Quiz Answers: Pantry Pests

Here are the answers to yesterday's quiz on pantry pests. As the weather gets colder, there are fewer outdoor bugs and our attention is turned to household invaders. But pantry pests can and do infest during all seasons. 

1. The best way to find the source of a grain moth infestation is (d) inspect all dry goods. Pheromone traps will catch adult moths and may help you target a particular area, but the best way to find infested product is to look in every bag, box and package - whether opened or not. If you find frass, the silky webbing pantry moths leave behind, discard the dry goods in which the frass is found. Usually one box or bag will contain the primary source, and you will know it when you find it. But secondary sources may be present. Don't stop until all dry goods are inspected. And check also for webbing on the under side of stored canned goods!

2. Cigarette beetles are most commonly found in (c) dog food and paprika. When checking for the source of pantry pests, don't forget the spices and dry pet food. If you have decorative items like wreaths that are made out of natural products, check these too.

3. Pantry moths develop from egg to adult in (b) around 10-14 days, depending on temperature. If you have removed all the adult moths and their larvae, but find more in 10-14 days, there was a source you missed. Check dry goods again, and clean the shelves with a disinfectant cleaner to kill any remaining eggs.

4. Meal worms usually spend the winter (b) as larvae. It is difficult if not impossible to determine what the adult bug will be just by inspecting larvae. And larvae are not commonly susceptible to pesticide sprays. But boric acid will stop them in their tracks. If you find any kind of larvae, clean the area with a good disinfectant cleaner and look for the source. These pests love to hang out in bird feeders too.

5. It is rarely effective to use insecticides against pantry moths because (a) larvae and pupae are not controlled with insecticides. As noted above, larvae crawl right through liquid chemicals. And if the larvae are not controlled, the problem will persist.

6. (B) Larval Indian meal moths leave webbing, or frass. They spin the web as they become fully grown and leave behind silken threads wherever they crawl. This is the frass mentioned above - and is easily noticed as it caused clumping in rice, oatmeal or cornmeal and is sometimes apparent on the outside of a box or bag of infested product. Since the frass usually contains excrement, it should be disposed of immediately.

7. Small, wormlike bugs in the pantry are usually (c) larval moths. But as mentioned, larvae are difficult to identify. Any larvae found should be taken seriously as a pantry infestation. They can (and will!) chew holes through cardboard or plastic packaging materials to get to the food inside. One method of killing pantry pests before they hatch is to store dry goods in the freezer for a couple of weeks. Since the product may be infested when you bring it home from the store, storing it in heavy plastic or glass containers may not be sufficient.

We hope you've learned something useful about common pantry pests. As with all pests, if you cannot solve the problem yourself, contact a pest professional. But in the case of pantry pests, what you can do yourself is really the best solution to the problem.

Tuesday's Quiz: Pantry Pests

Today's quiz asks you to test your knowledge of common pantry pests. These are stored product pests that infest dry goods in your pantry - including moths and weevils. See how much you know about these uninvited guests.

1. Grain moths often come in pre-packaged food from the store. What is the best way to find the source of infestation?

a. Put out traps.

b. Look in whole grain foods like rice and oatmeal.

c. Call a pest professional to check your cabinets.

d. Inspect all dry goods.

2. Cigarette beetles are a common stored product pest (see illustration above). In which stored products are they most commonly found?

a. sugar and flour

b. cornmeal and oatmeal

c. dog food and paprika

d. rice and coffee

3. Pantry moths develop from egg to adult in about

a. 3-5 days

b. 10-14 days

c. 16-20 days

d. 3-4 weeks

4. How do meal worms usually spend the winter?

a. in hibernation

b. as larvae

c. as pupae

d. under ground

5. It is rarely effective to use insecticides against pantry moths because

a. the larvae and pupae are not controlled with insecticide

b. the moths actually feed on insecticides

c. insecticides have little or no residual effect

d. moths can fly away from the poison

6. Indian meal moths are one of the most common of stored product pests. The "webbing" or silk mat that identifies their feeding area is left by

a. the adult moths

b. the larvae

c. the pupae

d. all of the above

7. Small, wormlike bugs in the pantry are usually

a. parasites that feed on moths

b. undeveloped beetles

c. larval moths

d. worker moths

Answers to today's quiz will be published in tomorrow's blog.

