This species was first described by Francis Pascoe in 1877 using specimens collected in Canterbury and supplied by Charles Marcus Wakefield.

They belong to the Molytini tribe which consists of four other species: H. tuberculatus, H. spinipennis Broun, H. stilbocarpae Kuschel, and H. pittospori.

The Hadramphus tuberculatus are the largest weevils in terms of size and their distinction stems from having rounded tubercles on their backs.

Possible causes for its disappearance were the removal by farmers of spear grass (Aciphylla), its host plant, and the arrival of predatory European rats.

[1] A detailed ecological study conducted by researchers at Lincoln University in 2009–2011 estimated the population size at Burkes Pass to be only 138 individuals in 2009, decreasing each year to 76 in 2011.