The varied carpet beetle is a tiny, round beetle covered in a patchwork of white, brown and yellow scales. The adults are harmless flower visitors, but their fuzzy larvae, known as “woolly bears,” are one of the most common household pests, chewing holes in wool, fur, feathers and silk. Varied carpet beetle Quick Facts Common…
The orange ladybug most people see is the Asian lady beetle (Harmonia axyridis), also called the multicolored Asian lady beetle or, in Britain, the harlequin ladybird. It is a hungry hunter of aphids, but it is also famous for crowding into houses in autumn. A few other ladybugs are orange too, and you will meet…
Mealworms are not really worms at all. They are the larvae of the mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor), a member of the darkling beetle family. You may have seen them in pet shops, where they are sold as food for birds, reptiles and fish. Mealworm (yellow mealworm beetle) Quick Facts Common name Mealworm (yellow mealworm beetle)…
“Ladybird, Ladybird” is a traditional English nursery rhyme about the little spotted beetle we call the ladybird. In North America, where the beetle is called a ladybug, the rhyme usually begins “Ladybug, Ladybug” instead. It has been sung to children for nearly 300 years. Ladybird (ladybug) Quick Facts Common name Ladybird (ladybug) Scientific name Coccinellidae…
Ladybugs are small, round beetles, often bright red with black spots, and they are among the best-loved insects on Earth. For hundreds of years, people in many countries have linked them with good luck, protection and love. Here is a look at what ladybugs have come to mean, where those ideas came from, and the…
Ground beetles are fast-running hunting beetles that live on the ground almost everywhere in the world. They make up the family Carabidae, one of the biggest animal families, with around 40,000 known species. Many of them are a gardener’s best friend, because they eat slugs, caterpillars and other plant pests. Ground beetles Quick Facts Common…
Quick answer: To get rid of weevils, throw out infested grain products, then vacuum and wipe pantry shelves with soap or vinegar water. Store flour, rice and cereal in airtight containers, and freeze new packages for several days before storing them. Weevils are small beetles with long snouts, and some of them are among the…
Quick answer: Japanese beetles are controlled by hand-picking them into soapy water in the morning, covering plants with netting, and using traps carefully. Treating lawns for their grubs, for example with beneficial nematodes, helps reduce next year’s beetles. The Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica) is a shiny green and copper beetle that eats the leaves and…
Flesh-eating beetles are scavengers that feed on dead animals, especially dry skin, flesh and hair. The best known is the hide beetle (Dermestes maculatus), a small beetle that museums use to clean skeletons. Hide beetle Quick Facts Common name Hide beetle Scientific name Dermestes maculatus Kingdom Animalia Phylum Arthropoda Class Insecta Order Coleoptera Family Dermestidae…
Fireflies, also called lightning bugs, are beetles that can make their own light. On warm summer evenings, they flash yellow-green signals across fields and forests to find a mate. One of the best-known groups in North America is the genus Photinus. Firefly (lightning bug) Quick Facts Common name Firefly (lightning bug) Scientific name Lampyridae Kingdom…
The elephant beetle (Megasoma elephas) is one of the biggest beetles in the world. It is a kind of rhinoceros beetle that lives in the rainforests of Mexico, Central America and northern South America, and the males carry a huge curved horn on their heads. Elephant beetle Quick Facts Common name Elephant beetle Scientific name…
A carpet beetle larva is the young, worm-like stage of a small beetle that lives in many homes. These fuzzy little creatures are the ones that chew holes in wool sweaters, rugs and other things made from animal fibers. The adult beetles do no harm indoors at all. Carpet beetle larva Quick Facts Common name…