Branch 2 Field Rep (SPCB) -- Beetles
True or False: Carpet beetles are pests in warehouses and museums.
True: They are pests in warehouses, homes, museums, and other locations where suitable food
exists.
In California, how many species of carpet beetles are there that cause serious damage to
fabrics, carpets, furs, stored food, and preserved specimens?
3
Name the three species of carpet beetles in California.
The varied carpet beetle, the furniture carpet beetle, and the black carpet beetle.
This adult carpet beetle, Anthrenus verbasci, is about 1/10 inch long and black with an
irregular pattern of white, brown, and dark yellow scales on its wing covers, or elytra. What is
its common name?
Varied Carpet Beetles
Indoors, varied carpet beetles deposit eggs on or near at least 13 different items. Name at
least 7 different items one could expect to find carpet beetle eggs and larvae:
Wool carpets and rugs, woolen goods, animal skins, furs, stuffed animals, leather book bindings,
feathers, animal horns, whalebone, hair, silk, dried plant products, and other materials that can
serve as larval food
Adults of this beetle usually appear in spring or early summer; indoors, you'll often find them
near windows. What is the name of the beetle?
Varied Carpet Beetle
Mature larvae of these beetles are slightly longer than adults and are covered with dense
tufts of hair they extend upright to form a round plume if disturbed. What is the beetle?
Varied Carpet Beetle
Coloration and markings vary, but this beetle generally has a mottled appearance due to the
black spots that intersperse the white and dark yellow to orange scales on its wing covers.
What beetle is it?
, Furniture Carpet Beetle
The larvae of this beetle are white at first but darken to dark red or chestnut brown as they
mature. In contrast to other larvae of different carpet beetles, these larvae are broader in
front and narrower at the rear. What beetle species is this?
Furniture Carpet Beetle
True or False: Varied Carpet Beetle larvae eat a much broader variety of things than the larvae
of the Furniture Carpet Beetle.
False: Larvae of the furniture carpet beetle feed on the same types of items as varied carpet
beetle larvae.
True or False: In California and other arid areas, the black carpet beetle is a more serious
stored-product pest than a fabric pest.
True.
True or False: Carpet beetles do the MOST damage when they are fully developed (matured).
Their voracious appetite is the result of the incredible speed in which they lay eggs.
False silly man: The LARVAE (maggot) stage.
What are the two reasons Carpet Beetles are so difficult to control?
1. Their ability to find food in obscure places and;
2. Their ability to disperse widely throughout a building.
What is one of the MAIN ways Carpet Beetles enter homes?
They frequently fly into homes from flowers in the landscaping.
Why are sticky traps a very useful tool in the management of a Carpet Beetle infestation?
They can help reveal WHERE the beetles are coming from and they can help reveal HOW
effective your treatment program really is.
True or False: Pesticides COMBINED with good sanitation practices are the key ways that bring
about the control of Carpet Beetles.
False: Sanitation COMBINED with exclusion are the key ways of bring about control of a Carpet
Beetle infestation. Think about it...carpet beetles come from the OUTSIDE...so exclusion (good
screens on a house) plus good vacuuming should get rid of them.
What kind of test is typically found in dry dog food?
True or False: Carpet beetles are pests in warehouses and museums.
True: They are pests in warehouses, homes, museums, and other locations where suitable food
exists.
In California, how many species of carpet beetles are there that cause serious damage to
fabrics, carpets, furs, stored food, and preserved specimens?
3
Name the three species of carpet beetles in California.
The varied carpet beetle, the furniture carpet beetle, and the black carpet beetle.
This adult carpet beetle, Anthrenus verbasci, is about 1/10 inch long and black with an
irregular pattern of white, brown, and dark yellow scales on its wing covers, or elytra. What is
its common name?
Varied Carpet Beetles
Indoors, varied carpet beetles deposit eggs on or near at least 13 different items. Name at
least 7 different items one could expect to find carpet beetle eggs and larvae:
Wool carpets and rugs, woolen goods, animal skins, furs, stuffed animals, leather book bindings,
feathers, animal horns, whalebone, hair, silk, dried plant products, and other materials that can
serve as larval food
Adults of this beetle usually appear in spring or early summer; indoors, you'll often find them
near windows. What is the name of the beetle?
Varied Carpet Beetle
Mature larvae of these beetles are slightly longer than adults and are covered with dense
tufts of hair they extend upright to form a round plume if disturbed. What is the beetle?
Varied Carpet Beetle
Coloration and markings vary, but this beetle generally has a mottled appearance due to the
black spots that intersperse the white and dark yellow to orange scales on its wing covers.
What beetle is it?
, Furniture Carpet Beetle
The larvae of this beetle are white at first but darken to dark red or chestnut brown as they
mature. In contrast to other larvae of different carpet beetles, these larvae are broader in
front and narrower at the rear. What beetle species is this?
Furniture Carpet Beetle
True or False: Varied Carpet Beetle larvae eat a much broader variety of things than the larvae
of the Furniture Carpet Beetle.
False: Larvae of the furniture carpet beetle feed on the same types of items as varied carpet
beetle larvae.
True or False: In California and other arid areas, the black carpet beetle is a more serious
stored-product pest than a fabric pest.
True.
True or False: Carpet beetles do the MOST damage when they are fully developed (matured).
Their voracious appetite is the result of the incredible speed in which they lay eggs.
False silly man: The LARVAE (maggot) stage.
What are the two reasons Carpet Beetles are so difficult to control?
1. Their ability to find food in obscure places and;
2. Their ability to disperse widely throughout a building.
What is one of the MAIN ways Carpet Beetles enter homes?
They frequently fly into homes from flowers in the landscaping.
Why are sticky traps a very useful tool in the management of a Carpet Beetle infestation?
They can help reveal WHERE the beetles are coming from and they can help reveal HOW
effective your treatment program really is.
True or False: Pesticides COMBINED with good sanitation practices are the key ways that bring
about the control of Carpet Beetles.
False: Sanitation COMBINED with exclusion are the key ways of bring about control of a Carpet
Beetle infestation. Think about it...carpet beetles come from the OUTSIDE...so exclusion (good
screens on a house) plus good vacuuming should get rid of them.
What kind of test is typically found in dry dog food?
