The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-02-15
~ FRt>k r.. JTI. rh. ~.
Assistant curator American Museum
OC \nturnl llistorS.

came To- me n "A very puzzled
~ state of mind She had found
small beetles in a tightly closed
can of red pepper 1t seemed hard
enough Ia believe that anything could
live in red pepper; hut the fact that the
can was air tight seemed To make the
affair past UNDERSTANDING
The only thing | could say was that
&, is the nature of this particular beast.
TO prove this | put the beetles with
their pepper in a small vial. which !
cOrtcd ana sealed with wax. The whole
thing was then put on exhibition IN the
American Museum. where they nave
lived ami reproduced ever since. NO
air or water can have got in because
the seal has not been broken, but the
experiment Will have to stop soon as
nearly all the pepper has become
beetles.
ThS hardy creature, stout N shape,
II light brown color and about one
eighth Of an inch long, j. known as the
drug beetle ,SItodrcpa ptniccal. It's re-
corded dietary includes about forty dit'
fcrent drugs. not emitting the deadly
aconitc. hut does not stop with those.
1t eats an kinds Vt cereals, has been
found feeding on the ligaments of hu-
man skeletons, and even goes 10 Ii
brar.-s and literally devours the reading
matter treasured there.
Its young is a small whitish worm.
Both adult and young are so Ike the
corresponding stages OF the cigarette
beetle, whose tastes are nearly as catho-
lie Gnclining toward tobacco, however).
that il would bee difficult for a layman
To- distinguish them. II J. not necessary
to Ito 50 a. In" remedy - the same Tor
each. Burn the infested material or re
turn it 20 the dealer and get fresh.
Il l. possible to kill the beetles 10y heat
ing them To- 80 degrees Fahrenheit or
hv fumigating with carbon hlsulphide'
but few of us would care care To eat the
resulting mixture and 1, would be next
10 impossible TO pick all the minute
young from ont of their food.
Their. are four or I'VE other beetles
which occur in the pantry. living enemy
+ on cereals The saw toothed grain
beetle : only onr-tenth Of an inch long
hut may he recognized by the serrateu
b sides of the middle part of IN" body
have "A package Of cracked Wheat III
which this insect has been hr''"ihs '''
nearly hNe years.
The ,ad-lle is about thrce-eiGhths OF
an inch long and shiny dark brown
Its fiat Wormlike Young - hSht Vel
low except for the brown ends and has
an Interesting way of being found IN
milk. The interest lies in the fact that
they are Mt home only in far!naccous
material, 50 the find raises the suspicion
that the milk has had some such ma
teral added to il.
The meal worms which are fed TO soft
billed cage birds are the young oi
related beetles, They are so large tha'
they are usually detected before they
can get to pantries and are chiefly CON
fined to granaries and the breeding
boycs' Of the dealers in bird food.
When We think OF caterpillars VIZ
usually have in mind leaf feeding
creatures. However, the silken tubes
and webs occasionally found in cornmea
aud other cereals show that this IN no
"A universal habit This silk is made by
caterpilars which are feeding on th'
grain They also attack nuts, dried
fruits and the like. Several species
have this habit. the most common de
vcloping into Il moth with wins
spread Of three-quarters or an inch
The outer half, or more, OF tho uppe
wings Is reddish brown with cop
perry lustre.
Reaches enjoy both pantry ant
kitchen. They are the true aristocrat
of the insect kingdom, II length OF an
ccstral line and abundance of posses
slons count for anything. The world 4
theirs,
They ride ON the best steamships t.
the ends of the earth and put up II
the best hotels, yet If YOU go into tn