MEDITERRANEAN FLOUR MOTHS

The Mediterranean Flour Moth is somewhat larger than the Indian Meal Moth

Development and damage is similar to the Indian meal moth, except the larvae live and feed in small silken tubes they spin. Although flour is the favorite food, grains, bran, breakfast foods and pollen in beehives are also attacked. The life cycle takes about 10 weeks. The webbing and matting of the larvae often cause the greatest amount of damage by this insect, whether it is contaminating foods in the home or clogging industrial machinery.
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The adult moth is a pale-gray color and from one-forth to one-half inch long, with a wingspread of slightly less than one inch.

The wings are marked with two indistinct, black zigzag lines.

The hind wings are a dirty white.

This moth is easily recognized by its characteristic pose when resting. When at rest, the moth extends the forelegs which raises the head and gives the body a sloping appearance.

None of the other house moths have this characteristic pose.

The female moth lays from 116 to 678 small white eggs in accumulations of flour, meal, waste grain, nuts,chocolate,beans, dried fruits and other food sources.

Commonly, the eggs are attached to the food.

Within a few days (three days at eighty to ninety degrees F) the eggs hatch into small whitish or pinkish larvae, with a very hard and dark colored head and small black spots on the body, that immediately begin to spin silken tubes.

The larvae remain within the tubes until fully mature, which takes approximately forty days.

When fully grown, the larvae will leave the immediate area where they were feeding and wander about in search of a location to spin silken cocoons.

Within the cocoons, they transform into reddish-brown pupae.

After eight to twelve days the adult moths emerge.

During very warm weather, the Mediterranean flour moth may complete its life cycle (egg to adult) in five to seven weeks.

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• In private residences the pantry pest such as the Indian meal moth is usually brought in products from the grocery stores. It is usually just in one area, but can spill over into other areas.

Prevention and Sanitation:

• Place exposed food in containers with tight-fitting lids .
• Periodic cleaning of the shelves helps to prevent infestation of stored food products by pantry pests.
  Certain pantry pests need only small amounts of food to live and breed.
• Some infestations of packaged food originate in the food-processing plant or warehouse.
  Broken packages should not be purchased, or should be exchanged for unbroken packages when discovered, for the chance of these being infested is greater than for perfectly sealed ones.
• Do not mix old and new lots of foodstuffs.
  If the old material is infested, the pest will quickly invade the new.
• If you are unsure about an item being infested, place it in a plastic bag where you will be able to catch anything that emerges.
  If you find the pantry pest accumulating in the bag, you know the foodstuff is contaminated and needs to be discarded.
  To insure any item is pest free, store it in these clear bags for at least a month. Sometimes it takes even longer for the adults to emerge.
• Infestations are most likely to occur in packages that have been opened for the removal of a portion of the contents and then left unsealed for long periods.
  Some of the pests may find their way into other food packages, but even those in a single package may become so numerous that large numbers may find their way into every suitable material in the home, and will eventually crawl over floors, climb up walls, and gather about windows.
• Clean old containers before filling them with fresh food. They may be contaminated and cause a new infestation.
• Make sure that cabinets and storage units are tight and can be cleaned easily.
• Store bulk materials, such as pet foods, in containers with tight-fitting lids.
• Keep storage units dry. This is important because moisture favors the development of pantry pests; dryness discourages them.
• Some pantry insects breed in the nests of rodents and insects and may migrate from these into homes. Eliminate any nests found in or near the home.
• Pantry pests can also breed in rodent baits. Be sure to frequently check and discard infested baits.


Controlling Temperature:

When packages of food are found to be infested with moths or beetles, either low or high temperatures may be used to control the infestation. Insects are cold-blooded; their body temperatures closely follow that of their environment.

The most favorable temperature for most pantry pest is about 80°F. Above 95°F or below 60°F, reproduction and survival is greatly reduced.

When temperatures are lowered, insect activity decreases until all activity stops. The quicker the drop in temperature, the quicker the kill.

Although insects will be killed, their bodies will remain in the food unless sieved out.

An exposure of 2 to 3 days to temperatures of 5°F or lower kills the more susceptible stages (larvae and adults), but eggs require longer to kill (3 weeks).

An alternative is to freeze the food for a week, remove it from the freezer for a few days, and then refreeze it for another week.

 

IF YOUR CONCERN IS FOR PEST MANAGEMENT IN A COMMERCIAL BUSINESS,PLEASE CALL FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.-1-800-476-3368