Persicaria-perfoliata
Guides
Rhinoncomimus latipes
mile-a-minute weevil
Rhinoncomimus latipes is a specialist weevil in the family Curculionidae, native to Asia and introduced to North America in 2004 as a biological control agent for the invasive vine Persicaria perfoliata (mile-a-minute weed). The species exhibits strict host specificity, having been found to successfully reproduce only on this plant. Adults overwinter in leaf litter and emerge in spring to feed and mate. The weevil has proven effective at reducing mile-a-minute populations where established, though its dispersal rate is relatively slow at approximately 4.3 km per year.