About Niptus hololeucus (Faldermann, 1835)
Niptus hololeucus (Faldermann, 1835) ranges from 3 to 4.5 millimeters in length. Its body is covered with silky golden hairs and fine scales. This species can act as a pest that infests a wide range of cereal-based food products. In 1981, an infestation of these beetles was recorded in a roof void above offices in Rotherham, United Kingdom. The infestation was traced to wild pigeons nesting in the loft; the adult beetles and their larvae fed on the pigeons' waste matter. Niptus hololeucus is a temperate species that originated in West Asia, but it is now cosmopolitan, and is widespread across western Europe. The first confirmed record of this species in Iran came from a cave in 2014. N. hololeucus is one of only two species in the genus Niptus that can be found in caves.
