THE so-called "buffalo moths" are not moths; they are beetles and
very distinct from the true clothes moths. In this country there are
six species,[1] at least, that attack museum materials and household
fabrics, but of these only four[2] have proved serious household pests
in America. All species are capable of subsisting upon dried animal
remains, and thrive upon them perhaps as well as upon the fine fabrics
of wool, hair, feathers, fur, and silk.
[1] _Anthrenus scrophulariae_ L., _A. museorum_ L., _A. fasciatus_
Hbst., _A. lepidus_ LeC, _A. verbasci_ L., and _Attagenus piceus_ Oliv.
[2] _Anthrenus scrophulariae_ L., _A. verbasci_ L., _A. fasciatus_
Hbst., and _Attagenus piceus_ Oliv.
Carpet beetles pass through life cycles, or generations, consisting
of egg, larva or grub, pupa, and adult or beetle. These stages
differ greatly in appearance. The beetles are broadly oval and about
three-sixteenths to one-fourth of an inch long; black, but with this
blackness often obscured by tiny red, orange, brown, yellow, or white
scales which form color designs characteristic of the species. These
scales, which are modified hairs, are easily rubbed off, revealing the
black color of the body beneath. The larvæ, or grubs (as the larvæ of
beetles are often called) are brownish or black and variously clothed
with stiff hairs, as shown in Figures 1 and 8, or with a long tuft of
hairs at the end of the body, as shown in Figure 5. Carpet beetles
pass through not more than two generations annually, and more often
only one, and there are records of certain individuals requiring much
longer, even three years, to complete their growth. The following
accounts are given of the four most important species.