Insect Pests of Stored Grains

and Their Management

 Factors Influencing Grain Loss During
Storage

• A. Abiotic
– Grain Moisture
All provide conducive environment
– Relative Humidity for development of insect pests and
– Temperature fungi

• B. Biotic
– Insects
– Fungi
– Bacteria All affect quality, seed viability and
– Mites consume the significant quantity of
– grains
Rodents
– Birds
 Major Insect Pests of Stored Grains

a) Khapra Beetle (Trogoderma granarium)

b) Lesser Grain Borer (Rhyzopertha dominica)

c) Red Flour Beetle (Tribolium castaneum)

d) Rice Weevil (Sitophilus oryzae)

e) Pulse beetle (Callosobruchus chinensis)

f) Angoumois Grain Moth (Sitotroga cerealella)

 Khapra Beetle: Trogoderma granarium
Coleoptera: Dermestidae
Host range:
Wheat, maize, rice, sorghum, pulses, oil seeds, etc

Identification of life stages

Adult
•The adults are oblong-oval beetles, approximately 2 to 3 mm long
and 1.0 to 1.5 mm wide.

•Males are brown to black with indistinct reddish brown markings on

their elytra.

•Females are slightly larger than males and lighter in color.

•The head is small and deflexed with short 11-segmented antennae.

•The antennae have a club of three to five segments, which fit into a
groove in the side of the pronotum.
•The adults are covered with hairs
 Identification of life stages
• Eggs:
• The eggs are white, turning pale yellowish with age, cylindrical,
0.75 mm in size, with one end rounded, the other pointed and
bearing spine-like projections.

• Larvae: 
• The larvae at hatching are approximately 1.5 mm long, consisting
of a tail made up of tuft hairs on the last abdominal segment.

• Larvae are uniformly yellowish white, except head and body hairs
are brown. As the larvae increase in size, their body color changes
to a golden or reddish brown, more body hairs develop, and the
tail becomes proportionally shorter.

• Larvae are attracted towards rough surface, this phenomenon is

known as thigmotropism

• Larvae passes diapuase season in crack and crevices or in pores of

packaging material. Both obligatory and facultative diapauses are
shown by larvae of khapra beetle
 Khapra Beetle: Trogoderma granarium
Coleoptera: Dermestidae

Damage :
 Adults are harmless.
Grub damages the grain starting with germ portion, surface scratching and devouring the
grain.

 only seed coat remain left after feeding of grain

 Presence of molted skin (exuviae) in grains results in loss of market value

 Damage is confined to peripheral areas of commodity stored in bulk or on peripheral

layers of bags in case of bag storage
• The khapra beetle, Trogoderma granarium Everts, is one of the
world's most feared quarantine pest of stored commodities

• Established infestations are difficult to control because of the

beetle's ability to live without food for long periods of time and to
survive on foods of low moisture content.

• These grubs of khapra beetle tend to crawl into tiny cracks and
crevices and remain there for long periods, making them relatively
tolerant to many surface insecticides and fumigants.

• Therefore, it is important to prevent the khapra beetle's

introduction into uninfested areas 
Khapra Beetle Life Cycle
 Lesser Grain Borer: Rhyzopertha dominica

Host range:
Paddy rice, wheat, maize, sorghum, barley
Identification
Adult:
The adults of this beetle are very small (2 to 3 mm).
They are dark brown to black in color.
The body has a slender cylindrical form.
The head is hidden under the slightly knobby, pitted prothorax.
Two body parts (thorax and abdomen) only visible from dorsal
view.
The elytra (hard, shell-like forewings) have distinct rows of pits
running their length.
The antennae have 10 segments with the last 3 enlarged,
forming a loosely segmented club.
 Adults are good flyers
 Lesser Grain Borer: Rhyzopertha dominica

Host range:
Paddy, rice, wheat, maize, sorghum, barley
Identification
Eggs:
The eggs are ovoid in shape, 0.6 mm in length, 0.2 mm in
diameter, laid outside grains either singly or in clusters of up to
about 20. They are typically white when first laid, turning to
brown before hatching. 
Larvae:
The creamy white larva is a c-shaped grub with a small dark
head that is partly retracted into the thorax. The thorax has
three pairs of small legs. 
Larvae live within the seed and are rarely found in sieve
samples.
 Lesser Grain Borer: Rhyzopertha dominica

Host range:
Paddy, rice, wheat, maize.
Damage
They are primary pests and internal feeders (larva and pupa
develop inside the grain)

Larval and adult feeding in and on grain kernels may reduced to

mere frass (a greyish powdery material).

