Varied Carpet Beetle Larvae Identification

Black carpet beetle larvae are smooth with no hair and are either brown or black.

Varied carpet beetle larvae identification.

The varied carpet beetle is a 3 mm long beetle belonging to the family dermestidae. Larvae are similarly sized and have a tapered body. Adult varied carpet beetles can be found outdoors where they feed on pollen from a variety of flowers. Larvae have alternating light and dark stripes and are covered with tiny hairs that can be puffed up if larvae are disturbed.

They are so small they are often overlooked. Dear matt this is a varied carpet beetle a common household pest and one of our most frequent identification requests. Their larvae however can become pests inside homes universities and museums. Verbasci was also the first insect to be shown to have an annual behavioral rhythm and to date remains a classic example of circannual cycles in animals.

Adult varied carpet beetles are small 3 5 millimeters or about an eighth of an inch rounded beetles with dark colored or patterned wing covers depending on the species. Adult carpet beetles feed on pollen but larvae will eat a wide variety of organic items in the home. Both adult carpet beetles and larvae can infest your home but the larvae do the most damage by eating organic materials like wool leather and silk. Adults and larvae of the black carpet beetle attagenus unicolor are distinctly different from the carpet beetles described above.

Larvae frequently staying hidden when feeding are golden to dark brown and about 1 2 inch long. Adult carpet beetles may be seen flying to lights or crawling on surfaces. They are shiny black and dark brown with brownish legs. The most likely sign is their damage.

Identifying larvae larvae also may be seen crawling on surfaces. They are a common species often considered a pest of domestic houses and particularly natural history museums where the larvae may damage natural fibers and can damage carpets furniture clothing and insect collections. They vary in body length from 1 8 to 3 16 inch. We just posted an image of a varied carpet beetle yesterday and it was on the top of our homepage when you submitted your request.

Identification adult black carpet beetles are oval and shiny black with brownish legs. They have zig zag bands of yellow white brown and black on their wing coverings. To know where to focus the brunt of your cleaning first look for the primary source of the infestation which will be the area with the most signs of damage and beetles. Infestations are often identified by the presence of adult carpet beetles which gather around windows and lights.

Dear concerned evelyn this is a varied carpet beetle a common household pest and your letter is the third we opened today for a varied carpet beetle identification so we are posting your letter to assist folks visiting our site who are also troubled by carpet beetles. Full sized larvae can be as long as 5 16 inch and range from light brown to almost black.