How Did I Get Indian Meal Moths?

Indian Meal Moth close-up

Indian meal moths are among the most common stored food pest in Michigan. They infest and lay eggs inside dry stored food like cereal and bread. When the moth’s eggs hatch, their larvae eat stored food continuously until they grow large enough to pupate. After pupating, adult moths reproduce and lay eggs, and the cycle begins again.

Unfortunately, anyone who keeps food in their home can attract Indian meal moths. In fact, you might even bring them in with you! Here are the most common ways Indian meal moth infestations happen, and how you can prevent them.

How Did Indian Meal Moths Get In My Home?

Adult Indian meal moths don’t eat, but they seek out dry foodstuff anyway. When they find a good food source, they lay rows of eggs onto or into it. When larvae hatch, they begin eating the food immediately. In the process of eating, larvae burrow into the food. Depending on where they hatched, larvae may also burrow through packaging to get to food. Once burrowed inside, larvae become difficult to see. Therein lies the problem.

Indian meal moths usually infiltrate homes inadvertently, as larvae. You bring them in when you inadvertently buy the food they’re feeding on and bring it inside. Indian meal moths can infest a wide variety of different stored and dried goods. They could feed on cereal, pasta, bread, pet food, nuts, seeds, flour, dried fruit, sugar, or even spices. After the larvae pupate, they grow into the full-grown adults you might encounter in your pantry.

When Can I Get Indian Meal Moths?

Unfortunately, there isn’t really an “off-season” for Indian meal moths. Normally, meal moths can’t grow or reproduce as quickly during cold seasons. When the moths find their way indoors, however, they may reproduce all year. Moth development and pupation speed depends partially on environmental temperature. The warmer the environment, the faster the meal moths’ life cycle completes. Adult moths seek out warm places to lay their eggs, to make sure they hatch as quickly as possible.

Indian meal moths are a particularly common and troubling pest for grocery stores. As Indian meal moths continue to reproduce, they also spread. Adults constantly seek out new food sources where they can lay eggs. In all likelihood, you picked up your moths from your local grocery store. Indian meal moths don’t necessarily inhabit pantry food exclusively. They could also hide in your pet food or bird seed. All it takes is one infested food item to kickstart a full-scale invasion. Food is like an Indian meal moth’s trojan horse.

How Can I Tell If I Have Indian Meal Moths?

How Can I Tell If I Have Indian Meal Moths?

It can be hard to tell if you have a moth infestation at first. Indian meal moth larvae tend to burrow into the food they’re eating, making them invisible from the outside. Usually, people realize they have an infestation one of two ways. Either they see the adult moths themselves… or they find an unpleasant surprise in their food. You want to avoid both of those realizations. To do that, you’ll have to take a close look at the food in your pantry.

As larvae eat, they also spin a fine silk-like substance. This silk-like substance tends to collect their waste, shed skin, and eggshells over time. It may look like a fine spider web or clear thread over the surface of your food. You may also be able to identify small signs of burrowing or chewing on pest-vulnerable food. When larvae are ready to pupate, they leave food and spin silk cocoons on walls and ceilings nearby. Finding these cocoons will tell you there’s an infestation in progress. You could also look for packaging damage.

How Can I Prevent Indian Meal Moths?

The best way to prevent Indian meal moths is to pay close attention to the food you buy. Take care to look at dry goods carefully before you bring them home with you. Remember: larvae can chew through packaging, so even goods in boxes or plastic bags aren’t necessarily safe. If you notice anything that looks like damage on food packaging, don’t buy that food! Make sure all boxes or bags you buy are airtight and sealed.

Double-check your pantry goods one last time as you’re putting them away. If you notice anything suspicious, don’t leave the food in your pantry. Instead, take it outside and throw it out immediately. If you’re worried you already have Indian meal moths, you should take an inventory of your pantries. Take all the food out of your pantry and transfer it into hard plastic containers. Wash out the inside of your pantry thoroughly with soap and hot water. If you find any larvae, throw out the infested food right away.

 

Indian meal moth infestations are easy to get and frustratingly difficult to get rid of. You might feel sure you’ve removed all the food that the moths could possibly infest… only to see a moth flying around a week later. Even worse, the longer your infestation goes on, the more expensive it becomes. Food isn’t cheap!

If you need to make absolutely sure your moths are gone, professional treatment is the way to go. Next time you have an Indian meal moth problem, give Griffin Pest Solutions a call right away. We’ll make sure your moths can’t waste any more of your time, food, or money.

