Adults are short lived, active at night and may return to the same wood or go elsewhere, lay eggs and start a new life cycle. It is the damage that homeowners are more likely to see. The length of the life cycle for Lyctids is three months to one year, for Anobiids one to three years and for Bostrichids about one year. Some wood-boring beetles complete the life cycle in a few months, while others live in wood 30 years before emerging. The key to avoiding serious problems from powderpost beetles is early detection.
Homeowners are much more likely to see damage than the beetles themselves.
Since tunneling and development of the larvae takes place entirely below the wood surface, the only signs of infestation are the emergence holes made by the adults and the powder-like frass sifting from the holes. Lyctid or Anobiid Beetles Knowing how to differentiate Lyctid from Anobiid beetle damage is more than academic since Anobiids have a broader range of woods that they can potentially infest. Both Lyctid and Anobiids chew small, circular emergence holes in the surface of wood. Holes made by Lyctid beetles are about the diameter of a pinhead whereas exit holes made by Anobiids are slightly larger. If the hole was made by an Anobiid, the tip of the pen will enter part way up the angled face of the point.