Drugstore Beetle - Larvae

Larvae

Their larvae are small, white grubs, and they can be distinguished from the grubs of the Cigarette beetle by their shorter hair. The female can lay up to 75 eggs at once, and the larval period lasts up to several months depending on the food source. It is the larvae that are responsible for most of the damage that this species can cause.

The Drugstore beetle lives in obligatory symbiosis with a yeast fungus, which is passed on to the offspring by covering the eggs with it.