flour beetle

noun

1. any of several brown darkling beetles, especially of the genus Tribolium, that infest, breed in, feed on, and often pollute flour, stored grain, and other stored produce.

Word History and Origins

Origin of flour beetle¹

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

The EU already allowed migratory locusts and flour beetle larvae as a food additive, dpa reported.

Read more on Seattle Times

The researchers looked at the red flour beetle to get the effects of simulated heatwaves on male reproduction.

Read more on Fox News

The red flour beetle used in the experiments is a tropical species that thrives at 35C.

Read more on The Guardian

But even the largest beetle species, including the flour beetle Mecynorhina torquata in central Africa, keeps its thick, bulky legs unfurled as it glides through the air.

Read more on Scientific American

For example, flour beetle males that mate with other males can actually transfer to females this way.

Read more on Scientific American