Adult females 1/8" long with males slightly smaller. They are oval shaped, brown to black, with lighter brown patterns on the wing covers (known as elytra).
The larvae are yellowish to golden brown and about 1/4" long.
Lifecycle
Mating occurs almost immediately after adult emergence.
The female lays up to 80 eggs within one to six days and the eggs hatch in five to seven days.
Adults live only one to two weeks.
Habits
This beetle is considered to be one of the world’s most destructive pests of grain products and seeds. Its preferred natural foods are wheat and malted barley, but it is frequently found in rice, peanuts and dried animal skins.
Dead adults are not usually found as they are often cannibalised by larvae.