Metamasius hemipterus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Coleoptera, Curculionidae, Dryophthorinae) on a hand of bananas in Greece

By

Demetriou, Jakovos
Koutsoukos, Evangelos
Kazilas, Christos
Kalaentzis, Konstantinos
Georgiadis, Christos

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2023-2-27

Original Publication

Check list : journal of species lists and distribution

Volume

19

Series / Issue

Issue: 1

Pages

127--131

Subjects

Alien species , Biological invasions , Citizen science , contaminant , Rhynchophorini , West Indian Sugarcane Weevil

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

[São Paulo, Brazil] Luís Felipe Toledo 2005-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15560/19.1.127

 

Abstract

A dead individual of Metamasius hemipterus (Linnaeus, 1758) was collected by a citizen scientist in Athens, Greece from a hand of imported bananas. The equatorial origin of the fruit as well as the extensive growth of a fungus on the specimen, both suggest an unintentional introduction as a contaminant. Nevertheless, this record highlights the valu-able contribution of citizen scientists in the study of alien species. Although the species is not presently considered as established in the country, citizen-science initiatives in order to raise awareness and monitor its presence are ongoing.