Liposcelis Explained

Liposcelis is a genus of insects in the order Psocoptera, the booklice and barklice. There are about 126 species. Many species are associated with human habitation and several are well known as pests of stored products.^[1] The genus is distributed nearly worldwide.^[2]

These booklice attack grain stores, particularly if grain is slightly damp, damp or moldy. They are unable to survive long term in locations where relative humidity is below 60% because their body eventually dries out.^[3] They are omnivorous and will eat almost any stored product of animal or plant origin, and moulds.^[3] Liposcelis spp. are also important pests of museums, libraries, food processing plants, retail and domestic premises. In buildings, psocid infestations are usually associated with dampness and poor ventilation.^[3] They can be very numerous in stored grain where they feed on the germ of damaged and broken kernels. The source of the grain damage is harvesting and handling. The damaged area will provide psocids access into the kernel, where they can excavate the soft endosperm to access the germ.^[3] Psocids reduce grain weight and quality, invade packaged foodstuffs, and infest storage facilities.^[4] Even when they do little damage, their mere presence in a shipment of food makes the product unacceptable to buyers.^[5] Their importance as pests has grown in recent years due to greater recognition of their presence in stored products and the lack of control options.^[5]

These insects are closely related to lice (order Phthiraptera), the common parasites of animals.^[6] At least one species, L. bostrychophila, harbors the human and feline pathogen Rickettsia felis.^[7]

Species include:^[8]

• Liposcelis bicolor
• Liposcelis bostrychophila
• Liposcelis brunnea
• Liposcelis corrodens
• Liposcelis decolor
• Liposcelis deltachi
• Liposcelis divinatorius
• Liposcelis entomophila
• Liposcelis formicaria
• Liposcelis fusciceps
• Liposcelis hirsutoides
• Liposcelis lacinia
• Liposcelis mendax
• Liposcelis nasus
• Liposcelis nigra
• Liposcelis ornata
• Liposcelis paeta
• Liposcelis pallens
• Liposcelis pallida
• Liposcelis pearmani
• Liposcelis prenolepidis
• Liposcelis rufa
• Liposcelis silvarum
• Liposcelis triocellata
• Liposcelis villosa

External links

• Psocid Picture Key. Entomology and Plant Pathology. Oklahoma State University.

Notes and References

1. Morphological and molecular characterization of a sexually reproducing colony of the booklouse Liposcelis bostrychophila (Psocodea: Liposcelididae) found in Arizona . Scientific Reports . 2015-05-27 . Yang . Qianqian . Kučerová . Zuzana . Perlman . Steve J. . Opit . George P. . Mockford . Edward L. . Behar . Adi . Robinson . Wyatt E. . Stejskal . Václav . Li . Zhihong . Shao . Renfu . 5 . 10429 . 10429 . 10.1038/srep10429 . 26013922 . 4444836 . 2015NatSR...510429Y . free . The booklouse genus, Liposcelis Motschulsky (Psocodea: Liposcelididae), contains 126 species. Approximately 10% of the Liposcelis species have a close affiliation with human habitation. These wingless, tiny insects (~1 mm body size) occur widely in grain storage facilities, grain processing facilities and human dwellings where they infest various types of stored products. .
2. Mockford, E. L., & Krushelnycky, P. D. (2008). New species and records of Liposcelis Motschulsky (Psocoptera: Liposcelididae) from Hawaii with first description of the male of Liposcelis bostrychophila Badonnel. Zootaxa, 1766, 53-68.
3. Book: Rees, David . Rangsi, Vanna . Insects of stored products . CSIRO Publishing . 2004 . 137–142 . 978-0-643-06903-9 .
4. Diaz-Montano, J., et al. (2014). Evaluation of potential attractants for Liposcelis bostrychophila (Psocoptera: Liposcelididae). Journal of Economic Entomology, 107(2), 867-874.
5. Nayak, M. K. (2006, October). Psocid and mite pests of stored commodities: small but formidable enemies. In: I. Lorini, et al. (Eds.), Proceedings of the 9th International Working Conference on Stored Product Protection, Campinas, Brazil. (Vol. 15, pp. 1061-1073).
6. Wei, D. D., et al. (2012). The multipartite mitochondrial genome of Liposcelis bostrychophila: insights into the evolution of mitochondrial genomes in bilateral animals. PLoS One, 7(3), e33973-1.
7. Behar, A., McCormick, L. J., & Perlman, S. J. (2010). Rickettsia felis infection in a common household insect pest, Liposcelis bostrychophila (Psocoptera: Liposcelidae). Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 76(7), 2280-85.
8. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=661064 Liposcelis.