Silverfish
are wingless, flat insects with two
long, slender antennae at the front and
three long, slender, "bristles," at the
rear of a tapered, carrot-shaped body.
They are generally drawn to moisture,
and like warm, humid conditions. Their
close relative, the firebrat, prefers
heat, and will be found in hot areas.
They run in a dart movement.
Silverfish have flat, elongated bodies
1/4 to 1/2 inch long and are broad near
the head, tapering toward the rear. They
have a rather carrot shape to them. They
are wingless insects, coveredwith scales
and have two long, slender antennae at
the head, accompanied by three
antennae-like appendages at the rear.
One of these points straight back, while
the other two curve off to the sides.
The Silverfish adult is about 1/2 inch
long with a uniform silvery or
pearl-gray color. The four-lined
silverfish is about 3/4 inch long and
uniform light to dark gray. The young
resemble adults except adults, except
they are smaller (as one would expect).
They will be adults within 3 months.
Silverfish will eat almost anything,
though they prefer vegetable matter with
a high carbohydrate content. They are
drawn to oats, dried beef, flour,
starch, paper, gum, glue, cotton, linen,
rayon, silk, sugar, molds, and cereals.
They eat using chewing mouthparts set in
a head cavity. Though they can survive
for weeks without food, they tend to
stay close to a food source once they
find it.
Silverfish normally live outdoors under
rocks, bark, and leaf mold, in the nests
of birds and mammals, and in ant and
termite nest. They are also found in
home. Being drawn to moisture, they are
often found in kitchens, bathrooms, and
basements. under sinks, stoves, and
floor, and around water pipes, in damp
cool places, around bookcases, windows,
door frames, and closets, and just about
about anywhere they can find a warm,
humid place to live. The firebrat
prefers hot, dark areas around furnaces
and fire places, and insulation around
hot water or heating pipes. They are
active year around. Any paper left in a
damp area is in danger of these bugs.
Female silverfish may lay over 100
white, oval eggs during a lifetime. Eggs
are laid singly or two to three at a
time in small groups in cracks and
crevices, hatchin three to six weeks
later. Their populations do not grow
rapidly due to their slow development
rate, so a largr population is
indicative of a long term problem. They
are generally found in sinks and
bathtubs, where they fell looking for
water and could not get out.
Monitoring for silverfish is the first
step in determining if control is
necessary. It is important to determine
if the damge is indeed cased by this
insect. A simple mixture of can provide
this information for you. Make a paste
by mixing flour and water (keep it
fairly thick), spreak it on cardboard
and let it dry. Place the cardboard in
an area where silverfish are suspected.
It is easy to determine if feeding has
taken place (bite marks and scraped
surfaces). You may also look for any
irregular holes, notches, or surface
etchings in the house.
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