(Anthrenus verbasci)
Biology:
Also belonging to the bacon beetle family, the woolly weevil or cabinet beetle is approx. 3 mm long and very colorfully marked. There are white, yellowish and brown markings on the elytra, which are formed by scale-like hairs. The light-shy, up to 5 mm long, light brown larvae are hairy all over the body and have long tufts of arrow hairs at the rear end. After hatching, the beetles seek out the light and are often found near windows (window frames). In spring and summer, they can be found feeding on pollen on flowers outdoors before the females fly back indoors to lay their eggs (active invasion of buildings). Overwintering outdoors as larvae is possible even in harsh winters.
Closely related species such as the museum beetle(Anthrenus museorum) or carpet beetle(Anthrenus scrophulariae) are very similar to the woolly flower beetle in terms of development, lifestyle and damage. The larvae of the different species can be distinguished, for example, by their species-specific arrow hairs.
Damage:
As the larvae of the beetles live primarily on products of animal origin (wool, hair, feathers, dead birds and insects, furs, bones and leather etc.), they cause great damage to textiles, furs etc.. They can also be very harmful to stuffed animals (museum specimens) and insect collections.
In addition, the woolly flower beetle is also considered a hygiene pest, as the characteristically shaped arrow hairs of the larvae – as with the khapra beetle etc. – can trigger allergies.
