I took this picture of the squash seed so you could see how small the beetle was.Update March 31, 2010: Thanks to Anon's comment today, I now know this is a larder beetle. That allowed me to find this description (well there's more on the Iowa State University Department of Entomology site):
Larder Beetle
The larder beetle is a very common and widespread household insect pest. The insect's name comes from it's presence in dried, cured meats stored at room temperature prior to refrigeration. Today, larder beetles may be a pest in stored foods and other items of high protein content. Larder beetles outdoors are valuable “recyclers” that play an important role in the breakdown and recycling of animal protein.They have a larvae picture as well there.
The larder beetle adult is slightly longer than 1/4th inch. It is roundly oval and dark brown to black with a characteristic light colored band running across the body. This light band contains 6 more or less prominent dark spots. Larder beetle larvae are up to 1/2 inch long. They are tapered in shape and covered with sparse, stiff hair. There are 2 upward curved spines on the posterior end.
Hey Steve,
ReplyDeleteI found some of these bugs in my apartment & I'm trying to find out what they are. Do you know the name of them? Thanks!
Andrea
Sorry Andrea, no idea.
ReplyDeleteThats a larder beetle
ReplyDeleteAnon, Thanks for the name. I've updated the post with the info.
ReplyDeleteAndrea, now you've got the name too. I've also put up a link that describes the larder beetle in more detail.
I have these near my cat food bowl from time to time. i'm worried about using toxic chemicals to kill them because of the cats..any suggestions?
ReplyDeleteGood to worry about the insecticide. Maybe the cat will take care of the bugs itself. The link in the post to the Iowa Dept. of Entomology has stuff on insecticides. You might contact them or your state Agricultural Extension for ideas. If there aren't too many, you could just collect them and toss them. If you find some good, safe options, let us know.
ReplyDeleteiv found 3 or theres fuckers crawling in my room?
ReplyDeleteits wierd i dont have food in my room!
they must be after my trash bin
Thanks for this. I've known these insects for years as "bread and butter beetles." I've found a few in my house recently and was trying to find out some information about them, but couldn't find them under that name. Out of the hundreds (thousands?) Of beetle varieties, I didn't know how I would locate the correct name. So I put a description of a black and light brown beetle in my search engine, which led to your picture, which solved my mystery. Thanks.
ReplyDelete(I have always thought they were kind of cute, with the light brown patch reminding me of a fur cape, but they are getting a little annoying.)
Daphne
I was cleaning under my sofa and also found these. Thanks for telling us what they are. How do you stop them from appearing though. Where do they come from?
ReplyDeleteDo they bite?
ReplyDeleteHow do you get rid of them?
ReplyDeleteUnknown, here's a link to the University of Minnesota Extension service with a response to your question.
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