A routine inspection of a shipment of Mexican herbs at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport turned up a rare insect that had never been reported before in government databases.
The weevil was quarantined and destroyed Dec. 22, but could have done damage to American crops had it multiplied, said Yolanda Choates, spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
"This is considered a first-time identification," she said. "It wasn't in our pest database."
Jans Prena, an entomologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture who examined the bug, said the insect was a "very primitive weevil."
Weevils are a type of beetle which often live in dry foods.
"It's a good find," said Customs and Border Protection Chief Morris Bigham.
"They are little critters," said Jans Prena, an entomologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture who examined the bug. "These are tropical things, and nobody does thorough research on them."
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Specifically, the bug was identified as Trichapion colon Sharp, which is part of the Apionidae family of insects.
"Because it feeds on leafy foliage, with spring around the corner, it could have damaged a lot of crops," Choates said.
