Anobiid Powderpost Beetle (Anobiidae)

Also known as: Furniture and Deathwatch Beetles

The furniture beetle is found mostly in the eastern half of the United States and it infests structural timbers as well. The Death-watch beetle is found throughout the United States. It attacks building timbers in poorly ventilated areas where moisture tends to collect. Even in relatively dry areas of the country like San Diego, poorly ventilated crawl spaces can provide good environments for these pests to invade.

The name"Death watch" comes from the ticking sound that the adult makes inside infested wood that is audible during a still night. It is a mating call.

The insect is a common pest in the southeastern United States in crawl space timbers. Infestations can become so severe, that loss of structural strength to sills , joists, and sub flooring occurs.

Various anobiid beetles attack seasoned wood in the United States. These beetles range in size from 1/32- to 3/8-inch long; however, those that attack structures are 1/8- to 1/4-inch long.

The furniture beetle, Anobium punctatum, is 1/8- to 1/4-inch long, cylindrical, and red-brown to dark brown in color. It has a series of pits in rows that run lengthwise on the wing covers. The pits can be seen through the fine yellow hairs that cover the body. The last three segments of the antenna are longer than the first eight combined.

The adult deathwatch beetle, Xestobium rufovillosum, is 1/4- to 3/8-inch long and is gray-brown with patches of pale hairs on the back of the body.

It does not have the rows of pits on the wing covers and their 11-segmented antenna end in three elongated segments that are as long as the previous five segments.

The larvae form tunnels in both softwoods and hardwoods They require 13-30% moisture content.

Their holes are round,1/16-1/8 inches. They can digest cellulose from the wood. They are inclined to the softwoods,for this reason they are common in crawl spaces and basements ,infesting the pine used as framing lumber.

The powder outside the holes (frass) is fine to coarse, many times with small pellets. The life cycle averages 1-3 years.

They commonly re-infest crawl space areas that are poorly ventilated and humidity is absorbed in the wood.

Furniture beetle adults emerge in the spring from cells just below the surface of the infested wood. Soon afterward, mating occurs, and egg laying begins. The female lays 20-60 eggs in old emergence holes or cracks and v's in the wood. Eggs hatch in six to 10 days. The larvae feed for about one year before pupating for two to three weeks. The wood moisture content required for larval development is 13-30%. When development is complete, the adult bores directly to the surface of the wood, emerging through a round hole 1/16- to 1/8-inch in diameter. Development under ideal conditions can be completed in one year; however, two to three years is more common. The adults are active at night. Some species are attracted to light.

These beetles commonly infest seasoned sapwood of hardwoods and softwoods; they are rarely found in heartwood. They attack structural timbers, lumber, cabinets, and furniture. These beetles re-infest, and the females commonly lay eggs in the wood from which they emerged. The larvae typically follow the grain of the wood when feeding ad fill their tunnels with wood frass. The frass is a fine powder with long pellets loosely packed into the galleries.

It is important to have a pest control expert determine if the infestation is active before initiating treatment. Wood in structures and furniture infested by these beetles may go unnoticed until the round adult emergence holes appear in the surface. The characteristic pellets found in the frass and the consistency of the frass are useful in determining what species is infesting the wood. Infested wood can be often be removed and replaced with treated wood. Reducing the wood moisture content to approximately 12% slows the development of the larvae.

The surface of unpainted or otherwise unprotected wood can be treated by an experienced exterminator, as well as injecting the galleries with disodium octaborate tetrahydrate such as BoraCare or Timbor. This kills exposed larvae and prevents re-infestation when the eggs hatch and immature larvae begin to penetrate the wood. However, the most effective way to eliminate anobiid powderpost beetle infestations is to have a professional pest control company fumigate using sulfur flouride or methyl bromide.

Adios Pest Control is your local San Diego pest control company, including Chula Vista and all of San Diego county; we provide complete pest control services.