Abstract
This chapter addresses the beetles associated with stored food products. Species associated with stored food products are those with a history of being found in these products. The aesthetic factor of beetles in food cannot be ignored. Their presence may be repugnant to some consumers. Live beetle infestations, carry a high consumer outrage factor. Beetles in food may be indicators of decomposition or mold. Beetles are readily recognized by the specialized front wings, the elytra, which form a hard or leathery dorsal shell over the mesothorax, metathorax and usually most or all of the abdomen. Mandibles are diagnostic for most genera of stored-product beetles, in both the adult and larval stages. The beetle mandible has a typical pyramid shape with basal articulating condoyles and a broad molar area, in food-contaminating pests. In one group of beetles, the trochanter on the hind leg is large and so strongly offset toward the midline that the coxa and femur are nearly touching.
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