Dermestid Beetles

What are Dermestid Beetles?

Are you ready to read about the beetles that can make your life a living hell? Then get acquainted with the Coleoptera family (known as Dermestidae). These beetles have a variety of unique names like skin, hide, larder, carpet, and khapra. As many as 700 species of the Dermestid Beetles can be found in the world. They love to live on the dead meat of animals or even plant parts. They are scavengers and have the potential to eat anything off a dead body although they are essential to museums.

Appearance and Size of the Dermestid Beetles

Out of the 700 species of these beetles, 123 of them are found in North America alone. They can be found in several places, and their names are derived from the fields. For example, the bow beetle is a kind of Dermestidae that eats the strings of violins. There are others like a museum, carpet, and bow bugs. You can understand that your house is infested by these beetles when you come across damaged goods. The larvae are hairy and brown, and usually have long tufts of hair; this is found on the backside of its body.

A Dermestid Beetle can differ from each other in terms of shape and size, but they are mostly only half an inch in length. The larder beetle or Dermestes Lardarius grows as long as 5/16 inches. It is dark brown and has broad, yellow bands covered in three black spots on its wings. Another commonly found Dermestid Beetle is the black larder beetle. It has similar features, but it is black (as the name suggests) and doesn’t have any sign of yellow on its wings. Like we mentioned, every Dermestid Beetle differs from the other in appearance and size. The khapra beetle is commonly found in stores and shows an immense fascination for grains, straw, seeds, cereal, flour, hay, and dried vegetable products. Though it was first discovered in India, today it enters the US territories through the shipments of grains. These are the most commonly found Dermestid Beetles.

Distribution, Habitat, and Eating Habits

They are most commonly referred to as the skin beetles, though there are several other names that they called. The habitats of the Dermestid Beetles differ from one another. Most of the beetles in the Coleoptera family feed on dried plant parts and dead animal meat. They love to consume animal hair, pollen, dead insects, feathers, and natural fibers.

The adult Dermestid Beetles feed on a variety of flowers and pollen. However, some show their love for dried food products like flour, grains, spices, pasta, nuts, cereals, and so on. Some Dermestids eat away furniture and damage your upholstery. They leave behind synthetic fibers. The Dermestid Beetles eat away dead animals and clean the environment; however, they are a nuisance to houses and are regarded as a pest.

The Dermestid Beetles that infest homes usually lay their eggs during the start of the summer season and springtime. Come fall, and they start enjoying the warmth that the houses which are an offer to them. Small cracks, roofs, screens, and any opening is enough for them to come in. They can even enter your home through the packages of cookies, cereal, flour, and other kinds of merchandise.

Reproduction

Dermestids reproduce nearby food sources. Before dermestid beetles lay eggs, they look for a place that has an adequate supply of food. Once it is taken care of, the female beetles lay their eggs in warm and desirable places that have access to a lot of food. These beetles lay as many as 150 eggs at a time, and the incubation process doubles when there is enough warmth. The incubation process lasts for a period of 10 – 12 days. The second the larvae hatch, they start looking for a food source, and that is when they begin infesting the place that is close to their nest. Young or larvae of the Dermestid Beetles can eat anything starting from linen, fabrics, wool, and silk. If there is any food with cocoa, the larvae will love to feast on it.

The Dermestid Beetles start eating double their body mass as soon as they grow.

The Life Cycle

The Dermestid Beetles complete the entire process of metamorphosis. It starts with laying the eggs, which hatches into a larva, transforms into a pupa, and finally becomes an adult Dermestid beetle. The time taken by the egg to grow into a Dermestid Beetle varies from one species to another. Several species take as long as two years whereas some develop in a matter of six weeks.

How will you understand the Dermestid Beetles infest your house?

The carpet beetles invade homes. They are attracted to silk, fur, leather, animal hair, and wool – in short everything that is animal-based. To prevent them from damaging your homes, you have to identify the signs of their infestation. The easiest way to understand whether your home is under the attack of Dermestid Beetles, you have to search around for their feces. Because they consume a lot more than their weight, they end up producing a lot of waste material. You might not be able to spot one discharged pellet. But, it is left behind in accumulation. Don’t miss out the skin that the larvae cast. Watch out for these signs near your upholstery, carpet, furniture, and rugs.

How to Get Rid of Dermestid Beetles?

The carpet beetles will not hesitate from destroying your clothes, carpets, upholstery, fabrics, and rugs. The Dermestid Beetles can indeed increase your frustration, but they can be removed from your house. The second you detect their presence in your home, get ready to get rid of them.

Start vacuuming

Vacuum your carpets, curtains, and other furniture. If you see signs of wear and tear in towels, linens, and clothes, immediately throw them away. Clean your clothes and bedding with hot water and disinfectant.

Kill them with the use of Insecticides

Once you are done cleaning, spray the areas that were infested by Dermestid Beetles with insecticides. You should see the list of bugs and pests the insecticide is capable of killing. The list should include carpet bugs. Don’t go around spraying your entire house. Be area-specific — areas like under the carpet, edges of rugs, closet walls, and fabrics on shelves. Never spray insecticide on clothes, bedding, and towels.

The use of Boric Acid

Carpet beetles can even lay eggs and start to multiply inside the cracks in walls, attics, and other unreachable places. When you are facing such troubles, all you must do is use boric acid. Make a solution of boric acid powder (one tablespoon) and hot water (two cups). Mix it well and then pour it inside a spray can. Spray it inside the cracks.

Sometimes all these solutions will be a waste if you don’t prevent their entry in your homes. To be sure that you don’t have to deal with carpet beetles again check your doors and screens for any cracks. Avoid bringing in plants that are attacked by Dermestid Beetles. Spray insecticide on your doors and entry points, and this will stop them from entering.

Pictures

Collection of pictures of dermestid beetles:

Facts about Dermestid Beetles

Here are some interesting, fun facts that you might not have heard about dermestid beetles. Read to get your mind blown.

1. These small little buggers belong to dry, humid, tropical, urban, and wild places. They are found in Europe, South Asia, Central Asia, India, the Middle East, Algeria, Iraq, Iran, Spain, Austria, Mali, and so on.
2. If you break the word Coleoptera, you get wing and sheath.
3. They are the most significant order in the entire animal kingdom.
4. Did you know there are still several types of Dermestid Beetles that are waiting to be discovered?
5. Every beetle after reaching the adult phase chews its food thoroughly.
6. They derived their name beetle because they are little biters.
7. Beetles first roamed the Earth surface about 230 million back. What does that mean? They ended up outliving the dinosaurs.
8. There happens to be a Dermestid Beetle that has two different sets of eyes. One pair keeps track of what goes, and the other notices the activities above the water surface. They are called Whirligig Beetles.
9. The Deathwatch Beetle can produce loud noises inside trees or logs, in which it is currently residing.
10. The Dermestid Beetles finds its place in museums in North America. They take care of the cleaning of skulls. These beetles have found their place even in criminal investigations.
11. Did you know if insect biology helps a criminal investigation, then it is called as forensic entomology?

Everything that you need to know about the Dermestid Beetles is present here. Though they are a vast topic for anyone to cover, we have tried to create a summary of these pests for you.