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photo gallery of the beetle fauna of Germany

The only 2 to 2.8 mm large Longheaded Flour Beetle Latheticus oryzae (family Tenebrionidae) is the only representative of the genus in Germany. It is a small yellowish brown beetle with flat slender body, a broad head and short antenna with a 5-membered club. The species originates from Southeast Asia. Meanwhile Latheticus oryzae is widespread in the tropical and subtropical region and is regularly introduced to Central Europe with rice and tapioca meal. The Longheaded Flour Beetle is thermophilic and prefers temperatures around 35 °C. Furthermore it requires a high humidity of 85%. Therefore, in Germany the species in found only synanthropic in storages and can become a pest in grains, rice and tapioca meal. Due to its climate requirements, the beetle is not yet established in Germany in the wild.