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Full grown saw-toothed grain beetles are small, slender, dark brown, flat insects. They are about 1/8-inch in length. Their most distinctive feature is the set of six saw-like teeth found on either side of the pronotum (first segment behind the head). These beetles' larvae are yellow-white and about 1/8-inch long and they have three pairs of legs and a pair of false legs of the abdomen.

Habits

A female saw-toothed grain beetle deposits 45-285 eggs over a span of four to five months. The shiny white eggs are found in cracks or crevices in the foods they are infesting. They molt 2-4 times, and their life cycle (from the egg to adult) is usually 30-50 days, although sometimes it may take even up to 375 days. There are usually six to seven generations in a year. Adults usually live 6-10 months but in some cases they have been known to live for up to three years.

The saw-toothed grain beetles feed on a wide variety of stored products like flour, bread, breakfast cereals, nuts, dried meats, sugar, dog food, biscuits etc. The larvae too feed on the same food products as the adults. These beetles can grow into very huge populations in rarely-used stored materials, such as flour. You become aware of the saw-toothed grain beetles' infestation only when the adults are seen crawling all over your pantry area.

Adult saw-toothed grain beetles are not known to fly, nor are they attracted to light. However, their very flat structure, allows them to easily hide in cracks and crevices and often penetrate poorly sealed packaged foods.

How to Prevent Damage

• Clean the grain bins thoroughly before grains are loaded into them.
• Treat with an approved structural insecticide to avoid infestation of newly harvested grain.
• Fumigation can be administered.
• Admixing grain with an approved insecticide is another method.
• In winter, cooling the grain to - 5 degrees Celcius and holding it at that temperature for 12 weeks also helps.
• If the infestation is of large scale, call your local pest control professionals.

Our methods and equipment used in controlling the saw-toothed grain beetles' menaces are effective and environment friendly.