Quiz Answers: Dung Beetles

Here are the answers to yesterday's quiz on dung beetles. If you missed the quiz itself, you can find it here. A great video on the under-recognized dung beetle can be found here. Enjoy!

1. Ancient Egyptians worshipped the humble dung beetle (scarab) because (d) they believed the sun was rolled across the sky each day by a mythical dung beetle, and buried at the end of each day - only to be reborn the next.

2. Dung beetles are found on every continent except (b) Antarctica. Too cold. Enough said.

3. Female dung beetles lay eggs in (a) dung. In some species, the mom and dad dung beetle roll a perfectly spherical dung ball together, until they find a soft piece of soil in which to bury it. After mating under ground, they prepare the "brooding ball" and the female lays her eggs inside it. Hatching larvae then have plenty of easy access to food (dung).

4. Dung beetles are the farmers' friends. They (a) aerate and fertilize soil, and (b) recycle animal droppings which has the added benefit of (c) reducing the population of flies and other insects which would be attracted to animal waste. So the answer is (d) - all of the above.

5. Dried dung beetles are used by Chinese herbalists for (a) curing many different diseases.

6. Dung beetles have been literary characters in the works of (d) - all listed authors. With an explanation. Aesop wrote the fable, "The Dung Beetle and the Eagle," Aristophanes' play "Peace" features a hero who rides to Mt. Olympus on an over-sized dung beetle, Kafka's character in "The Metamorphisis" is called an "old dung beetle," Poe wrote "The Gold-Bug,"and  Wodehouse wrote of the theft of a prized scarab in "Something Fresh." But the Faulkner listed in the quiz is not William but Raymond, an English Egyptologist and philologist, the author of  "A Concise Dictionary of Middle Egyptian." 

7. As mentioned in question 3 above, dung beetle larvae feed on (a) dung upon hatching from the brooding ball. It is a convenient system, which gives the larvae a storehouse of nutritious food.

8. Dung beetles have the ability to roll balls of dung weighing (c) 50 times their weight. If you have not seen this colorful activity, take a look at another great video here. After learning a bit more about the dung beetle, we hope you give thanks for this humble bug this weekend.

Tuesday's Quiz: Dung Beetles

Because it is Thanksgiving week, our quiz is centered on one of the bugs for which we might be most thankful: the dung beetle. Perhaps you had not thought to give thanks for these lowly creatures. In a Newsweek article published earlier this year, it is noted that dung beetles, although nowhere near as photogenic as Polar Bears, deserve a place in our hearts. Without them, life would be much smellier. See how you do on this quiz, then find answers in tomorrow's blog.

1. Dung beetles, known to ancient Egyptians as "scarabs," were deified in that culture because:

a. Gold-plated, they became a jewelry item for pharaohs.

b. The shape of the dung beetle was found in astrological formations.

c. Dung beetles were an important part of the Egyptian diet.

d. The way dung beetles roll dung balls reminded Egyptians of the movements of the sun.

2. Dung beetles are found on every continent except

a. Africa

b. Antarctica

c. Australia

d. Asia

3. Female dung beetles lay eggs in

a. dung

b. loose soil

c. seed pods

d. nesting mounds

4. Dung beetles are important to agriculture because

a. They aerate and fertilize the soil.

b. They recycle animal droppings.

c. They keep other insects from overpopulating.

d. all of the above

5. Dried dung beetles (qianglang) are used by Chinese herbalists for

a. curing diseases

b. making poultices

c. an invigorating tea

d. an aphrodisiac

6. Dung beetles have been literary characters in which of the following authors' works?

a. Aesop and Aristophanes

b. Kafka and Poe

c. Wodehouse and Faulkener

d. all of the above

7. Dung beetle larvae feed on

a. dung

b. other dung beetles

c. soft plant matter

d. a special food created and stored by male dung beetles

8. Dung beetles have the ability to roll balls of dung weighing

a. 10 times their weight

b. 20 times their weight

c. 50 times their weight

d. 100 times their weight

Answers appear in tomorrow's blog, along with a link to a dung beetle video.

