Bug FAQGray Sunflower Seed Weevil
Smicronyx sordidus · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Curculionidae
Source: Wikipedia
Adult gray sunflower seed weevils are pale gray and about 8 mm long. Their larvae develop inside sunflower buds and destroy the seed from within.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Adults are pale gray.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure roughly 8 mm (0.31 in) in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Is it a pest in the house?
When the eggs hatch, larvae emerge and destroy the seed from inside.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Both sexes eat sunflower buds, often before the buds open. Females prefer buds that are about to open so they can lay eggs at the base of the seed.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The species completes its life cycle in one year. Adults reproduce each June.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Reproduction occurs in June.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 12 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Arizona, Colorado, Texas, North Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, New Mexico, California.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What does the gray sunflower seed weevil look like?
Adults are pale gray and about 8 mm long.
Source: Wikipedia
How do they damage sunflowers?
Females lay eggs in buds that are about to open, and the hatching larvae destroy the seed from inside.
Source: Wikipedia
What do they eat?
Both males and females feed on sunflower buds, often before the buds open.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Curculionidae)
Green Immigrant Leaf WeevilPolydrusus formosusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Black Vine WeevilOtiorhynchus sulcatusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Nettle weevilPhyllobius pomaceusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Asian Oak WeevilCyrtepistomus castaneusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Strawberry Root WeevilOtiorhynchus ovatusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Common Leaf WeevilPhyllobius pyriDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smicronyx_sordidus
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-26 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-26.