Store Product Insects
Stored product or pantry insects include:
Several beetles and moths that can infest whole grains or processed foods.
Usually, the first sign of a problem is the appearance of adult insects or their larvae.
The immediate action will be to identify the infested product or stock and isolate therefore deciding the route to take either destroying or fumigation.
Beetles
Confused flour beetle
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.
Scientific name: Tribolium confusum
Rice weevile
The rice weevil is a stored product pest which attacks seeds of several crops, including wheat, rice, and maize
Scientific name: Sitophilus oryzae
Kingdom: Animalia
Tobacco beetle
Lasioderma serricorne, commonly known as the cigarette beetle, cigar beetle, or tobacco beetle, is an insect very similar in appearance to the drugstore beetle and the common furniture beetle. All three species belong to the family Ptinidae. L. serricorne is around 2–3 mm long, and brown in colour.
Scientific name: Lasioderma serricorne
Cadella beetle
Tenebroides mauritanicus, commonly known as the cadelle, is a cosmopolitan and common pest in storehouses and granaries. Adults and larvae feed on grain and grain products, prey upon other insects infesting grain, and bore into wood. They typically pupate in wood cavities that they make.
Scientific name: Tenebroides mauritanicus
Order: Beetles
Khapra beetle
The khapra beetle, also called cabinet beetle, which originated in South Asia, is one of the world’s most destructive pests of grain products and seeds. It is considered one of the 100 worst invasive species in the world.
Scientific name: Trogoderma granarium
Kingdom: Animalia
Moths
Indian meal moth
The Indianmeal moth, also spelled Indian meal moth and Indian-meal moth, is a pyraloid moth of the family Pyralidae. Alternative common names are weevil moth, pantry moth, flour moth or grain moth.
Scientific name: Plodia interpunctella
Kingdom: Animalia
Mediterranean meal moth
The Mediterranean flour moth or mill moth is a moth of the family Pyralidae. It is a common pest of cereal grains, especially flour. This moth is found throughout the world, especially in countries with temperate climates.
Scientific name: Ephestia kuehniella
