Eradicate an earwig invasion
Also called forficule, the earwig is a particular insect that does not harm human health. Can we talk about earwig aggression? More or less. As long as these insects live outside and onlyinvade homes at times. So how do I identify an earwig infestation? How can we prevent it? What are the means used to effectively exterminate them ? Below, find professional answers to these different questions.
| Nom français | Perce-oreille, Forficule |
| Nom anglais | Earwigs, European Earwig |
| Nom latin | Forficula auricularia |
| Classe | Insectes |
| Ordre | Dermaptères |
| Famille | Forficulidés |
Earwigs: description
Very elongated in shape, the forficule is an insect with a size of 8 mm to 2.5cm. Depending on the species, its flattened body has four small wings. It is covered with a hard exoskeleton.
The earwig is bright brown-red. His abdomen is often darker than his head and chest. At the end of this abdomen are two pliers or forceps. In the female, they are quite small and almost straight. In males, they are significantly longer and curved.
The earwig has two antennae that are about half the length of its body. It has a pair of “shredder” mouth parts.
Young people look like adults, except they are clearer and wingless.
Know the life cycle of earwigs
After mating in the summer, the female earwig lays eggs in a hollowed-out nest. Larvae give adults a few months later. Around October, the forficule will hide in the ground to hibernate.
Males die very often in winter while the female survives.
A month later, she isolates herself in a small lodge that she herself has dug to lay 50 to 70 white eggs.
By mid-May, the larvae hatch. The female looks after her eggs and larvae carefully until the last of the 4 moults that the larvae undergo. Their life expectancy is about 1 year.
In Quebec, the first adult earwigs usually appear in July. They remain active until October. Most males do not survive winters, even if they are indoors. On the other hand, females resist until June in order to give birth to their offspring. So there is only one generation per year.
How earwig invasions are harmful
During the day, the earwig leaks from the light and spends most of its time in the crevices of the ground, under the barks of soft wood, in the hollows of flowers or between the petals of large pink flowers for example. The earwig is capable of flying, but rarely does so.
The insect likes to live hidden and prefers dark and damp places, such as under carpets and cushions, kitchen and bathrooms.
Earwigs feed on decaying materials, aphids, fungi and plants They feed on plants (leaves, flowers, fruits and vegetables) and can pose a great threat to your flowers or other outdoor plantations.
Earwigs look unsympathetic. However, their presence in the houses can be a great embarrassment for those who live there. These insects crawl, climb walls, hedges and fences. They can also take refuge in your food, in your cupboards and even in your bed.
They’re secreting a foul-smelling liquid. Their invasion does not cause extensive damage and does not spread any disease. They are totally harmless to human beings.
Appeler René Gélinas Votre exterminateur local, Expérience et intégrité dans la gestion parasitaire
Tel 514 830 2819
7 pro tips to avoid earwig infestation
- Well-maintained land helps reduce the risk of earwig infestation. Therefore, we must avoid abandoning piles of organic debris on the surface of the ground.
- Installing firewood ropes along your home is not a good idea, please cord them at least more than three feet and check the tightness of the openings in your home to prevent the insect from entering it.
- Be aware that the earwig invades a house only if its natural shelter is near it. Therefore, all materials such as mulch and wet wood must be moved away from the residence.
- Use a vacuum cleaner to remove insects from your rooms. The earwig mates during the summer season. The female lays her eggs in early fall. So that’s when you have to exterminate them.
- Clear the wood and dead leaves around the building.
- Plug holes or install mosquito nets in small cracks through which they can enter. Under no circumstances should you leave plant or other debris around your home and prune the foliage.
- If you have a vegetable garden, be prepared. Quickly remove fruits and vegetables from this vegetable garden as earwigs are attracted to those damaged by other insects
Getting rid of earwigs
Before calling an earwig exterminator, make sure they are these insects, and take some personal steps.
Here’s how to do it:
First detect the presence of earwigs
Examine your plants. If you think some of your plants have been devoured by earwigs, take a flashlight and make a night visit. This will allow you to confirm this.
If you have a vegetable garden, inspect the cut flowers that you bring home, maybe there is an earwig sleeping there.
Trapping and killing earwigs
You can trap earwigs in at least 2 ways:
- Arrange corrugated cardboard pieces rolled up on the floor vertically and hold them with a rubber band.
- Return to the floor flower pots filled with damp newsprint that you lift lightly with a small stone, so as to leave a space where earwigs can crawl. These traps will serve as a home for these insects.
The traps must be emptied each morning in a bucket of water in which you add dish soap. This is a good way for you to completely exterminate the parasites.
Here’s another way to trap them: You know that earwigs are very attracted to natural foods. So you don’t need to use chemical baits: there’s simpler.
Take an empty can of sardines or any other shallow container, fill it with simple oil or fish oil to the ledge. This process attracts and traps many earwigs.
Another possibility, is to deposit, near the foundations of your home and throughout your garden, empty boxes unrinsed with frozen juice. Fill this box with two-thirds soapy water, in the same way as your trap.
Exterminate earwigs with diatom soil
Diatom earth, made from tiny aquatic organisms, easily kills the earwig. They rub against it, scratch their bodies and die, on the spot, of dehydration.
Some insecticides are sometimes used in cases of large infestations. These insecticides are often more needed outdoors than inside your home.
Leave your home for the duration of the earwig extermination and return 4 hours later. Take care to open the windows for 10 minutes. Do not walk barefoot on exterminated areas for 48 hours.
If despite all this, the infestation persists, it is because it is really important in your case. Then call a professional exterminator on the north shore.
You’ll recognize it from:
- His permit from the Quebec Ministry of Sustainable Development with the inscription C5: Extermination. This means that it exterminates pests in compliance with Environment Canada regulations.
- His most cutting-right method of working:
- Use of certified certified extermination technicians,
- Rapid movement to the site of theinvasion to identify the type of parasite, the degree of theattack and its source,
- Proposal of appropriate treatment for theaggression of silverfish
- Training and awareness of the inhabitants in order to avoid suffering these invaders again.
- His ability to remain discreet in his interventions. For example, it uses unidentified vehicles.
- Its written guarantee on the effectiveness of the treatment against the flood of earwigs in your home.
And you, tell us if you were confronted once with the earwigs. If so, say, through your comments, how you exterminatedthem.
