138 SECOND REPORT OF THE STATE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



mentioning other species of beetles which had attacked the collection, 

 as Dermestes lardarius, Attagenus megatoma, A. pellio, Anthrenus 

 varius, A. scrophularicB and Ptinus fw\ he states: 



Besides these beetles, I made the acquaintance of a pest which I at 

 first entirely underrated, namely, Triholivm fcrrugineum. The species 

 is cosmopolitan, and as I never heard of damages done by it, I did not 

 at once give it much attention. It was imported several times with large 

 collections of insects from the East Indies. The flat body of the larva, 

 as well as of the beetle, make it particularly fit to enter boxes through 

 the smallest crack. As the collections were exceedingly large, it was im- 

 possible to take care of them immediately in a thorough manner, and I 

 observed an alarming increase of the insect. It was rather difficult to 

 overcome, but I succeeded by incessant care, by throwing away the 

 worst infested insects, partly by killing individuals which I forced to 

 come out of the body of specimens by filling the whole box with tobacco 

 smoke. I saw the beetles and larvae running out when the smoke began 

 to fill the box, then I closed the box for an hour or two, when I found 

 them all dead. 



Confirmation of its Carnivorous Habits. 



A carnivorous diet must be exceptional to this species and appears 

 hardly to be recognized by our entomologists. A prominent coleopter- 

 ist who had expressed his belief that it fed entirely upon vegetable ma- 

 terial, even after he had been given the reference to the paper of Dr. 

 Hagen, seemed unwilling to admit that it might at times assume carniv- 

 orous habits, offering in extenuation of the doubt, the fact that in muse- 

 ums and in the bindings of books, starchy materials are often to be found 

 upon which insects may feed when they have credit for a different diet. 



The observations of Dr. Hagen find abundant support in statements 

 made by European writers. The following are some of them, referring 

 to this insect. 



Mr. Ingpen has discovered Stene ferruginea in bran. "This species 

 is more general in its habits than the preceding [Tenehrio molitor], since 

 I have frequently discovered both the imago and exuvis of the larva in 

 the bodies of old and ill-preserved specimens of exotic insects" (West- 

 wood, Introduction Classif. Ins., i, p. 319). 



In opening some paper envelopes of Lepidoptera received from Abys- 

 sinia, many of the specimens were eaten and had gone to pieces through 

 the attack of T. castaneum [= T. ferrugineum]. The larva, pupa and 

 imago were found and figured (Lucas, Ann. Soc. Ent. Fr., 1855, ser. 3, 

 vol. iii, p. 249). 



The beetle and larva occur in old bread, when meal or flour are im- 

 ported, and in stores of natural history specimens (Taschenberg, 

 Prakt. Insectenkund, 1879, ii, p. 90). 