A pungent, musty odor is often associated with infestations of this

insect.

Presence of irregular holes is the identification of attack of this

insect
Lesser Grain Borer Life Cycle
 Red Flour Beetle: Tribolium castaneum
Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae
External feeder (larvae and pupae develop and feed outside the grain)
Secondary insect pests (feed on already infested or broken grains or milled products)

Identification

Although small beetles, about 1/8 of an inch long, the adults are long-lived
and may live for more than three years.

The red flour beetle is reddish-brown in color and its antennae end in a three-
segmented club. Whereas the confused flour beetle is the same color but its
antennae end is gradually club-like, the "club" consisting of four segments 
The head of the red flour beetle is visible from above, does not have a beak
and the thorax has slightly curved sides. The confused flour beetle is similar,
but the sides of the thorax are more parallel

T. confusum
T. castaneum
 Red Flour Beetle: Tribolium castaneum

Host range: Red flour beetles attack stored grain products such
as flour, cereals, beans, pasta, cake mix, dried pet food, dried
flowers, chocolate, nuts, seeds, and even dried museum
specimens
Damage
 Grubs feed on milled products.

 Flour beetles are secondary pests of all grains and

primary pests of flour and other milled products.

 In grains, embryo or germ portion is preferred.

 They construct tunnels as they move through flour and

other granular food products.

 In addition they release benzequinine to the food medium,

which may produce a readily identifiable acidic odour in heavy
infestations. These secretions are injurious for health.
Red Flour Beetle Life Cycle
 Rice Weevil: Sitophilus oryzae
Coleoptera: Curculionidae
Host range:
Wheat, rice, maize, sorghum, paddy, barley but
rice is preferred food
Identification

Adults:
The adults are usually between 3 and 4.6 mm long, with a
long snout. The body color appears to be blackish brown,
but on close examination, four orange/red spots are
arranged in a cross on the elytera ( two on each elytron).
A snout or beak like structure is present at the head
region.

Eggs:
Females lay 2-6 eggs per day and up to 300 over their
lifetime. The female uses strong mandibles to chew a hole
into a grain kernel after which it deposits a single egg
within the hole, sealing it with secretions from
her ovipositor. Usually one egg is laid in one seed.
 Rice Weevil: Sitophilus oryzae
Coleoptera: Curculionidae
Larvae:
Legless, off white in color, C-shaped with brown head.

 Larvae feed inside the grain, excavating a tunnel as it

develops. There are four larval instars

Pupa
Pupa also develops inside the seed, creamy white colored,
later on it turns to brownish color before adult emergence
Larvae

Pupa
 Rice Weevil: Sitophilus oryzae
Coleoptera: Curculionidae
Host range:
Wheat, rice, maize, sorghum, paddy, barley but rice is preferred food
Damage
Both grub and adults cause the damage.

Grains are hollowed out; kernels are reduced to mere powder.

Adults cut circular holes. One exit hole is present on infested grains
 Pulse Beetle (Callosobruchus chinesis)
Coleoptera: Bruchidae
Host range: 
C. chinensis is a major pest of chickpeas, green gram, broad beans,
moong and mash beans

Identification
Adult:
C. chinensis is a small insect, growing to be about 5 mm in length as an
adult.

The adult stage is described as being brown in colour with black and grey
patches over the body.
The abdomen of the female is slightly longer than the elytra and it is white
in colour with two oval black spots on it.

The female is larger and heavier than the male beetle. The antennae are
pectinate in males while in females, the antennae are serrate.
 Pulse Beetle (Callosobruchus chinesis)
Coleoptera: Bruchidae
The larvae are yellowish-whitish in color with reduced legs.
The pupae are dark brown and pupation occurs inside the
legume. 

Damage
Elytra do not cover the abdomen completely, pygidium not
covered by forewings
Eggs are laid on seed coat and are stuck with seed coat. 7-10 eggs
may be laid on a seed coat of a single seed.
Larvae and pupae develop inside the seed
Grubs eat up the grain kernel and make a cavity.
Adults come out making exit holes.
Many exit holes of adult emergence are present on infested seed.
 Angoumois Grain Moth:
Sitotroga cerealella (Lepidoptera: Gelechidae)

Host range:
stored seeds of Wheat, paddy, maize, sorghum and barley

Identification:

Adult: shiny straw brown colour, pointed wings, fringe of hair present on anal
margin of the wing, adult is about 1/3 inch long. The wing span is 1/2 inch

Eggs: Newly laid eggs are pinkish in colour, laid singly among grains

Larvae: Full-grown larvae are usually yellowish-white with a light brown head. Larvae
develop inside the grain, passes through three larval instars before pupation

Pupa: Pupa is pale white at earlier stage, but turns to light brown color before adult
emergence. Pupal development take place inside the grain.
Angoumois Grain Moth (Life Cycle)
 Angoumois Grain Moth:
Sitotroga cerealella (Lepidoptera: Gelechidae)
Damage

Its caterpillars feed on grains of rice, wheat, Sorghum, Wheat and maize.

