![]() ![]() Ghost Ants are small ants, the workers being only 1.5mm long and are identifiable from their colouration, having a dark head and thorax (front half) and white or translucent abdomen (rear half). They are not known to damage properties or belongings, but they are commonly found in kitchens and bathrooms and are potential carriers of disease causing organisms. ![]() Like other exotic insect pests, they can only survive in the UK within heated buildings. They and are thought to have arrived in the UK from the USA and are now increasing in numbers. Since the bugs are attracted to bright lights, it will help in keeping them away from your kitchen.Ghost Ants (Tapinoma melanocephalum) are small tropical ants and are a relatively new species of ant to the UK. If you come to know that these bugs are in your area, try to switch off or dim the lights. Therefore, always checking your food products for infestations before purchasing them is very important. However, they are also attracted to dead beetles, their feces, skin, or anything else organic and rotting inside the food.Įven though they are medically harmless and do not poison the food, it is not advisable to eat food that is under a red or confused flour beetle infestation. They can damage both human and pet food by feeding. What Damage Do They Cause?įlour beetles feed on almost every grain-based product and, thus, are a significant cause of trouble for homeowners. After this, the adult flour beetles start infesting food. The matured larvae then enter the pupal stage, during which they stay inside a soft shell and come out as a fully grown adult. ![]() The cylindrical larvae go through their own five to twelve instars to grow about 3/16 inches long. The eggs typically take five to twelve stages, and yellowish-white larvae emerge. She usually eggs in loose food material, like grain kernels. The female adult beetle can lay up to 1,000 eggs in a single life span. The life cycle of a typical flour beetle lasts for a year or a bit more. These product pests can attack packaged products that are already infested by weevils or other pantry pests.įlour Beetle Larva CSIRO, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons Here are a few food sources that they like to infest: They are a common pest at food packaging companies, where they are often found infesting food items that have become damaged during storage and transportation. You can find this beetle species in crevices or cracks of cabinets, pantries, and grocery stores. They feed on grain products that have already been partially eaten by other pests or insects. What Do They Eat?įlour beetles are scavengers and do not eat undamaged grains, but they can infest all pre-infested or damaged food products. On the other hand, the confused flour beetle cannot get off the ground even for a minute and thus cannot fly. Source: Degesch, Source:PestWeb,, This source is not copyrighted.Īs discussed above, the crucial difference between the two species of flour beetles is that the red flour beetle can fly. However, they can be found in different parts of the world, but mostly in the northern states of the US. They originally belonged to the Indo-Australian region but are also found in the southern states of the United States.Ĭonfused flour beetle or Tribolium confusum, on the other hand, is believed to have originated in Africa. The red flour beetle thrives in temperate regions but can also live in colder areas. Moreover, they have a curvier thorax, while the confused flour beetle has straighter edges. Tribolium castaneum has three-segmented antennae, while the other one has four segments. There are a few other differences as well. Confused flour beetle ( Tribolium confusum) does not. The red flour beetle ( Tribolium castaneum) has the ability to fly. There is one key difference between these two species – the ability to fly. The name confused flour beetle does not refer to the beetle – but rather the confusion of entomologists over which is which! In fact, they are so much alike that they were thought to be the same for a long time. The two types of flour beetles we mentioned above are only slightly different in physical characteristics and the areas they are found in. Red Flour Beetle Source: Sarefo, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons ![]()
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