Other Common Names
Dermestid Beetles, Skin Beetles, Larder Beetles
Numbers
124 spp. in 18 genera in NA
(1)(2); global fauna still poorly known, with hundreds of undescribed spp. and ~1000 described
(3); checklist of our fauna in
(4)
Overview of our fauna
Family Dermestidae
=============Classification per
(5)==========
Family DERMESTIDAE
Subfamily DERMESTINAE Latreille 1804
==Tribe Dermestini Latreille 1804
Subfamily THORICTINAE Agassiz 1846
==Tribe Thorictini Agassiz 1846
Subfamily ORPHILINAE LeConte 1861
Subfamily TRINODINAE Casey 1900
==Tribe Thylodriini Semenov 1909
==Tribe Trinodini Casey 1900
Subfamily ATTAGENINAE Laporte 1840
==Tribe Attagenini Laporte 1840
Subfamily MEGATOMINAE Leach 1815
==Tribe Anthrenini Gistel 1848
==Tribe Megatomini Leach 1815
Identification
Adult: body convex, oval, or elongate-oval, usually with hairs or scales; antennae clubbed
Larva: mostly covered with long hairs and hair tufts
(6)
The best online visual guide is
(7); helpful guide to synanthropic spp. is
(8)
Habitat
larvae and adults found on carcasses, dry museum specimens, homes, stored food, in nests of bees/wasps/ants, birds, mammals, etc.; adults of some spp. frequent flowers
Food
dry high-protein materials (skin/flesh of dead animals, dandruff, feathers, hair, mantid egg cases, dried foods, wool/silk, etc.); a few spp. prey on wasp & bee larvae or spider eggs; most smaller species feed on pollen/nectar
(1). Some species are probably specialists of mantis oothecae (
Thaumaglossa), others (
Apsectus) feed on spider webbing and dried spider eggs.