Golden spider beetle
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Ptinidae
Genus: Niptus
Species:
N. hololeucus
Binomial name
Niptus hololeucus
(Faldermann, 1836)

The golden spider beetle, Niptus hololeucus, is a species of spider beetle in the family Ptinidae.[1][2]

Description

Niptus hololeucus is 3–4.5mm in length.[3] Its body is covered in silky golden hairs and fine scales.

Habitat

Niptus hololeucus may be a pest of a wide variety of cereal based food products.[3] In 1981 an account of an infestation of these beetles was located in a roof void above offices in Rotherham, U.K.[4] This was found to be due to wild pigeons which were nesting within the loft: the beetles and their larvae were feeding upon their waste matter.

Distribution

It is a temperate species originating in West Asia but now cosmopolitan. It is widespread across western Europe.[5] A single record was first recorded in Iran in a cave 2014.[6] N. hololeucus is one of the two species of Niptus to be found in caves.[6]

References

  1. ↑ "Niptus hololeucus (Faldermann, 1835) [Golden Spider Beetle]". NBN. 2012–2013. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
  2. ↑ Bouchard, Patrice; Bousquet, Yves; Davies, Anthony E.; Alonso-Zarazaga, Miguel A.; et al. (2011). "Family-group names in Coleoptera (Insecta)". ZooKeys. Pensoft Publishers (88): 1–972. doi:10.3897/zookeys.88.807. ISSN 1313-2989. PMC 3088472. PMID 21594053.
  3. 1 2 "Golden spider beetle, Niptus hololeucus". PestWeb. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
  4. ↑ Stephen D Smith; “Boozers, Ballcocks and Bail” (Wombwell, 1996), pp.14-15
  5. ↑ "Niptus hololeucus (Falderman, 1836)". 2016-07-25. Retrieved 2017-01-25.
  6. 1 2 Dashan, M.; Sadeghi, S; Bakhshi, Y.; Malek-Hosseini, M.J (2014). "First record and redescription of Niptus hololeucus (Faldermann, 1835) from Kangohar Cave (Coleoptera: Ptinidae)". Iranian Journal of Animal Biosystematics. 10 (2): 81–85.


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