Cigarette & Drug Store Beetle
These small, stout beetles (right) are common in homes where they attack pet food, cereals, spices, drugs, tobacco and other packaged foods. Because they closely resemble each other, they are often confused. The heads of both beetles are tucked under the prothorax and are not visible from above. Both are brown and about the same size.
The two beetles can be distinguished by their wing covers. The wing covers of the drugstore beetle have rows of longitudinal grooves, while those of the cigarette beetle are smooth. Another distinguishing feature is the antenna. The drugstore beetle has a three-segmented club, while the cigarette beetle has an antenna that looks a little like a saw blade.
Drugstore beetles: The drugstore beetle will feed on bread, but it will also feed on any dried, food-based material. It will damage book bindings. It has been found to perforate tinfoil and sheet lead and easily chews through most food packaging material.
Cigarette beetles: The cigarette beetle derives its name from its serious infestations of stored tobacco. Adult beetles are about 1/8-inch long, light brown and oval. The most common food materials include pet food, cereal, peppers, spices, raisins and seeds.
Follow the links below to identify a pest.
Indian Meal Moth - Sawtoothed & Merchant Beetles - Dermestid Beetles
