Species Tribolium castaneum - Red Flour Beetle

Classification · Explanation of Names · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Food · Works Cited

powderpost beetles? - Tribolium castaneum

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Coleoptera (Beetles)

Suborder Polyphaga

No Taxon (Series Cucujiformia)

Superfamily Tenebrionoidea

Family Tenebrionidae (Darkling Beetles)

Subfamily Tenebrioninae

Tribe Triboliini

Genus Tribolium (Flour Beetles)

No Taxon (subgenus Tribolium)

Species castaneum (Red Flour Beetle)

Explanation of Names

Tribolium castaneum (Herbst 1797)

Size

2.3-4.4 mm(1)

Identification

see(2)(3)

Range

widely dist., most common in sw US - Map (4), of Oriental origin(3), now cosmopolitan but more common in warmer regions(2)

Habitat

in Canada, heavily infest granaries, flour mills, and feed mills throughout the Prairie Provinces; found most frequently in imported produce on cargo ships(2); particularly abundant in warm and often dry conditions(1)

Food

secondary pest of a wide range of cereals, cereal products, legumes, oilseeds and cakes, nuts, spices and animal products; an extremely successful omnivore(1); attack sound grain, particularly when the moisture content is high, but prefer damaged grain(2)

Works Cited

1.	Towards integrated commodity and pest management in grain storage Semple R.L., Hicks P.A., Lozare J.V., Castermans A. (eds.). 1992. UN Food and Agricultural Organization. Rome, Italy. 526 pp.

2.	Beetles associated with stored products in Canada: An identification guide Bousquet Y. 1990. Research Branch Agriculture Canada, Publication 1837.

3.	Handbook of urban insects and arachnids: A handbook of urban entomology Robinson W.H. 2005. Cambridge University Press.

4.	Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)

Contributed by v belov on 13 December, 2010 - 3:14pm
Additional contributions by Mike Quinn
Last updated 30 December, 2021 - 10:23am

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