Lesser mealworm
Scientific name
Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer)
Classification
Secondary pest; grain feeder
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Tenebrionidae
Acronym: ADI
Description
- Adults are dark reddish brown to black and 5.5 to 7.0 mm in length.
- Eye is less deeply incised: only 2 to 3 facets, in A. diaperinus; only 1 facet wide in A. laevigatus (black fungus beetle).
- Larvae are yellow brown in colour and cylindrical in shape reaching a length of 15 mm at maturity.
Images
Similar species
- Black fungus beetle (Alphitobius laevigatus)
Commodities affected
- Feeds on broken grains of wheat, barley, cowpeas, rice, corn
- Will also feed on fungus, is scavenger on animal protein
Signs of infestation
- Disagreeable odour in the commodity is an early indication.
Damage
- Damage is not distinctive
How to control
Geographic range
- Is distributed worldwide and found across Canada
Where found
- Prefers grain, cereal products and animal food that are damp and mouldy
- Is not harmful to grain that is sound and dry
- Is a known pest of poultry houses (in chicken droppings)
- Larvae can transmit poultry diseases
- Will also burrow into insulation panels in poultry houses
- Presence indicates conditions favourable for more serious pests
- Is unlikely to survive winters outdoors
Life history
- Adults are relatively long-lived (400 days) and can fly.
- Females lay eggs in clumps amongst the food.
- Larvae move actively amongst the food source.
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