HUNTING WILD DERMESTIDS - Good Idea?

The internet is full of inaccurate information about dermestid beetles.

Hi, by any chance do you remember my last blog post and the comments I made on poor information that is so prevalent on the internet regarding dermestid beetles. There is an article out that talks about starting a colony a colony of dermestid beetles from found wild bugs. The writer goes into the fact that dermestid beetles are pretty much everywhere in this country and you can generally find a few on most older carcasses that might be found in the wild.

Hunting wild dermestids that may have mites is not a good idea.

Those points are true then the article then goes on saying that sometimes dermestid beetles will be carrying mites and you should check inspect them to find out if they do have mites. It is also said that you shouldn’t keep those but if you can’t find any you might be able to remove the critters from the beetles. Good luck with that.

Now, let’s get to reality. First I really doubt you can hold a small bug while you lift its hard wings and then his soft wings and look for TINY little mites way back close to the joints. The fact is - about the only way to do this in the field is kill the beetle and hope your big old magnifying glass can let you see what you are looking for. That beetle you just killed will not do you any good even if it didn’t have mites because you killed it while looking.

This procedure can be done by professionals but they do it in a laboratory and anesthetize the bug then look at it under a good microscope.  You ask why a microscope, because all mites are not the same size! Some mite instars are so small that they look like a very small piece of dust. You can’t see legs or any identifying features with a small hand held magnifying glass on these sub adults.

After reading this the first time I laughed because it is not practical and would be a total waste of time. In other words, it just isn’t good information but it sounds great! I’m not saying that there isn’t a bug or two around that doesn’t have mites but those two types of animals live on the same food sources at the same times. So what are chances that you are going to find mite free bugs?

 It is way better to buy a started colony than chase around looking for something you are not going to be able to know for sure isn’t carrying a big problem.

It is best to purchase dermestid beetles form a reputable source.

The internet is full of this type of information so take what is written and what other people tell you with a grain of salt…or maybe two grains. In a lot of cases even so called experts and longtime uses don’t have a clue but they do have suppositions and opinions. 

Till next time, Happy bugging!