| Tribolium | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tribolium castaneum | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Infraorder: | Cucujiformia |
| Family: | Tenebrionidae |
| Subfamily: | Tenebrioninae |
| Tribe: | Triboliini |
| Genus: | Tribolium Macleay 1825 |
Tribolium is a genus of flour beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. [1] They are known by various common names including flour beetles, flour weevils, red weevils and bran bugs. [2]
Adult Tribolium are beetles 3–6 mm in length and with colours ranging from reddish-brown to black. The clypeus is enlarged and has genae forming shelf-like projections extending around the sides, partly dividing the eyes. The antennae are 11-segmented and either expand towards the ends or have terminal clubs. The prothorax is nearly square in shape and rounded on the sides. The elytra are striated. They possess well-developed wings, but at least one species (T. confusum) is unable to use them to fly. The two sexes are similar in external appearance, i.e. there is no sexual dimorphism. [2]
The eggs are 0.6 mm long, oblong in shape and whitish to nearly transparent in colour. [2]
The larvae are elongate and approximately 6–7 mm long when mature. They can be distinguished from some other tenebrionid larvae by the last abdominal segment ending in two points (urogomphi). They are mostly yellowish-white except for: the dorsal part of the head, the tips of the claws and the tergites, which are slightly darkened; and the urogomphi and the tips of the mandibles, which are reddish-brown. [2]
The pupae are initially white, but turn yellow after a day or two, then gradually turn darker. [2]
In the wild, Tribolium occur under bark and in old logs. A number of species have adapted to living in stored plant products. [2]
Tribolium lay their eggs in a food source such as flour. These hatch into larvae which proceed to feed and grow within the food, avoiding light. There are usually 7 or 8 larval instars, but there can be as few as 5 or as many as 11 depending on food, temperature and humidity. The larval stage can take 22 days to over 100 days, depending on food, temperature and species (T. confusum takes longer to develop than T. castaneum). Once development is complete, larvae come to the surface of their food or to some sheltered space or crack, where they become pupae. They use empty pupal cells left behind by Mediterranean flour moths when available. The pupal stage lasts for 5–12 days depending on temperature and light. Adults emerge from pupae to continue the next generation. Adults are among the longest-lived of stored product insects, able to survive for over three years. Males (but not females) can continue reproducing even after their third year. [2]
The original distribution of Tribolium is suspected to be in the region of India, southwestern Asia and the eastern Mediterranean. The genus has since spread worldwide via human trade. [2]
Two species of Tribolium, T. castaneum and T. confusum, are probably the most common secondary pests of stored plant products. A few other species are occasional minor pests. [3]
They are known to feed on wheat, maize, flour, starch, peas, beans, nuts, dried fruit, spices and herbarium specimens, and food products made from these such as bread and cakes. [2] [3] They cannot attack intact grains, seeds or nuts, but can do so if these products are broken/cracked. [2] They can also attack animal products such as preserved insect specimens, hides, bird skins and milk powder. [2]
Both adults and larvae cause damage. They produce toxic quinones which contaminate plant products. [3]
Tribolium can be infected by protozoans of the genus Adelina. [2]
They are parasitised by various mites, an example being the acarophenacid mite Acarophenax lacunatus which feeds on the eggs. [4]
The parasitoid wasp Holepyris sylvanidis feeds on Tribolium larvae and pupae, and lays its eggs on the larvae. [5]
The lyctocorid bug Xylocoris cursitans is presumed to feed on the larvae. Mice are another (occasional predator) of the beetles. [2]
Phylogenetic analysis of the genus Tribolium indicates that it has two species groups, castaneum and confusum, which are both monophyletic and are most closely related to each other. Several species which were once in the genus, such as T. brevicornis and its relatives, have since been removed to genus Aphanotus . [1]
The genus contains the following species: [6]
For T. brevicornis, T. carinatum, T. gebieni, T. parallelus, T. linsleyi, T. setosum, and T. uezumii, see Aphanotus .
Darkling beetle is the common name for members of the beetle family Tenebrionidae, comprising over 20,000 species in a cosmopolitan distribution.
Dermestidae are a family of Coleoptera that are commonly referred to as skin beetles. Other common names include larder beetle, hide or leather beetles, carpet beetles, and khapra beetles. There are over 1,800 species described.
Holometabolism, also called complete metamorphosis, is a form of insect development which includes four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and imago. Holometabolism is a synapomorphic trait of all insects in the superorder Holometabola. Immature stages of holometabolous insects are very different from the mature stage. In some species the holometabolous life cycle prevents larvae from competing with adults because they inhabit different ecological niches. The morphology and behavior of each stage are adapted for different activities. For example, larval traits maximize feeding, growth, and development, while adult traits enable dispersal, mating, and egg laying. Some species of holometabolous insects protect and feed their offspring. Other insect developmental strategies include ametabolism and hemimetabolism.
