MEMPHIS, Tenn. — University of Memphis Professor Dr. Duane McKenna and PhD candidate Michael Charles have announced the rediscovery of the greater chestnut weevil, a species of beetle that was believed to have gone extinct with the near extinction of the American chestnut tree due to introduced plant pathogens in the early 20th century. The last known observation of the weevil, according to Charles, was in 1997.
“For decades, the greater chestnut weevil was considered a classic example of coextinction—the loss of dependent species due to the decline of their hosts,” said McKenna, Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences and Director of the University of Memphis Center for Biodiversity Research (CBio). “Its rediscovery is a rare piece of good news in the broader biodiversity crisis, and a reminder that we have only a brief window to find and protect species that are quietly slipping toward extinction.”
McKenna and Charles were prompted to conduct this research when they noticed a few photos on iNaturalist—an online platform where anyone can post photos of plants and animals—that closely resembled the greater chestnut weevil. The greater chestnut weevil has extraordinarily long mouthparts—longer than its body—which are used to drill into chestnuts for feeding and egg-laying. Charles would later conduct fieldwork in Virginia and Pennsylvania, where he collected larvae and sequenced their DNA for comparison to historical museum specimens of the long-lost species. He and McKenna would later use these and other data to confirm that the beetle was, in fact, not extinct.
“This rediscovery wouldn’t have been possible without the observations of volunteers and the digital tools that connect their data to scientists,” Charles said. “It shows how anyone with a smartphone can help us detect species at risk of extinction and make a real contribution to biodiversity research and conservation.”
Charles, McKenna and others have reported the rediscovery and associated research in Current Biology, a leading life sciences journal. The project highlights the University of Memphis’s expanding strengths in biodiversity science and genomics. Support from the Center for Biodiversity Research and the Department of Biological Sciences made the fieldwork and graduate training possible, with additional National Science Foundation funding to McKenna enabling the genomic analyses.
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