Wednesday, 8 December 2010

Bug #1!

This evening i found this wee guy kicking about in the bathtub. We identified it as Niptus hololeucus, common name Golden Spider Beetle. Which may mean we have our first infestation! *high five*  

N.hololeucus is from the order Coleoptera, meaning it's a beetle, and the family is Anobiidae, the same family that woodworm comes from.They are considered pests because they eat stored foods like cereals and fabrics, and are a major pest in natural history museums because they eat taxidermied specimens. Since we found it in the bathroom, away from the kitchen and our extensive stuffed animal collection, it's unlikely that we've got an infestation. These guys have no wings, which means it must have fallen into the bath from the air vent above.
Generally, N.hololeucus goes through several generations each year, and adults can live for up to 9 months. However, populations suffer great losses over harsh winters, like the one we're having now(the minimum temperature has been something silly like -15 at night), so it'll be interesting to see if we find any more.

I stole the image used here, but hopefully next time we'll get a picture of our subject :)

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