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The Tobacco Beetle
by
Rafael Bernardo
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| Top
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Bottom
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| Common
names: |
Perforador
del Tabaco and Gorgojo del Tabaco (Cuba), Carcoma del Tabaco
(Puerto Rico), Tobacco Beetle and Herbarium Beetle (USA) |
| Scientific
name: |
Lasioderma
serricorne (Fabricius, 1792) |
| Class: |
Insect |
| Order: |
Coleoptera |
| Suborder: |
Polyphaga |
| Superfamily: |
Bostrychoidea |
| Family: |
Anobiidae |
| Genre: |
Lasioderma |
| Species: |
L.
serricorne |
| This
insect is capable of damaging stored tobacco in both raw
material and manufactured product, and can be found in any
of its phases: egg, larva, pupa and adult.
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| Eggs
are white colored and about 1/2 mm (1/64") in length.
They are laid on tobacco at the warehouse by adult females
(up to 100 eggs per female), and hatch in 6 to 10 days.
The eggs are only viable for up to about 35 days.
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The
small larvae are grub-shaped and whitish,
measuring about 4 mm (1/6") at the end of their development,
and are covered by fine, long brown hairs that make them
appear "fuzzy"; their heads have yellow-brown
markings. They feed for 5 to 10 weeks (depending on temperature),
and cause extensive damage to cigars by boring through them.
At temperatures below 15-16 degrees C (60 degrees F) the
larvae become dormant and get a status of lethargy that
can last for several months. |
| Larvae
pupate in the damaged material for 2 to
3 weeks, remaining inactive during that period of time.
The entire life cycle, from egg to adult, takes about 10
to 12 weeks. In warm climates, there can be 5 to 6 generations
per year. |
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The
imago or adult insect is oval, about 2
to 3 mm (1/10 to 1/8") long and reddish-brown in color;
it has a hard body covered with tiny hairs that give it
a golden sheen; its head is bent downward so that the beetle
has a distinctive "hump-backed" look. It is a
good flier, prefers subdued light and temperatures over
18 degrees C (65 degrees F) and can live up to a month.
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| Cigar
manufacturers fumigate not only their warehouses but also
the finished products, that are treated against potential
pests in vacuum chambers. Of course, fakes and other "home-made"
cigars are not being processed in this manner, so take this
into account when storing cigars whose origin has not been
clearly determined. Cigars that have not passed those insecticide
treatments are more likely to infest some of your best smokes.
Lasioderma
not only ruins cigars and cigarettes, but it is also a
pest of mustard, chili peppers, cloves, raisins, and upholstery
material. It can also cause serious damage to books and
all kinds of dried plants.
It
is usually not necessary (nor advisable!) to use insecticides
onto our cigars in home infestations. A four-day deep
freezing period of the suspected smokes will destroy all
beetles, whatever development phase they are. The cigars
should be previously introduced in zip-lock plastic bags
and gradually adapted to low temperatures by spending
one day in the refrigerator before and after the
mentioned freezing stage.
Cigars
that have been stored for about one year without any sign
of infestation, can be considered "beetle-free".
But they become vulnerable if they are mixed with fresh,
new cigars or moved to a place where a female insect could
lay new eggs.
Take
also into account that maintaining ideal storage conditions
(21 degrees C or 70 F @ 70% RH) is not enough to guarantee
that cigars are safe against beetle attacks. |
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