Beetles that cause a nuisance in the UK

The carpet beetle is a type of flying insect in the beetle family. These beetles are a common nuisance in places like domestic homes, warehouses, poultry farms and museums. Carpet beetles cause damage to textiles, leather and fur items and the damage can be irreparable.

Varied Carpet Beetles

The various carpet beetle is a black beetle, around 3mm long with a white irregular pattern. They have brown/black clear wings with larvae that are brown and grow to a length of 5mm. Because of their appearance, the larvae are known as “woolly bears”. The various carpet beetle is the most widespread species and can be found on every continent except Australia and Antarctica.

Fur Beetle

Fur beetle beetles are 4-6mm long with an oval body. They are dark brown to black and have a white spot on each wing case.

Bark Beetle

The adults of this beetle have a black/grey body with a white belly. They achieve a length of 6-10mm. For Pest Control Essex, visit a site like St George’s, a Pest Control Essex company.

The damage that carpet beetles can do

Carpet beetle larvae can make a lot of damage to many materials found in the home, office and museum. Carpet beetle damage can be seen with things like holes and trace-like patterns in the fabric of:

Mats, rugs and carpets constructed from natural materials such as wool

leather sofas

Animal derived materials like feathers, fur and also dried fish

leather book bindings

photos and paintings, particularly canvas

Carpet beetle larvae feed on dry protein so they tend to attack the items named above. Some of the damage they cause can prove to be quite expensive and irreversible damage may be annoying.