The confused flour beetle and the red flour beetle, are serious pests of milled and processed grains, especially flour. They may also infest beans, peas, dried fruits, shelled nuts, chocolate, spices and tobacco. They are shinier and more convex than the sawtooth grain beetles. The red and confused flour beetles look very similar, differing primarily in the shape of their antennae. There may be up to 5 generations per year.
Adults generally live for a year.
A fourth grain beetle sometimes found in Michigan homes is the foreign grain beetle. Surprisingly, this grain beetle is not usually found in stored grains. It is more commonly encountered feeding on molds growing on moist grain, and in new houses on new cabinets made of particle board. The particle board, when new, may still be damp and mold may grow on the plant materials used in its construction. These beetles can live on this and are often quite common around bathroom vanities and kitchen cupboards.