4,350 taxa distributed worldwide (Borowiec 1987). Beetle populations are known to express phenotypic plasticity to host species by adapting pre-imaginal development time and body and egg size (Amarillo-Suarez and Fox 2006; Amarillo-Suarez et al 2017)
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