Cigarette beetle
Lasioderma serricorne (Fabricius)

Order: Coleoptera
Family: Anobiidae
Acronym: LSE

Ecology

The cigarette beetle is distributed worldwide, but it is found more often in tropical climates. In temperate climates, it must overwinter in warm buildings to survive. It feeds on a wide range of dried commodities that are of animal or vegetable origin including grain and cereal products. The cigarette beetle is the most destructive pest of stored tobacco. It looks most similar to the drugstore beetle.

Damage

The cigarette beetle feeds on wide range of food, including tobacco products, seeds, spices, drugs, grains and cereal products. The larva causes the most damage because it feeds on the commodity. It also burrows into the commodity to construct its cocoon. The larva feeding and burrowing leaves irregular holes.

The adult does not feed on the commodity, but it does chew holes in the commodity’s packaging when it emerges. This leaves a large, neat hole.

A sign of infestation is that the products become contaminated with larval cocoons, frass and dead adult beetles.

Life history

The adult is oval-shaped. It is 2 to 3.5 mm long and is reddish brown. It can be distinguished from the drugstore beetle by its serrated antennae and its smooth elytra. The elytra are covered in fine hairs. The adult flies at night. It has a short life span: females live for an average of 18 days and males live slightly longer.

Breeding conditions are temperatures between 20°C - 38°C, and relative humidity greater than 25%. The female lays 100 eggs over its lifespan. It lays eggs singly in crevices or folds within the commodity.

The larva is white and covered in numerous long hairs. It becomes crescent-shaped and immobile as it matures. it is 3 to 4 mm long. The larva can develop in 26 days with optimal conditions of a 30°C temperature and a 70% relative humidity. The larva pupates in a cocoon that is constructed with food particles.

The life cycle is complete in 45 to 50 days.

Control

Controlling insect infestations

Images

Drawing of an adult cigarette beetle.

Clemson Univ./USDA CES, Bugwood.org
Cigarette beetle: pupa, adult, larva