List of common household pests
Encyclopedia
This is a List of household pests, animal species or genera that have a history of living in, or invading, human habitation and causing damage to structures, eating human foods, acting as disease vectors, or causing other threats.
Insects
- antAntAnts are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
s- Argentine antArgentine antThe Argentine ant, Linepithema humile, is a dark ant native to northern Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and southern Brazil...
- carpenter antCarpenter antCarpenter ants are large ants indigenous to many parts of the world. They prefer dead, damp wood in which to build nests. They do not eat it, however, unlike termites. Sometimes carpenter ants will hollow out sections of trees. The most likely species to be infesting a house in the United States...
- fire antFire antFire ants are a variety of stinging ants with over 285 species worldwide. They have several common names, including ginger ants, tropical fire ants and red ants.- Appearance :...
- odorous house antOdorous House AntTapinoma sessile is a species of ant that goes by the common names odorous house ant, stink ant, and coconut ant.-Habits:...
- pavement antPavement antThe pavement ant, Tetramorium caespitum, is a common household pest. Its name comes from the fact that colonies usually make their homes in pavement. It is distinguished by one spine on the back, two nodes on the petiole, and grooves on the head and thorax ...
- pharaoh antPharaoh antThe pharaoh ant is a small yellow or light brown, almost transparent ant notorious for being a major indoor nuisance pest, especially in hospitals. The origin of this "tramp" ant is uncertain, although favoured alternatives include West Africa and Indonesia...
- thief ant
- Argentine ant
- bed bug
- beeBeeBees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila...
s - cockroachCockroachCockroaches are insects of the order Blattaria or Blattodea, of which about 30 species out of 4,500 total are associated with human habitations...
es- brown-banded cockroachBrown-banded cockroachThe brown-banded cockroach, Supella longipalpa, is a small species of cockroach, measuring about in long. It is tan to light brown. It has two light-colored bands across the wings and abdomen, they may sometimes appear to be broken or irregular but are quite noticeable. The bands may be...
- German cockroachGerman cockroachThe German cockroach is a small species of cockroach, measuring about to long; however, they are known to get bigger. It can be tan through brown to almost black, and has two dark parallel streaks running from the head to the base of the wings. Although it has wings, it is unable to sustain flight...
- Oriental cockroachOriental cockroachThe oriental cockroach is a large species of cockroach, measuring about in length at maturity. It is dark brown to black in colour and has a glossy body...
- brown-banded cockroach
- carpet beetleCarpet beetleCarpet beetle may refer to any of the following types of beetle:*Dermestidae, a family of Coleoptera*Varied carpet beetle, a 3 mm–long beetle that can be a serious household pest...
s- fur beetle
- varied carpet beetleVaried carpet beetleThe varied carpet beetle is a 3 mm–long beetle that can be a serious household pest. It feeds on natural fibers and can damage carpets, furniture and clothing....
- CentipedeCentipedeCentipedes are arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda of the subphylum Myriapoda. They are elongated metameric animals with one pair of legs per body segment. Despite the name, centipedes can have a varying number of legs from under 20 to over 300. Centipedes have an odd number of pairs of...
- firebratFirebratThe Firebrat is a small insect similar to the Silverfish, both in the order Thysanura....
s - fleaFleaFlea is the common name for insects of the order Siphonaptera which are wingless insects with mouthparts adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood...
- fliesFlyTrue flies are insects of the order Diptera . They possess a pair of wings on the mesothorax and a pair of halteres, derived from the hind wings, on the metathorax...
- blue bottle flyBlue bottle flyThe blue bottle fly or bottlebee is a common blow-fly found in most areas of the world and is the type species for the genus Calliphora.-Description:...
- green bottle flyGreen bottle flyThe common green bottle fly is a common blow-fly found in most areas of the world, and the most well-known of the numerous green bottle fly species. It is 10–14 mm long, slightly larger than a housefly, and has brilliant, metallic, blue-green or golden coloration with black markings. It has...
- house fly
- blue bottle fly
- fruit fliesDrosophilidaeDrosophilidae is a diverse, cosmopolitan family of flies, which includes fruit flies. Another family of flies called Tephritidae also includes fruit flies. The best known species of Drosophilidae is Drosophila melanogaster, within the genus Drosophila, and this species Is used extensively for...
