Confused Flour Beetle vs Red-spotted Jewel Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Confused Flour Beetle Red-spotted Jewel Beetle
Scientific Name Tribolium confusum Castiarina erythroptera
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Tenebrionidae Buprestidae
Size 3-4 mm 10-16 mm
Habitat Indoors Woodlands
Diet Seed Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions Worldwide Australia, Oceania
Conservation Not Evaluated Least Concern

Confused Flour Beetle

A small reddish-brown beetle nearly identical to the red flour beetle, hence the 'confused' name. It is a worldwide pest of stored flour.

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Did You Know?

It was named 'confused' because entomologists kept confusing it with the red flour beetle.

Red-spotted Jewel Beetle

A strikingly beautiful jewel beetle with bright red elytra spotted with dark markings. It is commonly found visiting wildflowers in heathland and open woodland habitats during spring and summer.

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Did You Know?

Castiarina jewel beetles are important pollinators of native Australian wildflowers, visiting hundreds of flower species.