They bore into the seeds of the host plant and feed inside the seed covering.

The larvae of Angoumois grain moth (AGM) can cause significant loss to stored cereals in
areas having frequent rains.

The AGM is a primary insect pest

It is an internal feeder (larval and pupal development take place inside the grain)

An infested kernel is mostly hollow with a round hole through which the moth emerges.

AGM-infested grain usually has an unpleasant odor so animals may refuse to eat it or limit
their consumption. 
Monitoring of Stored Product Insect Pests
• Grain probes; samplers
– grain trier, deep bin cup, or vacuum probe, spear samplers
– Probe traps are cylindrical tubes with perforations in the
upper section through which insects drop into the trap and
are unable to escape because of the shape of the
receptacle. These traps have a pointed tip for easy insertion
into the grain.
Probe Traps
• For studies on insect ecology and evaluation of the
effectiveness of pest management, estimation of
insect densities is generally required. Probe traps are
used for finding insect density.
Pitfall traps
Light Traps

Insect Electrocutors
Pheromone Traps

Pheromone traps give an indication of pest density.

Grain Sampling for Pest Detection
• Sampling Stored Grain
– Grain should be monitored regularly to
check moisture, temp, and insect
infestations

Seed triers Speer Samplers X-Ray Image

 Management of Stored Grain Pests
• Curative
– Non Chemical approach
• Ecological Control
(through temperature and grain moisture regulation)
– Low temperature (Below 20ºC) if possible
– Grain moisture contents should be as low as possible below
10% for wheat and below 12% for maize
– proper management of aeration, maintain grain storage
temperature as low as possible to reduce insect reproduction.
– Grain Moisture
• Grains stored at less than 10 percent moisture contents escape
from the attack of insect pests and fungi

– Controlled Atmosphere (Hermetic Storage)

• This technology involves the alteration of natural storage gases i.e.

CO2, O2 , N2 so as to prevent multiplication of insects, mould growth
and quality deterioration of the food grains
• High CO2
• Low Oxygen atmosphere
Hermetic Storage (Air Tight Storage)

Bag storage in cocoons,

No moisture gain
No insect pest development
No fungi , No aflatoxin
Quality of grain protected
 Use of Plant Products
• Plant essential oils, crude extracts
(good repellents and antifeedants for insects)
(Neem, Eucalyptus, Datura, Tumma, Draik)

• Alkaloids responsible for insecticidal, repellent

and antifeedant activities of plant essential oils
should be synthesized and commercialized as
different reduced risk insecticides.

• Plant leaves are traditionally mixed with grains

during storage to repel the insect pests

• Plant extracts may be applied on bags before

filling, may be applied on walls and floor of the
warehouse
Chemical control

 Grain Protectants
 Deltamethrin, α-cypermethrin, malathian, etc

@0.01% concentration for surface treatment on floor

and walls of the storage structure.

 Fumigants
 Aluminum Phosphide (Phostoxin)

2-3 tablets per tonn (1000 kg or 25 monds)

25-30 tablets per 1000 ft3
(Air tight condition of the storage structure is the prerequisite for fumigation)
Biological Control of Stored Product
Insect Pests
 Parasitoids of Lepidopterous pests
• Trichogramma chilonis (egg parasitoid)

• Trichogramma evanescens (egg parasitoid)

• Habrobracon hebetor (larval parasitoid)

• Venturia canescens (larval parasitoid)

Trichogramma sp
Habrobracon hebetor
Habrobracon hebetor is a minute wasp of the family Braconidae that is an ectoparasitoid of
several species of moth caterpillars. Well known hosts include the larval stage of Plodia
interpunctella, the Indian mealmoth, the late larval stage of the Mediterranean flour moth and
the almond moth, and the dried fruit moth (Cadra calidella). This parasitoid has been used
commercially as a way to control pests without using chemical insecticides
Venturia canescens
Anisopteromalus calandrae
(Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae)
Thanks