A to Z of Pests

House Longhorn Beetle

Hylotrupes bajulus

Appearance

• Adults: 8 to 25mm in length.
• The beetles are black or brown and covered with greyish hairs on the upper body and wing cases. There are two shiny black spots on the thorax which resemble eyes.
• The fleshy larvae are greyish white and can grow to 35mm when fully developed.

Lifecycle

• The female lays eggs between July and October in cracks and crevices of wood. They are yellowish to greyish white, elliptical with pointed ends, and hatch in two to three weeks.
• The larvae do the most damage, as they tunnel in the wood for between three and eleven years.
• The larvae pupate near the surface of the wood and adults emerge after approximately three weeks.

Habits

• It infests seasoned or partly seasoned softwoods. It usually damages sapwood but heartwood can also be affected.
• Infestation takes place in isolated instances where infested packing case timbers have been transported.