Gorse Weevil

Gorse Weevil - Exapion ulicis

Alternative names
Apion ulicis
Description

Length 2 to 3 mm. The adult weevil is covered in light grey scales which can appear in lines down the elytra. The female has a rostrum half as long as its body whereas the male's rostrum is only about as long as the pronotum, and shorter than the antennae. The front legs have a yellow base colour but this can be obscured by the scales.
 

Identification difficulty
ID checklist (your specimen should have all of these features)

Unless identified by a recognised expert, good photos are required that show the key ID features. Also state the beetle's size in the comments box.

Habitat

Around Gorse.

Life History

The adult feeds on Gorse by digging into the soft tissue of the stem and spines with its snout, creating characteristic round holes as evidence. The larva does more damage, however. It emerges from its egg inside the gorse seed pod and feeds on the seeds for six to eight weeks. The larva then pupates for about two months.

UK Status

Fairly frequent and widespread in England and Wales.

VC55 Status

Fairly frequent in Leicestershire and Rutland. There were a total of 30 VC55 records for this species up to March 2015.

Leicestershire & Rutland Map

MAP KEY:

Yellow squares = NBN records (all known data)
Coloured circles = NatureSpot records: 2025+ | 2020-2024 | pre-2020

UK Map

Additional images

All NatureSpot records