Insect · GBIF taxon 4990338
Red Flour Beetle
Tribolium castaneumAlso known as Rust-Red Flour Beetle
Red flour beetles thrive in stored grain facilities and home pantries across the globe, feeding on crushed grains, flour, and processed cereals. Adults can live for over a year and secrete defensive quinone compounds that give heavily contaminated food a sour odor. Beyond their status as economic pests, these darkling beetles serve as prominent laboratory model organisms for studying insect development, genetics, and ecology.
Household PestStored GrainModel Organism
1 / 3—observations
—countries
—peak records
Not EvaluatedConservation statusIUCN Red List categoriesLCNTVUENCREWEXNot Evaluated — not placed on the risk ladderRed List categories, explained →
Diet & prey
- Wheat flour
- Crushed grain kernels
- Dried yeast
Predators
- Predatory mites
- Parasitoid wasps
- Spiders
ThreatsFumigation, cold storage, pest control measures, and sanitation
HabitatsGrain elevators, flour mills, food warehouses, and home pantries
Life span1–3 years
Size / weightNot available
Classification
- OrderColeoptera
- FamilyTenebrionidae
- GenusTribolium
- SpeciesTribolium castaneum
Range data is not available yet.
Interaction riskLow
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
- Why interaction risk is low
- Safe to observe at a normal distance.
Responsible observation
- Pantry Inspection: Examine unsealed packages of grain or flour for small reddish beetles and slender larvae.
- Lens Observation: Use a hand lens to check the antennae, which end in a distinct three-segmented club.
Competitor URSchmidt / CC BY-SA 4.0 · cc-by-sa
Co-Inhabitant (c) Udo Schmidt, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · cc-by-sa
Close Relative (c) M Kriek, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), uploaded by M Kriek · cc-by-sa
Family Relative no rights reserved · cc0
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