Hi Silvia
I am quite certain thet these beetles are one of the Corticaria species, belonging to the beetle family of Lathridiidae. Their common name is Minute mould beetles. The adults and their larvae are feeding on damp, mouldy commodities. They are very common not only in on farm stored products but also in domestic situations. Since they are not pests of any commodity including paper and artefacts there are no information on them in any of the museum collection management and museum pest book I have. As far as I know there is no pheromone traps exist for these critters. The best thing you can do is a very thorough inspection of all the gallery's associated rooms. I suspect there might be some leaky water pipe or sewer pipe that keeps the chipboard furniture and/or vanity unit wet. It may well be a leaking aircondition unit dripping on the back of some old wooden cupboard. Sometimes wooden frame windows breeding mould where the water runs down inside. There are numerous other places where you might find mould growing in your building. Once you rectified the problem they will disappear . It is quite certain that as long as there is any mould in the building it will attract more Lathridiid beetles. These beetles have long life, good runners and active flyers. So if there is a breeding colony of them in the building you will find them anywhere. Once they die their body will feed more significant pests. I hope this helps. Best regards Andras Szito Curator/Entomologist Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia Biosecurity & Research Division Plant Biosecurity Branch Entomology Unit 3 Baron-Hay Court, SOUTH PERTH, WA 6151 Tel: (+61 8) 9368 3571, (+61 8) 9368 3965 Fax: (+61 8) 9368 3223, (+61 8) 9474 2840 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Silvia Gonzales Sent: Friday, 22 August 2008 1:06 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [pestlist] beetle problem Hello, We have been finding some beetles in one of our galleries. Comparing the photos we took of them with those online I suspect they are drugstore beetles. I purchased several food bait/pheromone traps aimed at drugstore beetles but haven't caught more than two in a month. Are those traps effective or is it a sign that my bugs aren't drugstore thus not attracted by these particular pheromones? Or they suddenly pack their stuff and left? Can anyone look at the attached images and give me a clue? Also, If you know how to deal with a potential infestation in a gallery, please let me know. Thanks, Silvia N Gonzales Collections Manager Utah Museum of Fine Arts 410 Campus Center Drive Salt Lake City, UT 84112 Ph: 801.585.97.69 Fx: 801.585.51.98 [EMAIL PROTECTED] This e-mail and files transmitted with it are privileged and confidential information intended for the use of the addressee. The confidentiality and/or privilege in this e-mail is not waived, lost or destroyed if it has been transmitted to you in error. If you received this e-mail in error you must (a) not disseminate, copy or take any action in reliance on it; (b) please notify the Department of Agriculture and Food, WA immediately by return e-mail to the sender; (c) please delete the original e-mail. This email has been successfully scanned by McAfee Anti-Virus software. Department of Agriculture and Food WA
