Biscuit beetle problems can be avoided by regular checking of dried food, storage in insect-proof containers and good stock rotation. A large number of biscuit beetles can be produced from a relatively small food source.įor example, hundreds of beetles were found in one building where they had been breeding in old mouse baits with wheat grains in trays. Infestations have been recorded from a wide variety of food including cereals, biscuits, dried bread, pasta, chocolate, dog food, stock cubes, curry powder, cumin seed and cannabis. The beetles emerge from exit holes which are very like furniture beetle holes and can bore through hard materials, including foil and plastic food containers to get out.īiscuit beetles have an amazing ability to survive and breed on drugs and spices, some of which are extremely toxic to other animals. The larvae are white and curved and tunnel through hard materials. Adults are very small reddish-brown beetles and when it is warm they are very active and will fly to lights. It belongs to the same family as the common furniture beetle or woodworm, Anobium punctatum, but unlike woodworm larvae, which eat wood, those of the biscuit beetle bore into hard, dried vegetable material including biscuits, nuts and dried cereals. The biscuit beetle (or drug-store beetle in the USA), Stegobium paniceum, is a worldwide pest, particularly in warmer countries. Clothes can be bagged and frozen for 2 weeks at -20☌ to kill everything. TOP TIPĪdult moths are easy to kill with pyrethroid sprays, but larvae hidden in textiles are very difficult to control with insecticides. Clean cotton materials are generally not attacked. Damage is more concentrated in dark, undisturbed areas, for example: wool carpet under heavy furniture, crevices and creases, behind lapels, in pockets or where carpets or textiles are folded. However, frass pellets are hard and opaque whereas moth eggs are very small and translucent and vulnerable to physical damage.Ĭontrary to popular opinion, clothes moth eggs will not remain dormant in textiles and then hatch many months later.
The pelleted excreta, or frass, produced by the larvae of moths is frequently mistaken for moth eggs. One generation takes a year typically to complete the life cycle but, with webbing clothes moths, development can be more rapid if they are warm and undisturbed. The adult moths do not feed and therefore cause no damage it is the grub-like larvae which hatch from the eggs which feed and damage our clothes and other items.
TINY BEETLES IN HOUSE WINDOWS
Adult moths can fly into buildings through windows or open doors, and some moths can also live in birds’ nests.ĭead animals, such as birds and mice, may also provide a source of food and support a moth infestation. It is essential to be able to identify which species your client has, as they have different habits and food preferences. The moths which live in houses and attack and damage clothes and carpets are all small and relatively inconspicuous compared to the larger moths we may see attracted to lights in the evening. Wood: Furniture, picture frames and structural timber. Materials which are vulnerable to attack by insect pests include:ĭried plant: Material baskets, dried plants and dried food This increase in species accelerated in the late 20th century with new carpet beetles and woodborers and even more so in the last 20 years, which may be due to climate change. Victorian times saw the introduction into the UK of many new species, including webbing clothes moths, with the rise in trade around the world. Tudor monarchs employed servants to beat the moths out of their carpets, and people used cedar wood chests to try and stop pest attack. Man has been fighting tiny insect pests since Roman times when there are accounts of woollen clothes and feathers in centurion’s helmets being eaten.
Consultant entomologist, David Pinniger, shares with us some of the small but mighty pests you should keep an eye out for. We often overlook the tiny insects which may be living in British homes and eating your client’s clothes, furniture, books and even the house itself. When people think of house pests, it’s usually mice or cockroaches.
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