- The Stegobium paniceum or biscuit beetle is is found worldwide, indoors only in colder climates, and is a stored-food pest. An adult beetle is between 2 and 3.5 mm long and ranges between reddish brown and brown in color. Adult beetles have a helmet like prothorax.
Females lay up to 75 eggs in food or food debris exclusively. The larvae usually live in food, so they are less likely to be seen than adults. The entire life cycle of the biscuit beetle is two and seven months and depends largely on the environmental temperature. - Biscuit beetles got their name because they were known to infest the biscuits stored on ships in olden times. They are known to infest all types of starchy foods from cornmeal and flour to dog food, powdered milk and spaghetti. They can easily eat through most food packaging. They received the alternate name, drugstore beetles, because they also feed on drugs at the pharmacy, including laxatives and even strychnine.
- The Anobium punctatum, or common furniture beetle, is the most common form of wood worm, which refers to the larval stage of the furniture beetle, and is also found worldwide. It is a wood pest in furniture, structures and timber. Adult beetles are 2.5 to 5 mm long and dark, chocolate brown in color. The head of the furniture beetle is distinguished by a helmet like prothorax that sits farther on top of the head than the biscuit beetle.
Adult females lay up to 60 eggs at a time that they wedge into crevices and cracks of unprotected wood; wood that is unpainted, unstained or where the paint or stain has worn off. The eggs hatch into larvae and begin to bore through the wood. The life cycle of the furniture beetle lasts up to three years, and it is the larvae that do the most wood damage. When the beetle is ready to pupate, it bores its way to the surface of the wood and emerges. - Furniture beetles can live indoors or outdoors. They prefer soft woods like floors joists, rafters and plywood when indoors and hardwoods such as oak and fruit trees when outdoors. If available, the furniture beetle will infest damp wood, including old furniture where the finish has worn off, damp timbers and damp floor boards. Home infestation of furniture beetles often occurs when infested furniture is moved from one house to another.
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