Family: Chrysomelidae
Subfamily: Bruchinae
Length: 2.4-3.8 mm
Gibbobruchus mimus has variable markings, but look for a dark W along the elytral suture. The center of the base of the pronotum generally has a light-colored spot. The scutellum varies in color in this species but it is not bright white.
In West Virginia this member of the Pea and Bean Weevil subfamily is most often encountered in spring and early summer. Adults visit a great variety of flowers; Blatchley (1910) stated they have a special fondness for Hawthorn blossoms. The beetle shown here had its picture made in mid-August, visiting Queen Anne’s Lace at the Ohio River Islands National Wildlife Refuge in Pleasants County, West Virginia.
Gibbobruchus mimus lays its eggs in the seed pod of Redbuds (genus Cercis), and the larvae feed on the seeds. The range of this species is about the same as the range of redbuds.
Whitehead and Kingsolver (1975) stated that it is clear the genus Gibbobruchus developed in South America. That continent still has great species diversity within Gibbobruchus, and a large number of species, while from Central America northward the diversity of forms is much less pronounced.
