dmg55
New Member
Posts: 1
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Post by dmg55 on May 5, 2020 16:29:00 GMT -8
good evening, ‘i am looking for some help identifying a bug i found on my bed. this is actually the fourth one i have seen. i recently moved into an apartment less than one month ago located in deep south texas. At first i thought they may be bed bugs, but they don’t look like any of the pictures i see. i was told by a pest control person over the phone that they may be carpet beetles (i had sent a picture). i did research and from what i find, those look different as well. i won’t lie i am very paranoid about bugs due to previous experiences. The pictures i have are not the best because the bug is so small. i took one from further away so you could see the actual size on the napkin. imgur.com/JeD88s1imgur.com/RvZ6Vveimgur.com/qcC49eqimgur.com/XyAAbrMimgur.com/uCmZqN0 |
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Post by Paul K on May 5, 2020 18:08:54 GMT -8
It looks more like psocid ( booklice )
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Post by bichos on May 6, 2020 6:17:00 GMT -8
Could it be a small beetle?
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Post by bandrow on May 6, 2020 6:49:59 GMT -8
Greetings,
Bichos was on the right track. I believe that what you have is a species of Latridiidae - the "minute brown fungus beetles". As their common name implies, they feed on fungus, mold, etc. and can be very numerous in situations where their food is plentiful. Some feed in stored grain products, especially if there is mold present. Many of the species have patches of a white waxy substance, often along the margins of the pronotum and on the underside.
Surf around on Bugguide.net under Latridiidae and see if you can match up your specimen with something there.
Cheers!
Bandrow
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Post by roxylammers on May 7, 2020 19:42:12 GMT -8
Hi Sorry to jump on this post, but I think I might have the same bug infestation on a boat I work on. It is only in certain cabins/areas and I often find them dead. We do have a humidity and mould issue on the boat so this would make sense. I have attached a link with 2 pictures of the bug. Please help!  Also, does anyone know how to get rid of them? Thanks in advance, Roxy imgur.com/a/XzRCfUm |
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Post by Adam Cotton on May 8, 2020 0:31:17 GMT -8
Roxy,
Welcome to Insectnet. It may help if you mention which country in the world your boat is.
Adam.
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Post by bandrow on May 8, 2020 13:39:16 GMT -8
Greetings,
Roxylammers, I don't think your beetle is the same as in the earlier post with the Latridiidae. I think yours is a species in the family Sylvanidae - the "sylvanid flat bark beetles". This family includes many cosmopolitan pests of stored grains and food products. One of the better known is the sawtoothed grain beetle - a common pest in many situations. I'm not sure what genus or species your specimen may be, but most of the species have similar biologies.
To rid yourself of them, the trick is to identify the food source and eliminate it. This could be stored foods in a cupboard, spilled foodstuffs in cabinets or under stoves or other appliances. If you have areas where mold is obvious, a good cleaning and disinfecting should help...
Cheers!
Bandrow
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Post by roxylammers on May 8, 2020 17:15:47 GMT -8
Thanks for the quick response Adam and Bandrow.
Regarding the location of the boat, we are constantly moving around so I'm not sure where we initially may have become infested with them. In the past year we have been to many different islands in the South Pacific, Indonesia and are currently in Malaysia - all very hot and humid places.
I am not finding the bugs in the food storage area that has all our grains and other dry goods. They seem to be living in the ceilings of some of the cabins which contain AC air handlers that currently have a mould problem that is not so quick and easy to fix unfortunately.
Do these bugs feed off mould and thrive in humid conditions? When doing a quick Google, there was a brief mention of them being fungivorous?
Thanks
Roxy
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