Drugstore beetle
Description
A dark, reddish-brown beetle, Stegobium paniceum. The drugstore beetle larvae specializes in eating leather and adjacent textiles. They will also eat botanical specimens, seeds, spices, stored food, books, cork, and mummies. The adult insects are about 2 to 4 millimeters long. Females lay about 75 eggs that hatch in 7 to 12 days. The larvae, which feed on protein based materials, have a white c-shaped body growing up to 4 mm in length. The larval stage lasts 4-20 weeks at which point a cocoon is formed. The adult hatches in 1-3 weeks and lives up to 65 days. Stegobinone has been identified as an effective sex pheromone.
Synonyms and Related Terms
Stegobium paniceum; biscuit beetle (Br.)
Physical and Chemical Properties
Distribution: worldwide, most abundant in temperate regions
Additional Images
Drugstore beetle
Drugstore beetle
Resources and Citations
- MuseumPests.net: Drugstore Beetle
- Lynda A. Zycherman, J.Richard Schrock, A Guide to Museum Pest Control, FAIC and Association of Systematics Collections, Washington DC, 1988 Comment: Larval stage = 5-7 weeks
- University of Florida, Department of Entomology and Nematology: Drugstore beetle (accessed June 2014) Larval stage = 4-20 weeks
- Rosalie Rosso King, Textile Identification, Conservation, and Preservation, Noyes Publications, Park Ridge, NJ, 1985