Earwigs - Who is Snacking on Your Flower Petals?

In this article we shall discuss questions such as "What do earwigs eat?" and pest control methods such as earwig traps to help you get rid of unwanted earwigs in the home. Earwigs are a type of insect with an elongated, usually brown, body and two pairs of very small and unused wings. The sizes of earwigs vary and are usually within the 10-14 mm range. There are also types of earwigs that can be up to 80mm long.

Types of Earwigs

There are four main types of earwigs. The earwig insect can be found all over the world and the four major types are widely dispersed on each continent. The common types of earwigs are:

The European Earwig

These earwigs are usually about 12 mm long and need to live in moist and humid conditions. The earwigs dig themselves into the soil in fall and hibernate under the ground. They can cause damage and eat mainly plants, leaves, and flowers. If you are suffering from a large group of these creatures you may well see your garden flowers begin to die.

The Shore Earwig

The shore earwig is often confused with the large St. Helena earwig. Both are fairly large, around 80mm.

The Ring Legged Earwig

This species is 12-15 mm long and l ives throughout the United States. It has yellowish legs with rings on them after which the animal has been named. The Ring Legged Earwig is a danger to produce of Irish and sweet potatoes when in storage.

Features of Earwigs

The earwig bug is relatively easy to identify, which is helpful in earwig pest control. In general earwigs are slender, reddish-brown insects. They have visible wings but they rarely if ever actually use them to achieve flights. The insects are nocturnal. They come out at night to look for food. This food supply usually takes the place of plants but earwigs will also go after smaller insects and even caterpillars.

When are Earwigs Active?

Earwigs are active during the night after spending the daytime under rocks and leaves or in damp places in the home. As soon as it gets dark outside they start looking for food and if you see one earwig outside there are usually more of them around.

Continue to: How do Earwig Insect Cause Damage

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