The bamboo powder-post beetle Dinoderus minutus is a major pest of felled bamboo in Japan. X-ray computer tomography (CT) was applied to non-destructively trace the movement of the larvae of this beetle inside the infested bamboo samples. The bamboo samples were prepared from pieces of the Japanese timber bamboo Phyllostachys bambusoides culms that were enclosed with adult D. minutus beetles for approximately two months. The samples were then scanned using the microfocus X-ray CT system every 2 to 5 days. In the CT images, with the voxel size of 61.9 μm, the figures of the larvae and other stages of the beetles were clearly visible and they were distinguished from bamboo, insect tunnels, and frass. It was also possible to trace the movement of larvae, mostly along the fibers, by comparing CT images of different dates. The CT images then were used to evaluate the amount of bamboo bored by a larva. The larva was traced until pupation and the time courses of tunnel length and volume were obtained by measuring the changes in the length and volume of the tunnel in pixels.

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