What is "red flour beetle"

The' red flour beetle' (Tribolium castaneum) is a species of beetle in the family Tenebrionidae, the darkling beetles. It is a worldwide pest of stored products, particularly food grains, and a model organism for ethological and food safety research.

The red flour beetle attacks stored grain and other food products including flour, cereals, pasta, biscuits, beans, and nuts, causing loss and damage. It may cause an allergic response, but is not known to spread disease or cause damage to structures or furniture. The United Nations, in a recent post-harvest compendium, estimated that Tribolium castaneum & Tribolium confusum, the confused flour beetle, are "the two most common secondary pests of all plant commodities in store throughout the world."

The red flour beetle is of Indo-Australian origin and less able to survive outdoors than the closely related species Tribolium confusum. It has, as a consequence, a more southern distribution, though both species are worldwide in heated environments. The adult is long-lived, sometimes living more than three years. Although previously regarded as a relatively sedentary insect, it has been shown in molecular and ecological research to disperse considerable distances by flight.

This species closely resembles the confused flour beetle, except with three clubs at the end of each of its antennae.

Female red flour beetles are polyandrous in mating behavior. Within a single copulation period, a single female will mate with multiple different males. Female red flour beetles engage in polyandrous mating behavior in order to increase their fertility assurance. By mating with an increased number of males, female beetles obtain a greater amount of sperm. Obtaining a greater amount of sperm is especially important since many sexually active male red flour beetles are non-virgins and may be sperm-depleted. It is important to note that red flour beetles engage in polyandry to obtain a greater amount of sperm from males, not to increase the likelihood of finding genetically compatible sperm.