( Latin: Xyloterus ) Timber showing the activities of this ambrosia beetle is quite commonly seen in Europe. It lives in conifers; others are associated with deciduous trees. After mating the female drives a short tunnel into the trunk of the tree, and from this she makes two or three horizontal egg-galleries, which usually follow the […]
Ambrosia beetles
These are scolytid beetles that are not completely typical for they make tunnel systems in the wood itself. The adults gnaw their way into the wood, bringing with them the spores of special fungi which germinate and grow on the insides of the tunnels. The fungi are able to digest the cellulose in the wood […]
Lymexylon navale
Latin: Lymexylon navale This beetle infests old oaks in the forest and oak beams in timber yards. It has, on occasion, done considerable damage in shipyards, and is especially famous from Linnaeus’ account of its depredations in the naval dockyard at Gothenburg in 1747.
Powder post beetles
(Latin: Lyctidae) These beetles are very slender, brown and 2-5 mm long. They are particularly associated with deciduous trees that have large vessels, e.g. oak, ash, walnut, and with many tropical species, as well as bamboo. The female usually lays her eggs in the sapwood in the vessels themselves. The larvae feed on the starchy […]
Fan-bearing wood-borer
( Latin: Ptilinus pectinicornis ) This species, which is not as common as the other wood-boring beetles, mainly infests deciduous trees, e.g. beech, birch, oak. It is easily recognizable by the large, comb-like antennae. Unlike the other wood-borers here the adult beetle also gnaws timber. The wood dust is very fine and similar to that produced […]
Death-watch beetle
(Latin: Xestobium rufovillosum) This is one of the larger wood-boring beetles. The female lays up to 50 eggs in April-May. In structural timber the larvae may take 5-10 years to complete their development. They pupate in the autumn and metamorphosis to the adult takes place a few weeks later. As in the preceding species the […]
Common furniture beetle
Latin: Anobium punctatum This is a very common pest of timber and furniture and is or has been present in most old houses. The adult beetles emerge during the summer months by gnawing their way out from the infected timber through circular exit-holes. It is at this time that wood dust falls out of the […]
Furniture beetles
Latin: Anobiidae The larvae of these beetles live mainly in timber. The adults are very small and brownish with an almost cylindrical body. It is typical that the thorax is arched to form a hood which almost conceals the head. The larvae of the different species of furniture beetle are soft, curved, with very small […]
Spider beetles
Latin: Family Ptinidae As mentioned on p. 75 these beetles attack a little of everything and they do not go out of their way to gnaw textiles. Their gnawing activities can normally be recognized by the small, regular, round holes and the absence of silk.
Museum beetles
(Latin: genus Anthrenus) The museum beetles are somewhat like small ladybirds. However, they are not glossy, but have an attractive matt pattern formed by numerous small, black and reddish-yellow scales. The larvae, which are yellow-brown and hairy, are known as ‘woolly bears’. At the rear end they have a tuft of long hairs, which can […]
Carpet beetle
( Latin: Attagenus pellio) This beetle is easy to recognize for it has a white spot on each of the otherwise black elytra. The adults fly around outside during the summer and. land on flowers where they feed on nectar and pollen. They often find their way indoors. The eggs are normally laid in the […]
Tapestry moth
Latin: Trichophaga tapetzella This is the largest of the moths that attack textiles, and it has a tendency to• feed more on coarser materials than the other textile moths, including such things as horse hair, coarse furs and skins. Like the preceding species it thrives in humid conditions, and nowadays it is found especially in […]
Case bearing clothes moth
( Latin: Tinea pellionella) Unlike the common clothes moth this is an insect which does live outside in temperate regions. For instance, it is not uncommonly found in birds’ nests. The adult case bearing clothes moth is very similar in appearance to the common clothes moth. The larvae of the case bearing moth are, however, easy […]
Common clothes moth
Latin: Tineola bisselliella This small moth, now common in human habitations in temperate countries, came originally from warmer parts of the world. It was probably not very abundant until houses started to be warmed more or less efficiently. It does not, therefore, live outside in temperate regions, and it is not one of the insects […]
Small moths
