We just heard form a reader who found a species of worm in a couple areas around her home. She discovered one near her living room carpet, which is near a window and the AC unit. She found another near her garage where there is no carpet. She doesn’t understand where these creatures are coming from. Here is what they look like:

As you can see, the specimen is very small. It has 13 dark brown segments, with a light brown body underneath. After zooming in on the photo, we can see that the worm has very thin appendages coming from its body and tail end. This is a carpet beetle larva.

We suspect that our reader might have known this was a carpet beetle larva, because she mentioned carpet several times in her question. She found one larva near a carpeted area, but the other larva wasn’t near carpet. Despite their name, carpet beetle and their larva feed on other materials besides carpet. They eat other various fibers and materials that could be found in a household, including pet hair, upholstered furniture, dust particles, and linens. It is crucial that our reader figure out the source of the carpet beetle in his home as well as thoroughly clean.

Our reader can take steps to say goodbye to carpet beetles and their larvae by vacuuming, sweeping, dusting, and removing any cobwebs from her home. She should also get rid of any infested fabrics, and wash all the other fabrics. When these materials aren’t in use, he should store them in an airtight container. While carpet beetle larvae can be quite destructive, staying on top of cleaning habits will ensure that once she gets rid of them they will not return.

To summarize, a reader asked us about a worm-like organism she discovered in various locations around her home. We have identified the specimen as carpet beetle larva, and we hope she is able to get rid of them.