3D X-ray microtomography for tracking insect movement in grain storage

Overview

Insect pests in stored grain cause significant losses across the food supply chain, and many control strategies depend on understanding how insects move through bulk grain or flour. Traditional monitoring approaches are limited to one or two dimensions, leaving gaps in behavioral insight. This solution applies high-resolution X-ray microtomography (micro-CT) to capture insect movement and behavior in three dimensions inside grain storage materials, offering a non-contact way to study pest activity without disturbing the insects or the substrate.

Technical specifications

• Uses a high-resolution Bruker Skyscan 1275 X-ray micro-CT instrument for non-destructive volumetric scanning
• Test chambers consist of glass tubes approximately 3 cm in diameter and 8 cm in height, filled with wheat flour
• Supports multiple insect species relevant to stored grain, including red flour beetle and maize weevil
• Variable insect sample sizes (1, 3, 5, and up to 25 individuals) and configurable scan intervals (15, 30, 45, and 60 minutes)
• Compatible with pheromone-based assays, placing insects at one end of the tube and a pheromone source at the other to evaluate attraction and movement direction
• Image analysis performed using Bruker CTVox, CTAn, and DataViewer to quantify movement length, direction, and spatial path
• Enables ten replicate runs per condition for statistical robustness

Technology readiness level

The approach has been demonstrated in a preliminary study confirming that X-ray micro-CT can detect and track insect positions and movement paths within flour-filled tubes. Planned next-stage validation will extend the method to pheromone-based behavioral assays across multiple insect densities and replicates, moving the technique toward a validated research tool for stored-product entomology and pest management research.