Cucujidae


Cucujidae

[kə′kü·yə‚dē] (invertebrate zoology) The flat-back beetles, a family of predatory coleopteran insects in the superfamily Cucujoidea.

Cucujidae

 

a family of beetles whose elongate and flat body is 1 to 6 mm long (rarely up to 20 mm). The antennae are filamentous or club-shaped. The beetles are black, brown, yellow, or red. There are approximately 1,100 widely distributed species. In the USSR there are as many as 80 species. Some are predators, and others are omnivores. The beetles usually live and develop under tree bark. They are also found in cracks in trees, in dry wood, in organic remains, and in anthills. Some species, for example, the saw-toothed grain beetle, infest such stored foods as flour, groats, and dried fruits.