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Posted in Caterpillars Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Found in the House

Worm in Coffee Pot is Likely a Pantry Moth Caterpillar

“Is this a parasite?” asks this reader in her submission. “It came out when my boyfriend’s aunt cleaned her coffee pot! It swam around the carafe for hours until the bleach water finally won the battle. YUCK!” Well, unfortunately we can’t tell what organism our reader is referring to in the photo. We assume it could be the translucent, ovate objects on the clear dish, but we cannot be certain. And the photo is quite blurry, so we nonetheless would not be able to provide an identification that is certain or accurate. On top of that, we cannot confirm or deny if any organism is a parasite, because parasites always pose a medical threat. Since we are not medical professionals, we are not qualified nor legally able to identify organisms of this nature.

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Posted in Caterpillars Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Found in the House

Yellowish Worms Hanging from Stove Top are Pantry Moth Caterpillars

“I have these teeny, tiny worms hanging above my kitchen stove top,” writes this reader about the yellow-white, worm-like creature pictured below. “They are so tiny you can barely see them hanging. What are they?” Based on the photo, as well as the location in which the creature was found, we would say this is likely a pantry moth larva, otherwise known as the Indianmeal moth caterpillar. These critters are not directly harmful to humans or pets, so our reader need not worry about her health. That said, when the infest foods, they do render them inedible, as they leave shed skins and faecal matter behind.

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Posted in Caterpillars Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Found in the House

Tiny, Yellow Worms in Pantry are Indianmeal Moth Caterpillars

“What are these?” asks Stephanie about the little, yellow, worm-like creatures pictured below. “Found in the pantry.” From what we can tell, the worms in the picture are on top of a canning jar lid, which gives us a good size comparison: these worms are clearly very tiny. In any case, we believe that Stephanie found Indianmeal moth caterpillars. Otherwise known as pantry moth caterpillars, these creatures are found in –you guessed it– the pantry: which is exactly where Stephanie found them. How predictable. That said, they are also found all over the kitchen, and wherever dried food goods are stored.

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Posted in Caterpillars Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Facts

White Larva Found in Coffee Grounds is a Pantry Moth Caterpillar

“I’ve recycled coffee grounds for years,” writes Mikey about the white worm-like creature pictured below. “I’ve just started seeing the worms or larvae in the past couple of weeks, we live in northern CA, near Auburn. The coffee is Folgers and Don Francesco (I think). Anyway, the pictures I’m sending are from this morning. The grounds were dumped in the bucket last night and, well, you can see. Any thoughts? Are we consuming bugs in our coffee?” Firstly, we just want to sympathize with Mikey: we can’t imagine how unnerving it must be to find a worm in your coffee one day. Secondly, we do have thoughts on this. We think Mikey found a pantry moth caterpillar in his coffee grounds.

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Posted in Caterpillars Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Found in the House

Why Do Moth Larvae Enter People’s Homes?

“Where do the moth larvae come from?” asks this reader in his submission. “Why are they in my house?” He does not attach any photos to his submission, nor does he provide further context, so we do not know exactly which moth larvae he is dealing with. That said, we will nonetheless provide a brief overview of some of the moth larvae people typically find in their home and why and how they end up there. Moths are insects, and like any insect passes through three distinct stages of life: ‘larvahood’, pupation, and finally adulthood (when they have metamorphosed into a moth).

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Posted in Carpet Beetle Larvae Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Found in the House

Translucent, Dark-headed Worm-like Creatures Coming Through Vents are Insect Larvae

“What kind of worms are these and how do I get rid of them?” asks this reader in her submission regarding the translucent, dark-headed creatures pictured below. “They are coming into my house through my microwave (which is my vent hood over my stove) and the bathroom exhaust fan. That’s the only place I’ve seen them but there are always a lot of them. I live in Southwest Louisiana in a double-wide trailer.” To start with, we think these are larvae of some sort of insect: likely a moth or fly. We think this due to their translucent white bodies, which is a common characteristic of moth and fly larvae. However, we do not know specifically what species they would belong to. Since the larvae are coming in through the vents, it is likely that the mother insect laid her eggs in the vent, coming in through the outside. As such, the context does not give any clues as to the species they belong to.

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Facts Worms Generally

Thousands of Worms Discovered Inside Ice Cream Machine: Urgent Action Recommended

“At my work the ice cream machine has had these pop up a time or two”, says this reader about the worm-like organisms pictured below. “Can you tell me what they are and how we can get rid of them safely?” she asks.

