Bug FAQWhite Pine Weevil
Pissodes strobi · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Curculionidae
Also called: Engelmann Spruce Weevil
Source: Wikipedia
Adult white pine weevils are dark brown with white spots. They feed on the needles and shoots of pine and spruce, and can cause serious damage to white spruce and white pine. Females store fertilized eggs over winter; the larvae develop through spring and become adults by late summer.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Adults are dark brown with white spots.
Source: Wikipedia
How to get rid of it
Some trees, such as Sitka spruce in coastal British Columbia, have inherited resistance that disrupts egg and larval development and reduces weevil reproduction.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They live on several tree species across North America.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adults feed on the needles and shoots of pine and spruce trees.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Females keep fertilized eggs through winter, which hatch in spring, and the larvae mature into adults by late summer.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults emerge in spring and feed during that time.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The species is native to North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 17 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Minnesota, New York, Massachusetts, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New Hampshire, Illinois.
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
How do they damage trees?
They feed on needles and shoots and lay eggs on the tip of shoots, which can severely harm white spruce and white pine.
Source: Wikipedia
How can I control white pine weevils?
Planting or encouraging trees that have natural resistance, like Sitka spruce in coastal British Columbia, can reduce weevil damage.
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/Pissodes_strobi
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-29 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-29.