The boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis) is a beetle measuring an average length of six millimeters, which feeds on cotton buds and flowers. Thought to be native to Central America, it migrated into the United States from Mexico in the late 19th century and had infested all U.S. cotton-growing areas by the 1920s, devastating the industry and the people working in the American south. During the late 20th century it became a serious pest in South America as well. Since 1978, the Boll Weevil Eradication Program in the U.S. allowed full-scale cultivation to resume in many regions.
Read more about Boll Weevil: Life Cycle, Infestation, Control, Further Reading
Famous quotes containing the word weevil:
“The frost which kills the harvest of a year saves the harvest of a century, by destroying the weevil or the locust.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)