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Post by SoCalMountainman on Nov 9, 2018 13:19:50 GMT -8
I have a taxidermy forum member from Spain who does skeleton articulations of birds and small mammals. Her method of cleaning is a Dermestid beetle colony. Recently, her colony was infested with another beetle and she has asked for identification. Of course, everyone has an opinion and some are quite silly. As a retired ag inspector and fellow insect enthusiast I know to ask our beetle experts on this board. can we get some help on an ID from you Coleopterists? She is in Spain. Thank you for your help. Joe  |
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Post by bichos on Nov 9, 2018 18:16:02 GMT -8
Do you have a better photo?
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Post by bandrow on Nov 9, 2018 18:36:31 GMT -8
Greetings,
In the photo, the two large beetles are clearly a species of dermestid beetle in the genus Dermestes, and I assume they are not the mystery specimens. There appear to be numerous tiny insects as well - but are very hard to discern. They do have some resemblance to booklice, the psocids. Are these the "invasive" critters?
Cheers!
Bandrow
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Post by SoCalMountainman on Nov 11, 2018 9:00:00 GMT -8
You know Bandrow you may be right. I thought they were tiny beetles but she posted a video to youtube and I can see them in motion, I hope this link helps:
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Post by Adam Cotton on Nov 11, 2018 11:36:37 GMT -8
I think bandrow is right, they do look like Psocids. If so they won't affect the Dermestids she is rearing. Adam. |
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Post by SoCalMountainman on Nov 11, 2018 12:21:17 GMT -8
Thank you Adam! That was her concern. She has invested time and money to get her colony large enough to do her work and her fear was that they would harm the colony. Thank you all for your help! Joe
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Post by Adam Cotton on Nov 11, 2018 13:30:19 GMT -8
Psocids normally feed on fungus, so they are probably feeding on fungus growing in the culture. The cure for them (without using chemicals) is to lower humidity as much as possible, but that may also adversely affect the Dermestids.
Adam.
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Post by bandrow on Nov 11, 2018 16:49:06 GMT -8
Hi All,
I think Adam is right - drop the humidity. I would suggest doing so incrementally until the psocids die off - finding a decent balance where it is dry enough to kill the psocids but not too dry for the dermestids will be the trick...
Cheers!
Bandrow
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Post by SoCalMountainman on Nov 23, 2018 13:39:05 GMT -8
Thank you both for the advice. In the forum, www.taxidermy.net, she mentioned they were given to her in a Tupperware with dry dog food. That may have been the start of the fungus or the actual depooit of the psocids. On another note, many taxidermists are frequently looking to add insects to their displays/dioramas to add realism. You might want to check out the site. I am a part-time hobby taxidermist and see requests for them, especially beetles, grasshoppers and tarantulas. You can enter as a guest, no need to register unless you want. Thanks again! Joe |
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Post by bandrow on Nov 23, 2018 16:35:41 GMT -8
Greetings,
Thanks for the suggestion - I'll check that out. I've done a few life-like mounts of insects for various exhibits around the museum where I work. They always add a nice touch and can sometimes be the "Where's Waldo" game in a larger diorama...
Cheers!
Bandrow
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