Milfoil weevils may be more helpful to local habitats and people than anyone realizes. This weevil could prove it usefulness in eating milfoil and reinstating the health of an ecosystem while causing no harm to humanity.
In the U.S., there are two types of milfoil. There is a indigenous one and an invasive species of Eurasian milfoil. The native species is not a trouble but the Eurasian one is a major environmental menace. The milfoil weevil now enjoys great popularity thanks to its love for the Eurasian Milfoil.
Eurasian milfoil (from this point forward all milfoil will be considered Eurasian milfoil unless otherwise noted) was most probably introduced to the United States sometime between the late 1800’s to 1940’s as either a stowaway on a Ships ballast or discarded shipping material. Because of its ability to travel on ship anchors, bottoms, and propellors it spread widely, bringing with it drastic ecological shifts and additional problems for humans. Gratefully the milfoil weevil can be spread the same way.
This water flora grows quickly, devastating local floras and limiting the food and living area for many aquatic 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.
For mankind, it cuts the recreational uses of the water by bathers, boatmen, and fisherman. For communities, the dense mats can choke water intakes or overflows, causing water shortfalls in some places and flooding in others. In dams, they choke and break generators and reduce power output.
The milfoil weevil could well be the solution to this plant epidemic. The fact that it is native prefers Eurasian milfoil over indigenous milfoil, and kills the colonies step by step, giving indigenous species time to recover, make this the ideal. Add to that the number of generations of milfoil weevils per annum (at least 3) and you have a natural pest remover with none of the problems connected with other ways. The weevils are a clear solution to the milfoil problem, peculiarly considering the rate at which the plant spreads.
This water plant spread rapidly because broken pieces can sink to the bottom and easily form new floras. Using large aquatic reapers are not the answer as the break up the milfoil too much and it grows right back. Vacuum dredging is only slightly more successful in that it catches little broken pieces, but it also causes a great disturbance in the water and can strip the bottom of all floras.
The milfoil weevil will destroy the whole plant by digging into the stem and eating from the inside out, which will kill the plant. With a short life span (milfoil weevils live about 30 days) at least three generations will live and die till they head to the land to 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 wintertime. Irrespective, once there they survive even the harshest Minnesota winters.
