There is a wide range of beetles that commonly live in wood. Their larvae are small, worm like creatures that live in the wood eating their way through this growth stage. Once the larvae get their fill, some will stay to pupate (change to adults) and others will emerge and leave to molt elsewhere. All this is explained in greater detail in our POWDERPOST BEETLE CONTROL article.

Upon completion of the third stage, pupae will  hatch out the adult stage of this insect which will seek members of the opposite sex. They will mate and females will attempt to lay eggs on wood where the hatching young can once again feed. I suspect what you are seeing are the young larval stages that have fed and getting ready to pupate.

Treatment of the wood flooring can be done as explained in our article under the WOOD FLOOR TREATMENT section. Any questions, please give us a call at  1.800.877.7290.

Powderpost beetle holes in wood flooring means you have adults exiting which have completed their growth cycle. In most cases, these beetles were in the wood when it was installed as explained in our POWDERPOST BEETLE CONTROL article. This pattern could continue (more exiting), it could cease if they are not able to continue reproducing and successfully feed or it could run on for many years if the local condition is prime for them to live and prosper.

The course of action you take will largely depend on what you are comfortable doing. Some people are "ok" with a few insects leaving their wood floor from time to time. Clearly if you only have 1-2 of these holes a year I would say doing nothing would be acceptable. Other people aren't comfortable allowing any insects to live inside their home and may decide any one of the listed treatments in our powderpostbeetle article. This decision will be yours to make since it's quite hard to tell or judge what might happen over time. In other words, no one can really predict if the population will continue or die off; treating the wood is the most logical way to make it difficult for them to continue and for some people, this peace of mind is what they prefer over uncertainty.

There are other factors to consider which we would be glad to talk to you about over the phone so if you would like to discuss this matter further, please give us a call toll free at 1.800.877.7290. Powderpost beetles living in wood floors can be a problem but there are treatment options that can help reduce or eliminate them altogether.