This species kills the terminal leader primarily of eastern white pine. Colorado blue spruce, Norway spruce, Scotch, red, pitch, jack, and Austrian pines, and occasionally Douglas fir are also attacked.
Trees become susceptible to injury when they reach a height of about three feet.
The white pine weevil prefers to attack trees exposed to direct sunlight. It has irregularly shaped patches of brown and white scales on the front wings. Near the apex of the front wings is a large white patch. Like most weevils, the adult has a long snout-like beak from which small antennae arise. The larval stage, which lives beneath the bark, is white with a distinct brown head.