''Ptinus tectus'', often called the Australian spider beetle, is a species of beetle in the family

Ptinidae Ptinidae is a family of beetles in the superfamily Bostrichoidea. There are at least 220 genera and 2,200 described species in Ptinidae worldwide. The family includes spider beetles and deathwatch beetles. The Ptinidae family species are hard ...

, or family Anobiidae, subfamily Ptininae. It is a cosmopolitan species (arrived in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and the UK from

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in 1900). It is a pest of stored foods and museum specimens. ''P. tectus'' Boieldieu, 1856 is the name most often used for this species. Some works still state ''Ptinus ocellus'' Brown, 1929.

Biology

Description

The Australian spider beetle (''Pictus tectus'') measures 2.5–4 mm in length and is coloured dark brown. The adults have biting mouthparts, a well developed thorax and 11-segmented antennae. Characteristics which give them a spider-like appearance include a stout body, pronounced constriction of the neck shield and 6 long thin legs with 5-segmented tarsi.

Life cycle

The female Australian spider beetle lays 100–120 sticky eggs over a period of 4–5 weeks in early summer, either singly or in small batches. At 20–25 °C the eggs hatch in 3–16 days, producing larvae which are fleshy, curved, covered with fine hairs and relatively immobile. Larval development takes at least 6 weeks, during which time the larvae moult 4 or 5 times. When mature, they wander in search of a pupation site where they spin a cocoon cell in which to pupate. Adults emerge after 20 to 30 days and will live for as long 12 months. At 70% R.H. development of ''Ptinus tectus'' from egg laying to emergence from the cocoon takes an average of about 62 days at 23–25 °C; at 15 °C the time taken is about 130 days. The minimum temperature at which complete development can occur is 10 °C and the maximum is between 28 and 30 °C. Considerable mortality occurs in eggs and larvae at 28 °C.

Domestic pest

The species is considered as a pest in

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

s. It is recorded from at least 55 museums and historic houses in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

References

External links

Padil
Diagnostic images (as ''P. ocellus'' Brown, 1929)
''Ptinus tectus'' UK distribution at National Biodiverity Network Gateway''Ptinus tectus'' images at Coleoptera.org
{{Taxonbar, from=Q659578

tectus ''Tectus'' is a genus of sea snails, marine gastropod mollusks in the family Tegulidae. Description The shell has a pyramidal shape. Its base is flat, without false-umbilicus. The rhomboidal aperture is very oblique, angular, and wider than ...

Household pest insects Beetles of Australia Cosmopolitan arthropods Beetles described in 1856 Taxa named by Anatole Auguste Boieldieu Beetles of Europe