Genus Oryzaephilus

Classification · Other Common Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Season · Food · Internet References · Works Cited

grain beetle - Oryzaephilus surinamensis

tiny cereal beetle - Oryzaephilus surinamensis

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Coleoptera (Beetles)

Suborder Polyphaga (Water, Rove, Scarab, Longhorn, Leaf and Snout Beetles)

Superfamily Cucujoidea

Family Silvanidae (Silvanid Flat Bark Beetles)

Subfamily Silvaninae

Genus Oryzaephilus

Other Common Names

Merchant Grain Beetle (O. mercator), Saw-toothed Grain Beetle (O. surinamensis)

Numbers

2 spp. in our area (both adventive), 15 spp. worldwide(1); a third sp., O. acuminatus, recorded in FL in 1983 in a shipment of neem tree seeds (Azadirachta indica) from India, but has not established

Size

2.5-3.7 mm

Identification

Adult: brown, elongate, with striated elytra; pronotum with several teeth on lateral margins, a medial ridge, and a dorsolateral ridge on each side of midline

see(2)(3)(4)

Range

the two major pest spp. are cosmopolitan; 9 spp., Afrotropical; the remaining four, Asian (Middle East, India)(1)

Habitat

in containers or buildings where grain is stored; adult O. surinamensis cannot fly but come to lights; adults of O. mercator are strong fliers but are not attracted to light

Season

year-round indoors or in warm climates

Food

larvae and adults feed on damaged kernels of stored grains: barley, oats, rice, sunflower seeds, and wheat, plus flour, pasta, breakfast cereals, cake mixes, and various other processed foods

Internet References

Fact sheets by PEI Pest Control Ltd., D. Calvin (Penn State)

Works Cited

1.	A preliminary checklist of the flat bark beetles of the world, by M.C. Thomas

2.	Beetles associated with stored products in Canada: An identification guide By Yves Bousquet

3.	Insect and Mite Pests in Food, an Illustrated Key By J. Richard Gorham, editor

4.	Handbook of urban insects and arachnids: A handbook of urban entomology By W.H. Robinson

Contributed by Robin McLeod on 3 January, 2006 - 10:48pm
Additional contributions by v belov
Last updated 30 April, 2011 - 1:35pm

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