Sawtoothed grain beetle

Appearance

''O. surinamensis'' is a slender, dark brown beetle 2.4–3 mm in size, with characteristic "teeth" running down the side of the prothorax. It is nearly identical to ''Oryzaephilus mercator'', or the Merchant Grain Beetle, however, ''O. surinamensis'' has smaller eyes and a broader, more triangular head; ''O. surinamensis'' unlike ''O. mercator'' are unable to fly.

Distribution

''O. surinamensis'' can be found worldwide. The beetle is one of the most commonly encounted stored product pests and is widespread within the food industry and can be found in food manufacturing, storage, and retail facilities, as well as in home pantries. ''O. surinamensis'' is less common in colder climates such as Canada and the Northern United State

Reproduction

A female can produce 43-285 eggs in their six to ten month average lifespan which are deposited on a food mass. The ideal temperature range for larvae development within eggs is about 27-29°C , under such conditions they hatch in three to five days.Larva are yellow-white with brown heads and grow up to 3mm. They crawl freely around the food mass and feed on broken pieces of grain or grain kernels damaged by other insects, larger larvae may bore into kernels. Larvae account for the majority of damage done to grain. Larvae molt two to four times before pupation