Grain beetle
| Grain beetle | ||||||||||||
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Grain beetle ( Oryzaephilus surinamensis ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Oryzaephilus surinamensis | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The flat grain beetle ( Oryzaephilus surinamensis ) is a beetle from the predatory flat beetle family (Silvanidae).
features
Flat grain beetles grow to be 2.5 to 3.5 millimeters long. They are brown and lightly haired fine lying flat. Her head is broad and has protruding compound eyes . The pronotum has six teeth on each side. The pronotum has three longitudinal ribs. The wings are slightly wider than the pronotum and have raised longitudinal ribs, between which rows of dots run. The males differ from the females by a tooth on the thighs ( femora ) of the hind legs. The species can easily be confused with Oryzaephilus mercator . However, this species has temples that are not about the same length as the compound eyes, but shorter than half the length of the eyes.
Distribution and way of life
The animals are typical cultural followers and are cosmopolitan . They inhabit supplies, especially of grain, flour and nuts; however, they can also be found in compost, rotting hay, under bark and in similar habitats. There they mainly hunt for insect larvae, which especially feed on the stocks. They rarely eat grains that have already been infected.
supporting documents
literature
- Karl Wilhelm Harde , František Severa : The Kosmos Beetle Leader. The Central European beetle . Franckh-Kosmos, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-440-06959-1 .
- Jiři Zahradnik, Irmgard Jung, Dieter Jung et al .: Beetles of Central and Northwestern Europe: an identification book for biologists and nature lovers . Parey, Berlin 1985, ISBN 3-490-27118-1 .
Web links
- Fauna Europaea systematics