The Indian Meal Moth in Michigan

Close-up of an Indian Meal Moth

At first, the Indian meal moth probably doesn’t seem like that scary a pest, all things considered. It doesn’t look big or dangerous, it’s not destroying your home, and it’s not biting you while you sleep! If that’s how you feel, then consider yourself lucky. If you’re not afraid of Indian meal moths, then you’ve probably never encountered one… in your food.

Food-infesting pests are a special kind of scary. You might accidentally eat them. It’s gross. Indian meal moths are one of the most notorious food-infesting pests in Michigan. Every year, they infest thousands of Michigan cupboards and pantries. You don’t yours to be one of those pantries, trust us. Here’s everything you need to know to make sure it won’t be.

What is an Indian Meal Moth?

Indian meal moths are a common stored food pest insect in Michigan. The name “Indian meal moth” references the fact that it frequently feeds on cornmeal (or “Indian meal”). Adult Indian meal moths are around ⅝ to ¾” long, reddish-brown or copper-colored torsos. Their wingspan is about ½” long. The wings are also copper-colored, but they have a distinctive light tan or grey-colored top section. When Indian meal moths aren’t flying, they fold their wings together along their bodies.

Indian meal moths actually spend a good deal of their lives in their larval or caterpillar form. These larvae are a very light, clear white, yellow, pink, or greenish shade, with a brown head. They start very small and grow consistently longer. Mature larvae grow to around ½ to ⅝” inches long. They often crawl along sheer walls and produce a silk which they spin into cocoons. An Indian meal moth’s entire life cycle completes in about six weeks.

What do Indian meal moths want?

What Do Indian Meal Moths Want?

Contrary to popular belief, adult Indian meal moths lack mouthparts and can’t actually eat anything. Instead, they only live long enough to reproduce and lay their hundreds of eggs. Adult meal moths lay their eggs on (or in) any number of food sources. That way when these offspring hatch, they’ll have food to eat right away. Indian meal moth larvae actually do all the eating–and damage–that you’ll want to watch out for.

Indian meal moth larvae feed on all kinds of stored dry pantry foods. They’ll eat cereal, pasta, bread, sugar, flour, cornmeal, pancake mix, oatmeal, nuts and seeds, cornmeal, and more. Larvae eat constantly until they’ve stored enough energy for adult metamorphosis. Often, they’ll eat their way inside the food they’re feeding on. When they’ve feed enough, larvae spin themselves into cocoons made of a fine silk. Pupation and metamorphosis takes around 30 days. When it’s finished, an adult moth emerges and the cycle begins again.

Where Do Indian Meal Moths Come From?

There are two common ways Indian meal moths infiltrate homes. Either they get in through regular access points, or homeowners inadvertently bring them in themselves. Like all moths, Indian meal moths are attracted to light at night. They may fly toward home lights and, in their confusion, accidentally enter homes through cracks in window and door frames. Moths often enter homes by flying through damaged window screens during the summer time.

More frequently (and upsettingly), however, Indian meal moths get inside your home by stowing away in your food. Meal moth larvae can be very difficult to see, particularly when they’re young. They often eat their way inside the food they inhabit, so they’re not visible from the outside. Many meal moths work their way inside food boxes, as well. Homeowners buy this food and bring it inside. From there, the meal moths can spread to other food sources in their pantries.

How can I prevent Indian meal moths?

How Can I Prevent Indian Meal Moths?

The best way to prevent Indian meal moths is to pay close attention to the food in your pantry. Store all your dry goods in airtight, hard plastic containers. Take cereal out of its cardboard boxes and transfer the bag into hard plastic. Keep pasta boxes inside hard plastic containers. Make sure you fasten the lids of these containers tightly whenever you’re not using them. Clean out your pantry itself frequently, as well, to prevent crumb buildup.

If you’re worried you have pantry moths, take all the food out of your pantry. Thoroughly scrub down the shelves and walls of the pantry. Look for cocoons, silk, or other signs of moths. Then, examine the food itself for silk or signs of damage. Pull apart bread or other foods larvae or eggs could hide in. Throw out all the food that Indian meal moths could have infested. Both at home and when you’re shopping, watch out for food with broken packaging.

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If you’re worried you might have an Indian meal moth infestation, don’t panic! Just clear your pantry and give Griffin a call right away. No matter how big or entrenched your infestation may be, we will root it out and eliminate it permanently. Call us, and we’ll make sure you can get back to enjoying your food bug-free.