drugstore beetle

Adult drugstore beetles are cylindrical with lengths ranging from 2.25 to 3.5 mm.

As their name suggests, Drugstore beetles have a tendency to feed on pharmacological products, including prescription drugs.

The entire life cycle of the drugstore beetle lasts approximately two months, but can be as long as seven months.

After the larval period, drugstore beetle larvae move out of the substrate to build a cocoon and pupate.

Stegobium Motschulsky, 1860 (drugstore beetles)

The Drugstore beetle lives in obligatory symbiosis with a yeast fungus, which is passed on to the offspring by covering the eggs with it.

Drugstore beetle (Stegobium paniceum)

The Drugstore beetle also has grooves running longitudinally along the elytra, whereas the Cigarette beetle is smooth.

Additionally, Drugstore beetles have antennae ending in 3-segmented clubs, while Cigarette beetles have serrated antennae (notched like teeth of a saw).

The five major categories of insects considered in this article are flour beetles, the drugstore beetle, the sawtoothed grain beetle, the Indian meal moth and fruit flies.

Some insects, like the drugstore beetle, leave telltale tiny holes in the damaged product, while Indianmeal moths are notorious for the spider web-like threads left behind in the food they infest.

The Drugstore beetle (Stegobium paniceum), also known as the Bread beetle or Biscuit beetle, is a tiny, brown beetle that can be found infesting a wide variety of products, and is among the most common non-weevils to be found there.

Lasioderma serricorne, commonly known as the cigarette beetle, cigar beetle, or tobacco beetle, is very similar in appearance to the drugstore beetle (Stegobium paniceum) and the common furniture beetle (Anobium punctatum), and all three species belong to the family Anobiidae.