Other Creepy Crawlies

Types of Creepy Crawlie Problems

There are thousands of different species of ‘Creepy Crawlies’ or ‘Casual Intruder’ but a few of the more common ones are:

Carpet Beetle -This species comes in a variety of shapes, sizes and colour but generally they resemble a ladybird in shape with their colour ranging from black to brown and even white and yellow. Adults generally 2-3mm long.

Adults are not a pest in your home as they tend to live outside and eat nectar and pollen. However, towards late summer they are extremely likely to enter your home and lay up to 40 eggs at a time in any natural fibres, such as curtains and carpets, in your home.

The eggs hatch as larvae within 2 to 3 weeks and it is these larvae – sometimes called Woolly Bears – that do so much damage, because their diet consists of any natural fibre such as carpets, soft furnishings and clothes.

Silverfish -  Adults are 10-12mm long, silver grey in colour and torpedo shaped with three bristles on the end of the Abdomen. Silverfish need moist, warm conditions and are often found in bathrooms and kitchens. They feed on food debris and, although prefer a starchy diet, have evolved to be able to digest cellulose and can cause real damage if allowed to get in to your paintings or book collections.

Earwigs - Adults are 14-23mm long, dark brown in colour and have forceps at the hind end. The forceps, which are curved in the male and straight in the female, are not poisonous and will simply give you a small nip. The female lays about 40 eggs a year and then rears the young herself, which is unusual in the insect world. Earwigs feed on green vegetation and other plants, so are more of a nuisance in the garden than in the home.