Category: Invertebrates

A brief look at some of the cicadas that had emerged by mid-January. It would be great if someone can identify the cicada singing in the video, as I’m pretty clueless when it comes to these.

Anagotus rugosus

Of the three big flightless weevils which could be on Puangiangi, flax weevil is obviously there. Coprosma weevil took until 2021, when it was found by Ian Millar, Mark Anderson and Em Oyston. I hadn’t seen one until last night (January 2026), when a couple were out and about on taupata, Coprosma repens, despite the gale.

These ones are the smallest (10-15 mm) of flax, ngaio and coprosma weevils. They used to be widespread but I think they are now more likely to be found on predator-free islands. It’s believed they feed only on Coprosma, the exact species depending on which one is where the weevils still survive.

That makes two Anagotus weevils for Puangiangi. I have looked some more for ngaio weevil since last writing about it, but still with no luck. I reckon the leaf litter under taupata is similar to that under ngaio, a bit open and easy for rats to navigate compared with the base of a flax. So does the earlier idea hold water that ngaio weevils, if present, would have all been eaten because they could not hide in leaf litter effectively, yet these smaller but presumably just as appetising ones survived?