Pest Control UK

Carpet Beetles

Latin Name: Anthrenus verbasci

Months of Activity: January - December

Active throughout the year, carpet beetles, or rather their larvae, are insatiable feeders consuming any amount of carpet, furniture and clothing throughout their adolescence. Found in homes across the UK, the carpet beetle prefers warm environments with plenty of sources of food, such as loft spaces and bedrooms.

It can take anything between 8 months and three years for a carpet beetle to grow from egg to adult – a figure largely dependent on the food supply within its environment.

Appearance

• Carpet beetle larvae are hairy and brown, normally reaching a length of 4-5mm.
• An adult carpet beetle measures 1.5mm-4mm and is characterised by the pattern of yellow, black and whitish scales on the body.

Lifecycle

Eggs can hatch anytime between 10 to 35 days depending on the temperature, with the larvae often remaining in adolescence for over a year. Adult carpet beetles appear in April, May and June and their resulting larvae hibernate during the following winter pupating during the latter part of February and March.

On emergence the adult beetles feed on nectar and pollen. After mating, the female carpet beetles enter houses during late summer and autumn and lay their eggs in birds' nests in roof voids and other suitable places.

Pest Control

Infestations of these insects mostly originate in birds' nests such as those of house sparrow, house martin, swift and starling. The carpet beetle larvae subsist on the soiled wool and feathers in the nest-lining and then manage to get under the eaves in the roof space. From here they crawl into the upper rooms of the house, usually following the hot water pipe system.

The fully grown larvae of carpet beetles appear to be resistant to modern contact insecticides because they are able to crawl about long after they have come into contact with a lethal dose of insecticide. Perseverance and patience must be exercised in dealing with this pest as immediate results will seldom be achieved.

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2006 – 2007 – 2008