Unusual dermestid beetles:

Dermestes maximus

Subgenus: Dermalius

The subgenus or genus rank is debated, but it shares most characters of the genus Dermestes and it is characterized by a broad terminal segment of maxillary palpus and mandibles with long slender tips. It's found in the Afrotropical region.

Sexual dimorphism is distinct in this species, with the males being noticably smaller and narrower. In the female, the head is hidden underneath the pronotum. The picture below is of a female. Nothing is known about the ecology of this species yet.

Picture source: Luke Smith on iNaturalist.org

Dermestes matthewsi

Subgenus: Derbyana

This species was given it's own genus in the past due to it's distinctive appearance. The species is native to northern Western Australia.

After a study to the molecular phylogeny of the Dermestidae family, it was revealed that the toxonomic placement of this species, formally known as "Derbyana matthewsi", was nested in the Dermestes genus. The species is closer related to D. ater than D. lardarius is to D. ater. After this revelation, the status of Derbyana was changed to subgenus rank.

Picture source: Museum and Institute of Zoology PAS
(With written concent of publisher to share this image)

Dermestes hirticollis

Subgenus: Montandonia

The subgenus or species group rank is debated. The head and thorax of this species have a intens reddish brown color. The elytra are black. It is found in Mediterranean countries.

Altough not much is known yet, this species most likely behaves similar to the closely related D. depressus, an obligatory symbiont of bumblebees: the larvae firstly feed on a mixture of nectar (honey) and pollen, then they bore into cocoons and feed on dead larvae and pupae of bumblebees.

Picture source: Pietro Niulo on Flickr.com

Dermestid beetles with common names:

With the exception of the species with common names whom are mentioned on this page.

Dermestes marmoratus

Also known as the common carrion beetle.
Subgenus Dermestinus.

The species is speckled brown in color, but has a distinctive white pattern on it's elytra. It is found in North America and most frequently in the western half of the USA.

Picture source: Jack Cochranon iNaturalist.org

Dermestes peruvianus

Also known as the Peruvian larder beetle.
Subgenus Dermestes.

This species is very similar to D. haemorrhoidalis in appearance, but the elytra are without a dense fringe of
setae that extend beyond the edge. It is most frequently found in the Americas and Europe.

Picture source: Andreas Herrmann on Dermestidae.com

Dermestes caninus

Also known as the dog carpet beetle.
Subgenus Dermestinus.

The head and thorax are an speckled orange-brown and the elytra speckled light brown and black. It is found in North America and Middle America and most frequently in Texas.

Picture source: Mark Quinn on iNaturalist.org

Dermestes vorax

Also known as "홍띠수시렁이", best translated to "Red-banded moisture bug". They look very similar to Dermestes lardarius, whom are occasionally also referred to as moisture bugs, but Dermestes vorax has a red band across it's elytra instead of orange. Their common name is in Korean, since they are very common in Korea. Since Dermestes species are more commonly referred to as larder beetles in English, the name "Red-banded larder beetle" would be a fitting English common name.

Picture source: Nan Yang on iNaturalist.org

Dermestes murnius

In Latin murinus means mouse. The Latin name was most likely given to this species due to its mouse-like colouration. The common name for Dermestes murinus in French is "dermeste rongeur" (translates to "rodent dermestid") and the common name in Finnish is "Hiiroihrakuoriainen" (translates to "mouse beetle"). Two different adaptations of its Latin name. It only makes sense if the common name for this species in English would be "mouse larder beetle".

Picture source: Fabian A. Boetzl on iNaturalist.org

There are still some species of dermestid beetle that I really would like to obtain! Do you happen to breed Dermestes species that I do not own yet and are you willing to ship a few live individuals to the Netherlands? Then I would be more than happy to buy them! You can send me a message through my Contact page.

The sources used for the world map: click here

Bibliography for the other information on this page:

Ding, C.H., Shen, J., Ning, S. & Yang M. (2025). The first complete mitochondrial genome of Dermestes vorax (Coleoptera: Bostrichiformia: Dermestidae) from China and its phylogenetic analyses. Mitochondrial DNA Part B. Resources 10(4): 283-287. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/23802359.2025.2475820
GBIF (no date). Get data. Occurences. https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search
Háva, J. (2001). Description of a new subgenus of genus Dermestes Linnaeus from the Afrotropical region (Insecta: Coleoptera: Dermestidae). Reichenbachia 34: 147-153.
Háva, J. (2023). World Dermestidae. Subfamily: Dermestinae Latreille, 1804. 23 p. https://dermestidae.wz.cz/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Subfamily-Dermestinae.pdf
Herrmann, A. (no date). Dermestidae (Coleoptera) of the world. www.dermestidae.com
iNaturalist (no date). Observations. https://www.inaturalist.org/observations
Laji.fi species descriptions (no date). Hiiroihrakuoriainen – Dermestes murinus. https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.192543
Lawrence, J. F. & Ślipiński, A. (2005). Three new genera of Indo-Australian Dermestidae (Coleoptera) and their phylogenetic significance. Invertebrate Systematics 19: 231-261.
Liu, Z., Zhou, Y-L., Szito, A. & Ślipiński, A. (2022). The Australian Hide, Larder and Carpet Beetles (Coleoptera: Dermestidae): A Revision at the Generic Level. Annales Zoologici, 72(4): 837-926 p. https://doi.org/10.3161/00034541ANZ2022.72.4.007
Robinson, W.H. (2005). Urban insects and Arachnids. A Handbook of Urban Entomology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 472 p.
Zhantiev, R. (2001). Larvae of dermestid beetle of the genus Dermestes (Coleoptera, Dermestidae) from Russia and adjacent countries. Montandonia subgenus. Зоологический журнал 80(3): 371-375 p.
Zhou, Y-L., Nicholls, J.A., Liu, Z-H., Hartley, D., Szito, A., Ślipiński, A. & Zwick, A. (2022). Molecular Phylogeny of Dermestidae (Coleoptera) Reveals the Polyphyletic Nature of Trogoderma Latreille and the Taxonomic Placement of the Khapra Beetle Trogoderma granarium Everts. Insect Systematics and Diversity 6(6): 1-24 p. https://doi.org/10.1093/isd/ixac026

Hoover with your cursor over certain countries to see the distribution of species around the world:

Would you like to indentify a beetle or look up the differences between species? Use the Dermestes Key Guide!On the right is the current phylogenetic tree of Dermestes species confirmed by complete mitochondrial genome sequencing (Lawrence et al. 2025, Ding et al. 2025).