Mineral Requirements of the Confused Flour Beetle, Tribolium confusum (Duval)

Abstract

The mineral requirements of the flour bettle, Tribolium confusum (Duval), were determined through use of a basal diet which contained 8 mineral salts as the mineral supplement. Larvae of the flour beetle require: (in parts per million in the diet) potassium, 2000; magnesium, 200; iron, 10; zinc, 5; and manganese, 1.5. Requirements for calcium, sodium, and copper are less than 2.1, 100, and 0.12 ppm, respectively, the amounts present in the unsupplemented diet. Toxicities of the salts used in these tests were also determined. Levels of the salts which were tolerated varied between 0.15 and 5.0% of the diet, depending on the individual salt. The mineral requirements of the confused flour beetle are compared with those of other organisms.