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A food safety expert weighs in on flour bugs, also known as weevils, that can infest your pantry after one TikToker found her flour infested with the crawlers.
The confused flour beetle is very similar in appearance and habit to the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum and the destructive flour beetle, Tribolium destructor.Both the confused flour beetle and red flour beetle are small, about 3–6 mm (1/ 8 + 1 ⁄ 4-inch) in length, and reddish-brown in color.
Using a vacuum cleaner to clean the area thoroughly, especially in cracks and corners where insects may hide, will decrease the chances of re-infestation. Because food will be stored in that area again, pesticides are not a good method of eradication. Pesticides can leave a residue that can contaminate food products stored near it.
The drugstore beetle attacks a wide variety of food sources including pharmaceutical products and medicinal plants, earning its name. This species is known for feeding on both food and non-food materials. The beetle eats bread, grain, coffee beans, powdered milk, sweets like cookies and chocolates, spices and herbs, dried fruit, seeds, and more.
To keep your flour safe from any weevils already present in your pantry, Quoc Le suggests using airtight containers made of glass, metal, or a strong plastic. "There should be no openings or ...
"Look for bugs in sheets or mattresses, blood stains, exoskeletons or a musty odor," Dr. Giangreco says. "Treat the itch with anti-itch creams, topical corticosteroids or antihistamines." 5.
In current day, Tribolium are more commonly found in stored food products. However, originally Tribolium lived under the bark of trees or in rotting wood. It is unknown of the exact time that flour beetles made the switch from bark to food products, but for as long as humans created grain piles, flour beetles have been using them as habitats.
The flour mite, Acarus siro, a pest of stored grains and animal feedstuffs, [1] [2] is one of many species of grain and flour mites. [3] An older name for the species is Tyroglyphus farinae.