- hornetHornetHornets are the largest eusocial wasps; some species can reach up to in length. The true hornets make up the genus Vespa and are distinguished from other vespines by the width of the vertex , which is proportionally larger in Vespa and by the anteriorly rounded gasters .- Life cycle :In...
- house centipedeHouse centipedeScutigera coleoptrata , is a typically yellowish-grey centipede with up to 15 pairs of legs. Originally endemic to the Mediterranean region, the species has spread to other parts of the world, where it usually lives in human homes...
- lice
- mothsMothsMoths may refer to:* Gustav Moths , German rower* The Moths!, an English indie rock band* MOTHS, members of the Memorable Order of Tin Hats...
- Almond MothAlmond mothThe Almond Moth or tropical warehouse moth is a small stored-product pest. It belongs to the snout moths , more specifically to the tribe Phycitini of the huge snout moth subfamily Phycitinae...
- Indianmeal Moth
- Almond Moth
- mealworm beetle
- red spiders
- silverfishSilverfishLepisma saccharina, frequently called silverfish, fishmoths, carpet sharks or paramites, are small, wingless insects in the order Thysanura...
- spider beetleSpider beetleSpider beetles are the approximately 500 species of beetles in the subfamily Ptininae of the family Anobiidae. They are sometimes considered a family in their own right, which is then called Ptinidae. Spider beetles have round bodies with long, slender legs, and lack wings. They are generally...
- woodlouseWoodlouseA woodlouse is a crustacean with a rigid, segmented, long exoskeleton and fourteen jointed limbs...
- termiteTermiteTermites are a group of eusocial insects that, until recently, were classified at the taxonomic rank of order Isoptera , but are now accepted as the epifamily Termitoidae, of the cockroach order Blattodea...
- dampwood termite
- subterranean termite
- waspWaspThe term wasp is typically defined as any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant. Almost every pest insect species has at least one wasp species that preys upon it or parasitizes it, making wasps critically important in natural control of their...
- woolly bearWoolly bearWoolly bear can mean:*The hairy caterpillars of the Arctiidae family of moths*The larva of the varied carpet beetle*A type of thermal undersuit used with drysuits for applications such as scuba diving...
- woodwormWoodwormA woodworm is not a specific species. It is the larval stage of certain woodboring beetles including:*Ambrosia beetles *Bark borer beetle / Waney edge borer *Common furniture beetle...
s- death watch beetleDeath watch beetleThe death watch beetle, Xestobium rufovillosum, is a woodboring beetle. The adult beetle is long, while the xylophagous larvae are up to long....
- furniture beetle
- death watch beetle
- weevilWeevilA weevil is any beetle from the Curculionoidea superfamily. They are usually small, less than , and herbivorous. There are over 60,000 species in several families, mostly in the family Curculionidae...
Mammals
- rodentRodentRodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....
s- miceMouseA mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
- ratRatRats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s - chipmunkChipmunkChipmunks are small striped squirrels native to North America and Asia. They are usually classed either as a single genus with three subgenera, or as three genera.-Etymology and taxonomy:...
s - gopherGopher (animal)The term gopher as it is commonly used does not relate to any one species, but is a generic term used to describe any of several small burrowing rodents endemic to North America, including the pocket gopher , also called true gophers, and the ground squirrel , including Richardson's ground squirrel...
s - beaverBeaverThe beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...
s
- mice
- shrewShrewA shrew or shrew mouse is a small molelike mammal classified in the order Soricomorpha. True shrews are also not to be confused with West Indies shrews, treeshrews, otter shrews, or elephant shrews, which belong to different families or orders.Although its external appearance is generally that of...
- moleMole (animal)Moles are small cylindrical mammals adapted to a subterranean lifestyle. They have velvety fur; tiny or invisible ears and eyes; and short, powerful limbs with large paws oriented for digging. The term is especially and most properly used for the true moles, those of the Talpidae family in the...
s - opossums
- raccoonRaccoonProcyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
s - hedgehogs