Many of the smaller moths are superficially very similar in appearance. Some attack textiles, some are pests of agricultural crops, while others infest foods (p. 63). In everyday life, however, the moths most commonly encountered are those that attack clothing, and these must have been a nuisance to man for a very long time. As […]
Pharaoh ant
Latin: Monomorium pharaonis This small yellowish-red ant gets its popular and specific names from the fact that it was erroneously believed to have been one of the plagues of ancient Egypt. In fact, it came originally from the tropics and reached Europe in the early years of this century. It is completely dependent upon heated […]
Small black or garden ant
Latin: Lasius niger These are the ants most commonly seen on verandas and in the house. They live in the ground, frequently under rocks or flagstones, and they will often penetrate under the house itself, particularly if it has been built directly on the ground. Ants frequently build nests in the insulation layer and from […]
Ants
Latin: Superfamily Formicoidea Ants can be found more or less everywhere. About 3,500 different species have been described, and these are adapted for widely varying conditions. Common to them all, however, is the fact that they are social. The winged ants frequently seen in the middle of the summer are males and females which come […]
Cheese fly
Latin: Piophila casei This fly lays its eggs not only on cheese but also on other milk products, on meat as well as offal and faeces. The larvae, known as cheese skippers, have a fantastic ability to hop. They do this by bending themselves in the middle so that they can grasp the hind part […]
Vinegar fly
Latin: Drosophila funebris These small yellowish-brown flies can sometimes be seen when a peeled banana or a cut tomato is left on the kitchen table. Vinegar flies frequently settle on bottles with drops of wine, milk or beer on the outside and they also visit jams, ketchup and vinegar. The female lays eggs directly in such […]
Grey flesh fly
( Latin: Sarcophaga carnaria) This large grey fly is occasionally seen indoors. Like the true blowflies it lays on dead animals, so all meats and meat products must be kept out of its reach. The eggs hatch just before they are laid so the flesh fly can be said to produce live young.
Blowflies
Latin: Calliphoridae Long ago, before the months were named after Roman emperors, the month we now call July was called worm month in certain parts of northern Europe. The worms concerned were blowfly larvae or maggots and it reminds us of what a problem it must have been to keep meat fit for human consumption […]
Lesser housefly
( Latin: Fannia canicularis) This is the fly, common in houses, which circles ceaselessly round lamps and candles. The female lays eggs in very damp rotting material, such as wet manure, at the outflow of the kitchen sink and similar places, and there the characteristic, flat larvae develop (p. 104). This little fly is often […]
Housefly
Latin: Musca domestica This is by far the most common fly found in houses, and although it may occur in any room it is mainly found near to foodstuffs. It has been suggested that this fly came originally from Africa, but nowadays it has followed man to all corners of the earth. In northern Europe it […]
Khapra beetle
( Latin: Trogoderma granarium) Khapra beetles came originally from India. They often congregate in large numbers in the cracks and crevices of walls in warehouses. Unlike the preceding dermestids this beetle feeds mainly on plant material. It has now spread to almost all tropical and subtropical regions and those areas where it has not appeared […]
Beetles
(Latin: Order Coleoptera) This is by far the largest of the insect groups, so it is not surprising that it has numerous representatives that attack foodstuffs. Normally it is the adult beetles that are first observed, but it is the larvae that do the damage and they must be found and dealt with.
Brown-banded cockroach
( Latin: Supella supellectilium) There are several other species of tropical cockroach which may suddenly appear in a warehouse or greengrocer’s shop, having been introduced with goods from warmer regions, but most of them quickly die in northern Europe. The brown-banded cockroach, which is now common in central Europe, has been recorded as breeding in south […]
Oriental or common cockroach
( Latin: Blatta orientalis) This species is found in the same kind of place as the German cockroach, but usually at an even higher temperature, and it is not as common. The wings are well-developed in the male, but they are reduced to short stumps in the female. The egg capsule contains about 15 eggs, and […]
German cockroach
( Latin: Blattella germanica) This is by far the most common species of cockroach in Europe. For most people the idea of having cockroaches on the kitchen table is in- tensely unpleasant, but for those with an eye for such things these are elegant insects. Both sexes have very well-developed wings, which cover the whole of […]