Cigarette beetle

Definition

A small, reddish-brown beetle, Lasioderma serricorne (family Ptinidae), whose larvae feed on dried tobacco, cigars, cigarettes, and a wide range of stored plant products including spices, dried fruits, and cereals. Adults are distinguished from similar stored-product pests by their uniformly serrated antennae (lacking the three-segmented club of Stegobium paniceum) and flatter thorax (contrasting with the humped profile of Anobium punctatum); the elytra lack the longitudinal grooves present in both of those relatives.

Etymology

From the beetle's association with cured tobacco products, its primary economic host.

Example

Cigarette beetle infestations in tobacco warehouses are detected by the presence of fine, powdery frass and by adults that fly readily when disturbed, unlike the more sedentary drugstore beetle.

Synonyms

• cigar beetle
• paprika beetle
• tobacco beetle

Related Terms

• Lasioderma serricorne
• drugstore beetle
• Ptinidae
• stored-product pest
• elytron
• Frass

Usage Notes

The common name refers specifically to Lasioderma serricorne, not to other tobacco-associated beetles. In pest management, it is often grouped with the drugstore beetle (Stegobium paniceum) as a "cigarette and drugstore beetle" complex, though the two require different control strategies due to behavioral differences—adult cigarette beetles fly and are attracted to light, while drugstore beetles do not fly readily.