Good Bugs

As a follow-up to last week's focus on spiders, this week we'll look at other "good bugs" - those beneficial to gardens. The term "good bug" may seem like an oxymoron until we mention a few by name: lady bug, praying mantis, honey bee, ground beetle. These are bugs you WANT in your yard - bugs that either help plants or eat the bugs that eat plants. Let's start with the most unlikely on the list: Ground beetles.

Ground beetles are from the family Carabidae. Although sometimes confused with cockroaches at first sight, these common beetles seldom invade homes and can be useful in the garden. There are about 2,500 known species of ground beetles in North America. Adults, referred to as "Carabids," can be anywhere from 1/16 to 1-3/8 inches long, flat and elongated with a narrow head and hard wing covers. They are generally nocturnal, running quickly at night and feeing on potentially harmful insects. Usually found under rocks, logs or boards, they love to chow down on slugs, snails, cutworms and root maggots, and the larvae of many harmful insects. The worst thing we can say about ground beetles is that some varieties can produce an offensive odor - garnering them the moniker "stink bug" or "stink beetle."

Pictured above is the ground beetle and larva of the genus Calosoma in the family Carabidae. These beetles are often called "caterpillar hunters." During April of 2005, when there was an abundance of painted lady butterflies in the Anza-Borrego Desert, these beetles were very abundant - feeding off the pupae. For more information and some great pictures of other types of local beetles, see the website here.

If you have an over-abundance of ground beetles, eliminate any debris or rubbish outside where they may hide. Weather strip or seal off openings and crevices in outer walls in order to exclude them from the home. Also, it may be helpful to reduce exposed night lights, as these night-active bugs are often attracted to lights. Try to remember, even though they may not be the most attractive bugs around, they are not harmful. If you find you have more than you can handle, call a pest professional.

Science Tidbits

Two items in yesterday's San Diego Union-Tribune are worth passing on. In the science section, a request was forwarded from the San Elijo Lagoon Conservancy, asking for photos of local wetlands plants and animals for its website. Specifically, as it applies to bugs, the conservancy is looking for pictures of sand wasps and spittle bugs. Although neither of these are home invaders, spittle bugs can do damage to yard and lawn. Their identifying characteristic is the foamy masses of "spittle" they produce as a way of creating their own moist environment and protecting themselves from predators. 

Female sand wasps burrow in the ground. Again, these are not pests you might encounter at home - but they are out and around San Diego County, and their image is being requested. If you encounter either of these bugs and have a camera handy, send your photo to photos@sanelijo.org or email questions to ralph@sanelijo.org

The other item in the Quest section of the paper that relates to entomology is an anecdotal story about the late great scientist, Charles Darwin. Although we are not in the habit of passing on information we cannot substantiate, this was too good to pass up. The story goes that Mr. Darwin saw a beetle as he was taking a walk, paused and picked it up. He spotted another beetle he wanted for his collection and put that specimen in his other hand. As luck would have it, he saw a third beetle. Not wanting to leave it behind, he put one of the insects in his mouth so he could collect his new find. The beetle in his mouth promptly "emitted a noxious spray," causing Darwin to spit it out and drop the other two beetles. According to the article, "Darwin went home beetleless." Sounds like a good idea.

Next week: The Year of the Flea.

Mystery But Week, Part III - Meet the Beetles

Help! You will certainly have a hard day's night if you discover these mystery bugs in your house. Pictured above, the varied carpet beetle is one of the most common bug samples we have sent in to our office for identification. They will do damage to carpets and fabrics, but can invade food products too. It is the fairly distinctive larvae of these bugs that do the damage - tiny, hairy worm-like creatures. But most often the adult (pictured) is what you will see. The first method of treatment is to find the source of the infestation and either clean or dispose of it. If found on clothing, have the items dry cleaned. It's best not to store natural fiber-items without first having them cleaned. Remove pet hair with a thorough vacuuming will also reduce any possible food sources - disposing of the vacuum bag afterward as a precaution. If the infestation persists, call in a pest professional.

Carpet beetles are so effective they are used in natural history museums to clean animal skeletons. Although these beetles are sometimes used in forensic entomology (calling Gil Grissom), they can cause millions of dollars of damage to natural fibers in homes and businesses. So if  you see one of these critters on your carpet - best to not let be!