Cigarette Beetle

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Cigarette beetles are a significant pest in tobacco related industries for which it gets its namesake. Beyond tobacco, the cigarette beetle will infest most dry goods, including cereals, dried fruits, herbs, flour, spices, seeds, and rice. Cigarette beetles are one of the only species to inhabit and feed from tobacco and its products. This is due to the fact that tobacco is nutritionally deficient and contains nicotine which can cause nicotine toxicity in insects. Nicotine is an incredibly toxic substance to soft bodied insects and is one of the most effective botanical pesticides. Cigarette beetles carry a symbiotic yeast that is transmitted to the next generation superficially on the eggs and carried internally in larvae and adults. The yeast cells assist in the digestion of less nutritious foods and provide resistance to certain toxins. During infestation, adults will make holes in food packaging to escape. Adults rarely feed on the initial infested material. Cigarette beetles spend their entire life stages inside its food, feeding on them and causing many aspects of damage. They have been known to be associated with an infection called canthariasis, which is a human insectal disease caused by either the adult beetle or their larvae.