Museum Battling Cannibalistic Beetles

(NewsCore) - An Australian museum is fighting a losing battle against cannibalistic carpet beetles eating its insect collection.

But the state government will come to its rescue.

In the mid-year budget review, the government allocated AU$2.7 million (US$2.73 million) for secure purpose-built cabinets and a big clean-up of the roof space above the Science Centre in Adelaide.

Museum director Dr. Suzanne Miller said it was time for a "much more aggressive" pest control strategy to protect "the best insect collection in Australia."

"The carpet beetle is a really pesky little insect that causes severe damage everywhere around the world in these sorts of collections," she said. "It's pretty much like cannibalism really ... this particular insect, the carpet beetle, has found an evolutionary niche munching on all its relatives."

Miller said it was not a case of "revenge of the insects" -- the beetles were driven by their own biological instincts.

Read more: Adelaidenow.com