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Found in the House Worms Generally

Maggot-like Creatures Roaming Kitchen are Pantry Moth Larvae

“Please help me with any information you can provide me about the four small worm/maggot-looking things in my kitchen today”, states this reader in her submission. She is referring to creatures that look like this little, grub-like organism pictured below, who appears to have a plump, white, segmented body.

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

White Worms with Brown Heads Found in Uncooked Pasta are Pantry Moth Larvae

“Are these worms pantry worms?” asks this reader concerning the white worm-like creatures with brown heads pictured below. “Is it possible an infestation of pantry worms could be found in items purchased from the grocery store?”

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Pest Worms Worms Found in the House

White Worm with Brown Head Found Crawling on Kitchen Walls is a Pantry Moth Larva

“Please help!” exclaims this reader in her submission about the “worm” she found “crawling all over [her] kitchen walls and ceilings. “What is this worm?” she asks about the off-white larva-like creature with a brown head in the photo below.

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Posted in Caterpillars Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Found in the House

Is Consuming Pantry Moth Larvae Harmful?

“Can a pantry moth larva hurt you if you accidentally eat it?” asks this reader in her submission to us. She does not include more context than this, nor does she provide any pictures, but we will nonetheless do our best to answer our reader’s question.

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Pest Worms Worms Found in the House

Yellow, Worm-like Organism Hanging by Thread in Cupboard is a Pantry Moth Larva

“What kind of worm is this?” asks this reader about the yellow larva-like organism pictured below. The creature was found in her “pantry cupboard hanging by a thread.”

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Pest Worms Worms Found in the House

White Worm-like Critters with Brown Heads Popping Out from Behind Stove are Pantry Moth Larvae

“What is this type of worm? Is it dangerous?” asks this reader in her query regarding the white creature photographed below. “Only one pops out every four weeks […] around the stove area and we cannot find where it is coming from.”

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Parasite Worms Worms Found in the House

White Worm Found in Toilet Bowl is Likely a Larva and Not a Parasite

“Can you please identify this dude?” asks this reader at the end of his query about the white worm-like creature he found in his toilet bowl. The creature was found in the morning, and our reader has “not yet ascertained whether this thing came from [his] body or not.”

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Pest Worms Worms Found in the House

Man Runs Out of Ways to Try to Eliminate Infestation of Indianmeal Moth Larvae

“Can you please identify whatever it is that these things are?” asks this reader about whatever unphotographed “things” he is referring to in his query. He was told by an exterminator that the “things” are Indian meal moth larvae, but nothing he does seems to help in getting rid of them.

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms Found in the House Worms Generally

Semi-transparent, Off-white Worm is Either a Pantry Moth Larva or Webbing Clothes Moth Larva

“What kind of worm is this? Please let me know,” asks this reader in his submission. The worm our reader is referring to is an off-white, semi-transparent color, with a dark brown, bulbous head and a tubular body.

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Pest Worms Worms Found in the House

A Very Brief Look at Eradicating Infestations of Moth and Housefly Larvae

‘How do I get rid of moth larvae and common house fly larvae in Northwest Georgia’ asks this reader in his one-line query to us. Despite the lack of photographs and context, we will do our best to answer this question.

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Pest Worms Worms Found in the House

Off-White Larvae Roaming Kitchen are Pantry Moth Larvae

“We found these larvae on our kitchen floor,” says this reader, who asks if we can help identify said larvae. The larvae are an off-white color, with segmented bodies and a black dot where we assume their heads are.

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Posted in Carpet Beetle Larvae Indian Meal Moth Larvae Worms in Humans

Woman Living on Californian Golf Course Bombarded By Multiple Organisms and Medical Conditions

A Californian living on a golf course thinks she may be dealing with several different worm-related problems. She says she has been experiencing an infestation both outside and inside her house for the past two years, and describes multiple different organisms and the effects they have had on her life.

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Posted in Indian Meal Moth Larvae Pest Worms Worms Found in the House

Bug Found Alive in Rice Container is an Indianmeal Moth Larva

A “bug” was found alive in this reader’s container of rice in Nipomo, California, and she has seen nothing of the sort before. The bug in question appears to be a worm-like creature which is not even close to being as big as a grain of rice, is an off-white/beige color, has a darker-colored head, and is clearly segmented.