Curculio nucum Linnaeus (Curculionidae) new to Ireland

摘要

Portumna Forest Park in central Ireland contains a large area (450ha) of plantation and seminatural woodland on the north shore of Lough Derg, the southernmost of the large lakes on the River Shannon. On a visit to Portumna in May 2015, to assess the habitat along the lake shore, I collected a single adult specimen of a Curculio species. I have only collected a Curculio in Ireland once before. This was Curculio betulae (Stephens) Nelson (2007), so the specimen was retained in the expectation that it would be the same species. However when the specimen was taken through the key in Morris (2012) it proved to be Curculio nucum Linnaeus which has not previously been recorded from Ireland (Anderson et al., 1997; Morris, 2012). The specimen had been photographed when alive and this allowed the identification to be confirmed by Professor Morris.