Hi Tamar,
Yes they look like Reesa to me too. We’ve had them in Manchester; December 2008 I found several larval cases in one of our display cases on the gallery. The case contained taxidermy specimens, and I found larval cases on two or three of the specimens although there was no visible damage. I’d heard that Reesa like to feed on insect specimens and freeze dried plant specimens, but had never heard of them liking taxidermy specimens. The display case in question also contained some props, for example soil and some dried grasses, and so in our case it’s possible they were actually feeding on that not the specimens. I don’t know if it could be a similar thing with you? To get rid of them we sent the specimens to be frozen (a week at -30 degrees C) and while it was empty we cleaned the display case from top to bottom. All the props were disposed of and we vacuumed everywhere inside and underneath the case. We then put a dessicant dust down wherever we could to prevent any further activity. It seemed to work, as we haven’t picked up a single one since December 2008. I hope that helps, Abby Abby Stevens Preventive Conservator Manchester Museum, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL 0161 3061590 abigail.k.stev...@manchester.ac.uk From: pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net [mailto:pestlist-ow...@museumpests.net] On Behalf Of Tamar Sent: 23 March 2010 15:53 To: pestlist Subject: [pestlist] pest ID help sought I found these beetles and some larval sheds in a display case housing stuffed birds on wooden mounts. It is not clear to me if they came out of the birds or the mounts. Are these warehouse beetles? Will freezing take care of them? http://www.humboldt.edu/~wmuseum/beetles.html Also, are there pheromone traps for these guys and where might I purchase some? many thanks! Tamar *************************************** Tamar Danufsky Museum Curator and Marine Wildlife Care Center Coordinator Department of Wildlife Humboldt State University Arcata, CA 95521 phone: (707)826-4034 email: t...@humboldt.edu
