It can be difficult to tell the difference between silverfish and earwigs. They both have similar looking body shapes. They’re attracted to moisture and are both found in places in your home where moisture accumulates, like your attic, or under a kitchen sink. However, there are some key differences between earwigs and silverfish you should be aware of. Silverfish lack the distinctive pincers of earwigs. Silverfish have much more prominent antennae. And, unlike earwigs, a silverfish infestation can cause significant damage to your home.
Silverfish feed on carbohydrates and starches. Naturally, this means they are more than happy to make a home or a feast out of rice or flour in an unsealed container. However, silverfish are more than happy to feed on other food sources. Food sources you might not consider. Food sources like book bindings. Or paper. Or the paste that’s holding up your wallpaper.
It’s probably really easy to see why an insect that eats so many things around a house can become a problem so easily. The damage an unchecked infestation could cause is frightening to think about. Even more so because silverfish are fantastic hiders, and there is no guarantee you will immediately spot an infestation. Fortunately, silverfish tend to congregate around their food sources. This means that if you find an infestation, you probably only need to worry about the infested area. As long as you aren’t finding silverfish all over your home, odds are you just need to repair the immediate area, such as fixing a leak.
If you are finding silverfish all over the place, it’s probably time to call pest control. As mentioned, silverfish are very good hiders. A pest control expert can inspect all of the nooks and crannies that let silverfish into your home. They may even be able to help you identify issues in your home that attracts silverfish, like a box of books in the basement.
Silverfish might not be the most dangerous pest to have in your home. They don’t bite. They don’t spread disease. But the amount of damage they have the potential to cause makes them more than worthy of the name “pest.”