This may have been asked before but I can't find it so I will ask. Does anyone know what that little black bug that is in bags of corn? Will they eat my freshly placed grass? Made the mistake of opening a bag of corn in the driveway and thousands upon thousands came out of the bag. Checked another bag and again thousands upon thousands of them. Any and all information on these critters will be appreciated.
I have seen them before but never thought about it before I opened them at my house.
Sawtooth grain beetle(more than likely).
The eggs get laid in/on the corn while it is on the stalk. The eggs then turn to a larvae which eats the kernels of corn from the inside out. Then they change into the beetle, and you see them. They only eat grains so they won't hurt your grass. They will turn a bag of corn into a pile of dust, and the dust will gum your feeder up.
Almost all corn for animal feed has them, unless it has been placed under heat or radiated. Then it's still no guarantee.
BTW, this is the same process that happens when people see beetles in their pantry. The eggs/larvae are there when you buy food. You don't see them till the beetles emerge
Thanks gents. That's what I needed to know. I'm serious when I say there were thousands. I poured the bags into a plastic storage bin while I was working on some feeders and we watched them crawl out of the bin. I have seen a few before in the bags of corn, but never like this.
