The female beetle lays small, white, fragile eggs upon fabrics, in floor cracks, or in any sheltered spot near its food. The length of life of the parent insect ranges from 3 to 35 days during April, May, and June. Seldom are adults found later than July, except in very warm storage houses. =The egg.=--The fragile white eggs are very seldom seen, and hatch in warm weather in about 6 to 10 days. [Illustration: Fig. 5.--Black carpet beetle: Larval skin showing the typical shape of the larva and the long tuft of bristles at the end of the body. Greatly enlarged.] =The larva.=--The golden brown larva, with short, stiff body hairs, and its long tuft of hairs at the end of the body (Fig. 5), attains a length of one-fourth of an inch, exclusive of the tuft of hair at the end of the body. When first hatched it is almost microscopic in size, but increases rapidly under favorable food and climatic conditions. As it grows it sheds its skin from five to eleven times, and possibly oftener. This is of interest, for frequently the cast skins are mistaken for the insect itself, thus unnecessarily alarming the housewife concerning the abundance of this carpet beetle. It required approximately one year for larvæ to become fully grown when fed upon casein. Larvæ hatching during early June and fed upon casein became full grown and transformed to the adult stage during the following April, May, and June. Larvæ fed upon woolen cloth and silk and flour and meal were still only partially grown at the end of one year, indicating that the black carpet beetle may require two years for its development. In India it has been found that certain of these larvæ may require from one to three years for growth. [Illustration: Fig. 6.--Black carpet beetle: Ventral view of pupa. Greatly enlarged.] =The pupa.=--In the pupa stage the insect is white, clothed with fine white hairs (Fig. 6), and helpless. The pupa stage continues from 6 to 16 days during early summer at Washington, D. C, and is seldom found at any other season of the year. =Seasonal history.=--Since the greater part of the life cycle is passed in the larva stage, the facts previously mentioned indicate that the black carpet beetle may have only one generation each year, although it may require two or three years for the same development. From the observation of the writer, made in houses, warehouses, and in the laboratory at Washington, there seems little doubt that a very large percentage of the insects have one generation each year. Farther north, or under less favorable climatic and food conditions, a generation may require two or even three years. At any rate, the adults are on the wing during early summer and the eggs for new infestations are laid then. [Illustration: Fig. 7.--The varied carpet beetle: Dorsal view. Greatly enlarged.] THE VARIED CARPET BEETLE.[6] [6] _Anthrenus verbasci_ L.