Tenebroides mauritanicus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Tenebroides mauritanicus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Materials examined. IaȘi County: Dobrovăț (near): Dobrovăț Forest , 46.9979°N / 27.6777°E, 22.X.2022, Cosmin-Ovidiu Manci leg. (1 specimen), COMC GoogleMaps ; Iasi County: Dobrovăț (near), 46.9982°N / 27.6776°E, 5.III.2023, mostly beach forest, Cosmin-Ovidiu Manci leg. (3 specimens), COMC GoogleMaps ; Neamț County: NemțiȘor (near): Natural Park Vânători Neamț, 47.2367°N / 26.2374°E, 7.III.2023, in forest, Cosmin-Ovidiu Manci leg. (4 specimens), COMC GoogleMaps .

Remarks. Originally from Africa ( Henríquez-Valido et al. 2020), it was known to inflict damage on wheat in Europe before the end of the eighteenth century ( Back & Cotton 1926). Currently, it is cosmopolitan and is a storage pest with both adults and larvae feeding upon grains and grain products. Adults are occasionally predacious on other insects ( Cotton & Good 1937). It usually overwinters as an adult in wooden boards and sawdust but also as a larva ( Shen 1998). The species was reported in Romania by Seidlitz (1891), with the introduction of the species attributed to the importation of stored products ( Teodorescu et al. 2006).