Detection of granary weevil Sitophilus granarius (L.) eggs and internal stages in wheat grain using soft X-ray and image analysis

In order to prevent grain mass and quality losses, rapid methods for early detection of insect infestation of cereal grain during trade and storage are urgently needed. Amongst many options, the soft X-ray method using roentgenograms is one of the most frequently applied. It has been shown that when some corrections for working parameters of the equipment used are made and some modification of the digital image analysis introduced, the soft X-ray method is suitable for accurate detection of granary weevil eggs laid in wheat kernels if at least 5 days after oviposition have elapsed.