flour beetle

noun

: any of various small darkling beetles (especially Tribolium confusum and T. castaneum) that typically feed on and lay eggs in stored grain and grain products

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Confused flour beetle by Sarefo (via Wikimedia commons). —Elizabeth Preston, Discover Magazine, 17 Nov. 2015

In species like the flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum), the behavior may also impart a reproductive advantage, since studies have shown that cannibalistic individuals produce more eggs than non-cannibals. —Bill Schutt, Discover Magazine, 3 Jan. 2019

The male flour beetle has to battle other males over the right to mate with a female. —Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 14 Apr. 2010

The two most promising species are flour beetles and black soldier flies, specifically the larval stages of these animals. —The Economist, 4 July 2019

The team bred six populations of red flour beetles, and watched them for 80 to 100 generations in male-biased and female-biased groups. —Laura Yan, Popular Mechanics, 13 May 2018

Word History

First Known Use

1888, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

flour beetle

noun

: any of several usually flattened brown beetles that are pests especially in flour or meal