Lasconotus subcostulatus Kraus is an associate of several species of bark beetles. They enter the galleries of Ips paraconfusus (LeConte) and oviposit in concealed sites. The incubation period lasts 3-4 days. Larvae usually feed upon fungi until they reach the third stage. The third instar is very aggressive and wide ranging in its feeding habits. It burrows through almost all of the frass-filled galleries, killing and eating any Ips larvae or unpigmented pupae encountered. First and second instars of Lasconotus will, however, switch their diet from fungi to Ips larvae if the larvae have been immobilized. This study indicates there are 4 larval stadia in the life cycle. Egg to adult takes 31-40 days.
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Glenn A. Hackwell (1973) studied this question.