Cleridae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. They are commonly known as checkered beetles. The family Cleridae has a worldwide distribution, and a variety of habitats and feeding preferences.
Flour beetles are members of several darkling beetle genera including Tribolium and Tenebrio. They are pests of cereal silos and are widely used as laboratory animals, as they are easy to keep. The flour beetles consume wheat and other grains, are adapted to survive in very dry environments, and can withstand even higher amounts of radiation than cockroaches. They are a major pest in the agricultural industry and are highly resistant to insecticides.
Habrobracon hebetor is a minute wasp of the family Braconidae that is an ectoparasitoid of several species of moth caterpillars. Well known hosts include the larval stage of Plodia interpunctella, the Indianmeal moth, the late larval stage of the Mediterranean flour moth and the almond moth, and the dried fruit moth. This parasitoid has been used commercially as a way to control pests without using chemical insecticides.
Home-stored product entomology is the study of insects which infest foodstuffs stored in the home. It deals with the prevention, detection and eradication of the pests. The five major categories of insects considered in this article are flour beetles, the drugstore beetle, the sawtoothed grain beetle, the Indianmeal moth and fruit flies.
The confused flour beetle, a type of darkling beetle known as a flour beetle, is a common pest insect known for attacking and infesting stored flour and grain. They are one of the most common and most destructive insect pests for grain and other food products stored in silos, warehouses, grocery stores, and homes.
Tenebrioninae is the largest subfamily of the darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae), containing flour beetles, among others. Tenebrioninae contains more than 20 tribes.
The red flour beetle is a species of beetle in the family Tenebrionidae, the darkling beetles. It is a worldwide pest of stored products, particularly food grains, and a model organism for ethological and food safety research.
The maize weevil, known in the United States as the greater rice weevil, is a species of beetle in the family Curculionidae. It can be found in numerous tropical areas around the world, and in the United States, and is a major pest of maize. This species attacks both standing crops and stored cereal products, including wheat, rice, sorghum, oats, barley, rye, buckwheat, peas, and cottonseed. The maize weevil also infests other types of stored, processed cereal products such as pasta, cassava, and various coarse, milled grains. It has even been known to attack fruit while in storage, such as apples.
Alexander Sokoloff was a biologist and geneticist who conducted genetic research on the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, a world-wide pest species. From 1965 to 1990 he was a Professor of Biology at California State University, San Bernardino, serving for part of that time as Department Chair.
Anthrenocerus australis is a species of beetle belonging to the Dermestidae family. It is commonly known as the Australian carpet beetle and is one of the most researched of the thirty-one species in the Anthrenocerus genus. This is generally attributed to its prevalence throughout Australia and New Zealand and the negative economic and agricultural impact it has as a pest. It is the larvae that causes damage to products, not the adult beetle. The total life cycle of this insect is around three years, most of which is spent as a larva. Once the beetle reaches maturity, it only lives for between two and six weeks.
Acarophenacidae is a family of mites in the order Trombidiformes that are egg parasitoids and ectoparasites of beetles or thrips. It contains eight genera and around 40 species.
Alphitobius diaperinus is a species of beetle in the family Tenebrionidae, the darkling beetles. It is known commonly as the lesser mealworm and the litter beetle. It has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring nearly worldwide. It is known widely as a pest insect of stored food grain products such as flour, and of poultry-rearing facilities and it is a vector of many kinds of animal pathogens. In larval form, it is an approved novel food in the European Union, and also used as feed.
Dermestes ater is a species of beetle in the family Dermestidae, the skin beetles. It is known commonly as the black larder beetle or incinerator beetle. It is native to North America, but today it is found nearly worldwide. Like several other dermestid beetles, this species is a common pest of stored products.
A storage pest is an insect or other animal that damages or destroys stored food or other stored valuable organic matter. Insects are a large proportion of storage pests with each type of crop having specific insects that gravitate towards them such as the genus Tribolium that consists of insects such as Tribolium castaneum or Tribolium confusum which damage flour crops primarily.
Aphanotus brevicornis, the North American flour beetle, is a species of flour beetle in the family Tenebrionidae. It is a pest of stored foodstuff, particularly processed grains.
Aphanotus is a genus of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. Species in this genus were previously within Tribolium but placed in the genus Aphanotus following phylogenetic evidence.
Amarygmus is a genus of darkling beetles. It is in the tribe Amarygmini and is the oldest genus of the tribe. The genus occurs in Australia, New Guinea, Hawaii, Africa and Eurasia.