Milfoil Weevil as a Barrier to Invasive Milfoil

The Milfoil  weevil is a small water bug that may be able to rescue troubled ecosystems. This stems  from the fact that it only eats milfoil and is harmless to humanity).
 
In the U.S., there are  two sorts of milfoil. There is a  native one and an invasive species of Eurasian milfoil. native milfoil is simply bothersome, but the predatory species is a threat to all  bodies of water in the northern US states. The  milfoil weevil now enjoys great popularity thanks to its love for the Eurasian Milfoil.  
 
Eurasian milfoil (the only one that will be referred to in the rest  of the article unless otherwise stated) in all likelihood found its way into the northern states  somewhere between 1800’s and the 1940’s as it clung to Ships or was tossed out as  packaging material. Because of its ability to travel on boat anchors,  bottoms, and propellers it spread widely, bringing with it drastic ecological shifts and  additional problems for humans.   This is also a great way to spread  the milfoil weevil as well.
 
It propagates quickly and demolishes ecosystems by choking out the indigenous plant life which  reduces food for water fowl, reduces habitat for fry, and reducing fishing by animals.   Milfoil mats reduce the oxygen in the water, which  can threaten fish and cause unhealthy algae growth.
 
For  people, milfoil growth means a loss of yachting, bathing, angling and waterskiing areas.   For residential areas, the dense mats can clog water intakes or overflows, causing water shortfalls in some places and flooding in others.   Milfoil mats can even cause dam generators to foul or break  resulting in lower power production.  
 
The tiny milfoil weevil seems to be the panacea to this plague.  The fact that it is native favors Eurasian milfoil over indigenous  milfoil, and kills the colonies step by step, giving native species time to recover, make  this the ideal. Add to that the number of generations of milfoil weevils per annum (at least 3) and you have a natural pest remover with none of  the troubles connected with other methods. When taking into account how fast the milfoil propagates, it is obvious that weevils are the perfect answer to controlling the problem.  
 
It spreads when little pieces break off and sink to the bottom, there they take root. Aquatic  harvesting devices are not successful because they break the flora and bits come off and  replant themselves elsewhere. Vacuum dredging works a small better because no broken bits are left behind, but at  the same time the vacuum disrupts the water and may leave no plant life at the bottom.
 
The milfoil weevil will  destroy the whole flora by digging into the stem and eating from the inside out, which  will kill the plant. With only 30 days  to live, the milfoil weevils will go through three generations before coming ashore for  the winter. Milfoil weevils  do have wings, but no one has ever seen them fly so no on knows precisely how the come ashore for the winter.   Once based in a habitat, the milfoil weevil will live even through the coldest Minnesota winters.