Drugstore Beetle
Stegobium paniceum (Linnaeus)
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Anobiidae
Size: Drugstore beetle adult is 1/16-1/8 in (2-3.5 mm) long. Mature larva is about the same length.
Characteristics: Antennae has club of 3 elongated and broadened segments; pits on wing covers are in long rows; head and thorax are bent downward, so that the head is not very visible from above, giving a strongly humped appearance. Mature larva is C-shaped, with many short hairs and well-developed legs with 4 segments.
Color: Adult drugstore beetle is reddish brown to brown. Mature larva is white
Geographic Range: Drugstore beetles are found all around the world.
Comparison with other species: The cigarette beetle is similar to the drugstore beetle, but has saw-like antennae, and the pits on the wing covers are scattered, not in rows.
Habitat: The female drugstore beetle lays her eggs in and near stored goods and foodstuffs.
Food: Household food, such as bread, flour, and breakfast foods; spices, such as red pepper; drugs; hair; museum specimens; leather; books and manuscripts.
Biology: The female drugstore beetle lays oval, whitish eggs in food materials. The eggs hatch in a few days, then go through 4-6 stages during the next 4-5 months. The full-grown larva pupates for about 12-18 days in a silk cocoon with some particles of food woven into it. The complete life cycle usually takes about 7 months. There are 1-4 generations per year, depending upon temperature.
Invasion: Drugstore beetles may enter structures in infested foodstuffs or other items that have been stored. Adults can fly and are attracted to light.
Damage: Drugstore beetles are destructive to stored goods. They may have gotten this common name from being a pest of stored herbs in apothecaries, or early "drugstores".
Prevention:
- Inspect incoming items.
- Supply ventilation.
- Keep buildings in good physical condition to reduce entry.
- Quickly remove spilled grain.
- Maintain cleanliness in facility and grounds.
- Store pallets 18 inches away from walls.
- Replace torn packages.
- Rotate food and nonfood stock; move out oldest stock first.
Environmental Policy
The employees of American Pest Management are committed to improving the quality of life for all of our customers by providing the safest and most effective treatment for the management of pests which pose a threat to their health, property, and food supply. History has shown that neglecting to control pests such as cockroaches, mosquitoes, rodents, and ticks, and the misapplication of pest control products are equally dangerous.
