Quick Tips to Control Flour Beetle Infestation

Posted: December 12, 2012 | Author: | Filed under: Pest Control | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

If detected at early stages of infestation, flour beetles can be eliminated from your home through easy, convenient methods that do not require the use of chemical pesticides.

Detection & Control

  • Inspect all stored grain products in your pantry. This includes bags of rice, flour (especially wheat), corn meal, cereals, pasta, pet foods, and anything else that is a dry grain. Take a large scoopful from each opened container, carefully sift through the content and look for any flour beetles (here’s a guide on how to identify them).
  • If flour beetles are detected in any stored grain products, immediately throw that product out and clean/vacuum the surrounding areas. Be sure to check that adjacent products are also not infested and remind yourself to not buy that specific product or avoid similar products from the same store.
  • Keep your pantry dry. Flour beetles favor moist environments and moist grain products are ideal habitats for them.
  • When buying grain products, inspect them thoroughly to detect for any holes, cracks, openings in the packaging.
  • Seal close any opened grained product either by pouring them in Ziploc bags, air-tight containers, or use a binder clip to keep the bags closed tightly.

Traps & Sprays

  • Beetle traps (such as EcoSafe “Sticky” Bug Trap or Pro Pest Pantry Moths & Beetle Trap) are made of cardboard and lined on the inside with pheromone laced sticky strips. The pheromone attracts nearby flour beetles to the trap where they get stuck on the glue strip.
  • Recent study found that pheromone based traps work better when consistent airflow is present (Campbell 2012).
  • Traps are non-toxic, easy to use, and disposable. They work great in areas where you detect there may be the presence of a flour beetle population.
  • Spray cracks and crevices with insectides (such as Demon WP, PERMA-DUST, or Ultracide) that kill any hiding adult flour beetles.
  • Insecticide can be toxic so be sure to remove all food items, utensils, dishes from the vicinity before spraying. Also be sure to only spray in cracks and not over entire surfaces.
  • Remember: insecticides should only be used as a last resort. If possible, call a professional pest control company to deal with large infestations.

References:

Campbell, J.F. 2012. Attraction of Walking Tribolium castaneum Adults to Traps. J Stored Prod Res, 51:11-22.

http://www.epestsupply.com/red-confused-flour-beetles.php#.UMkBUoPoSsf

Click to access flourbee.pdf

Can Chrysanthemum control flour beetle infestation?

Posted: November 26, 2012 | Author: | Filed under: Pest Control | Tags: , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Confused flour beetles (Tribolium confusum) are one of the most serious pests in stored grain since it can easily live and feed off damaged grain products. Flour beetles are highly resistant to traditional insecticides, so farmers and scientists are constantly searching for new chemicals and methods to fend off these resilient pests. This proves to be a difficult undertaking as any novel insect control agents must be safe enough to not cause damage to stored grains and agriculture while still be potent enough to ward off the indestructible king of insects.

A joint-team from the University of Sousse and University of Pisa, led by Dr. Haouas, has recently discovered the deterrent effects of Chrysanthemum on confused flour beetles. In their study, published this year in the Journal of Pest Science, the researchers analyzed essential oils from three species of Chrysanthemum (C. coronarium, C. fuscatum, and C. grandiflorum) and for their toxicity and anti-feeding properties. Essential oils are volatile liquid compounds extracted from plants via distillation; the term is derived from the “essence” or aroma of specific plants.

C. coronarium

Image of Chamaemelum fuscatum

C. fuscatum

C. grandiflorum

The flour beetles were starved for 24 hours to induce feeding on the Chrysanthemum-laced flour. Essential oils from the leaves and flowers of each Chrysanthemum species were tested for their effects on confused flour beetle’s mortality and toxicity.

The winner of the three Chrysanthemum species proved to be C. grandiflorum. Essential oils from the leaves of this species was most effective in inhibiting the relative growth rate, efficiency of conversion of ingested food, relative consumption rate, caused an anti-feeding effect, and a high mortality (80%) of T. confusum larvae.

The runner-up was C. coronarium flowers which had essential oils that demonstrated significant lethal toxic effects to flour beetle larvae both through contact and gaseous fumigation.

C. fuscatum was also found to be particularly rich in limonene which is one of the most toxic compounds to T. confusum.

A drop a day, keeps the flour beetles away!

The insecticidal characteristics of Chrysanthemum on flour beetles should increase the use of natural plant materials in pest control as potent alternatives to synthetic pesticides. This technique offers important implications for poor farmers who cannot afford commercial pesticides to banish flour beetles through traditional methods of pest control, such as pouring a few drops of Chrysanthemum oil in stored grain.

References:

Haouaus D., Cioni P.L., Ben Halima-Kamel M., Flamini, G., Ben Hamouda M.H. 2012. Chemical composition and bioactivities of three Chrysanthemum essential oils against Tribolium confusum. J Pest Sci 85(3): 267-279.

Stamopoulos DC, Damos P, Karagianidou G. 2007. Bioactivity of five monoterpenoid vapours to Tribolium confusum (du Val) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae). J Stored Prod Res 43:571–577.