Powderpost beetle

This article is about true powderpost beetles. For false powderpost beetles, see Bostrichidae.

Powderpost beetle
Dorsal view of Lyctoxylon dentatum
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Bostrichidae
Subfamily: Lyctinae
Billberg, 1820
Tribes and genera
A typical C-shaped larva of a beetle in the superfamily Bostrichoidea
A typical straight larva of a beetle in the family Cerambycidae, unrelated to the Bostrichoidea

Powderpost beetles are a group of seventy species of woodboring beetles classified in the insect subfamily Lyctinae.[1] These beetles, along with spider beetles, death watch beetles, common furniture beetles, skin beetles, and others, make up the superfamily Bostrichoidea. While most woodborers have a large prothorax, powderpost beetles do not, making their heads more visible. In addition to this, their antennae have two-jointed clubs. They are considered pests and attack deciduous trees, over time reducing the wood to a powdery dust. The damage caused by longhorn beetles (family Cerambycidae) is often confused with that of powderpost beetles, but the two groups are unrelated. The larvae of the Cerambycidae are white, straight and generally flat-headed, whereas those of the Bostrichidae are white and C-shaped.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference ADictionaryofZoology was invoked but never defined (see the help page).