A very helpful reader wrote to us in reference to an article we published last year. It was an article about what a curious reader thought was a worm, but was in fact probably a caterpillar based on the physical description we were sent. The caterpillar was long, thick, and spiky. It was also primarily black, although the caterpillar had white dashes on its body and an orange stripe down its back. The reader who more recently wrote to us sent us a picture of what seems like the same caterpillar. We didn’t have a picture of the spiky caterpillar in the old article, so the reader sent us one. Thanks!

One reader of ours recently emailed us about some worm-like creatures that she found in her home. She is very creeped out by these creatures. She was moving furniture in her living room and she said she found a cluster of small worm-like bugs clustered together in an area near the floor boards. Most of them were black and some were a lot bigger than others. She also said that there were some smaller ones that were white and translucent in color. At first, she thought they were millipedes, but she said they moved very quickly and were difficult to kill. She did say that once she cleaned the area where they were, she has not seen one there since. She did not include a picture, but from the sound of it, these worm-like creatures could be centipedes.

The shipworm is an interesting creature. It has a strong appetite for wood and the unusual ability to tunnel through it, creating the most unusual patterns and holes.

A reader asked us how to get rid of webworms in oak trees. We have provided some insight on this scenario.

A reader recently wrote to us about a black worm she found on the wall of her house. The worm is also described as “slick” and is about four inches long. The reader’s house is on the east coast of Florida, in a town called Fort Pierce. So, the reader’s worm is from Florida – it is a Florida worm, if you will, although of course the worm she discovered might be found in any number of other places depending on what it is. The reader was also concerned if the worm is dangerous or harmful, as she has a nine-month-old baby in the house. What is this black, slick worm from Florida, and is it harmful?

Just a couple of days ago we received a laconic email from a reader. He sent us a photo of what appears to be a caterpillar with one simple question: “Can you tell me what this is[?]” The caterpillar – if it is a caterpillar (and it probably is) – appears to be a bright color. It is perhaps yellow or maybe even entirely white. (The photo of the caterpillar is a bit hard to decipher, as you’ll soon see.) It also appears to be in the woods, or at least some natural setting with rocks, dirt, twigs, and similar such things. So, we have a seemingly simple question before us: what is the bright colored caterpillar in the woods?

A reader recently asked us an interesting question about worms on the sidewalk. The subject matter isn’t strange – lots of people wonder why worms come out on the sidewalk – but his focus was unusual. He wasn’t curious about the presence of the worms, but rather about the “black balls of dirt” that came along with them onto the sidewalk. The reader asked “what” he was finding, which seems fairly simple – black balls of dirt (or possibly worm castings) – so we suppose we should expand the scope of the question, covering the matter of why he is finding dirt on the sidewalk along with worms.

A reader wrote to us recently about an amazing and beautiful worm, or what is believed to be a worm, that he had found on his patio. In fact, both those adjectives were combined, making the worm, in the reader’s words, an “amazing beauty.” The worm, which is about an inch long, had a red head, white “puffs” on its back, and two large antennae. Given this worm’s aesthetic appeal, it is not surprising that the reader wanted to know what kind of worm it was.

A reader discovered some reddish brown worms with ugly faces in her shower. We suggest she see a doctor about this situation, because she has expressed concern that these creatures might be coming from her.

A reader of ours in Seward, Alaska sent us a photograph of a cluster of worms that he found in Exit Glacier. The group of worms look to be small and white and seem to move together like a snake. After viewing the photograph, it is very possible that these are fungus gnat larvae.

Believe it or not, in some parts of the world insects are considered a delicacy. In some countries, crickets are…

A reader wrote to us about some creatures she has been finding in her condo. She said they are very tiny, and that she usually finds them near the bathroom or in the closet. She is hopeful we can identify them and advise her on how to make her place less appealing to these worm-like organisms.

A while back, a reader asked us which types of millipedes emit a horrible odor when threatened or stepped on. (Technically, the reader asked about “minipedes,” but we’ll assume this was a typo, unless they really are interested in knowing the nonexistent smell of an online ship that sells baby shoes in the UK.) In other words, which millipedes smell bad when threatened or attacked in some way. This is a simple enough question, but we’ll have to answer it in somewhat general terms because there are around 10,000 species in the Diplopoda class, which millipedes make up, so we of course can’t list every single millipede that smells bad (nor in truth do we know of all the millipedes that smell bad). So, we will focus on the following, more general question: why do millipedes smell bad?

At a minimum of 8 inches long, the ribbon worms body is long and lean with finlike appendages. Some giant ribbon worm species or ‘Lineus longissimus’ may reach up to 100 feet long.

A reader recently submitted a question via the All About Worms Facebook page about a worm “coming out of the ground” in his garden. The most distinguishing characteristic of the worm is that it is “very thin, almost like nylon fish line,” and it moves in a “swaying motion.” The reader only asked if what he found is a type of worm, but we’ll do him one better by identifying the exact worm we think he found: a horsehair worm (occasionally spelled “horse hair worm”). Since horsehair worms are nematodes (roundworms), they are actually worms, not just creatures that everyday language, with its understandable but often frustrating contempt for scientific precision, has wrangled into the “worm category.”

A reader from Australia requested assistance in identifying some worms he’s found in his bathroom. He says that they are 3 mm – 4 mm (0.11” – 0.15”) long, black, and drop from the bathroom ceiling on threads. Once they land, they walk end over end. It is summer in Australia and he says that the temperature is around 40 ? (~104?). He would like to know what they are because they are freaking him out.

“Found these worms in the backyard and there are a lot!” exclaims this reader in his submission regarding the segmented, yellow worm-like critter pictured below. “I have a small garden there with an orange tree, but the garden is unattended. What are those? They seem to be active in the night and light attracts them I think.” Based on the excellent photo our reader sent in, as well as the helpful context, we would conclude that these are mealworms. Mealworms are the larval stage of the mealworm beetle, which is a species of darkling beetle. As our reader correctly stated, mealworms are nocturnal, and while they are not necessarily attracted to light, they can sense it.

We recently received a question from a reader who found an interesting creature in her toilet. She found it a while after anyone had last used the toilet, so it is unlikely that it came from a human. She said she has done a lot of research, but has been unable to match it to anything she has discovered.

One of our readers wrote to us and asked us if worms can see and if so how do they do so. This is a question that has come up a lot with our readers. There are quite a few types of worms that are blind, but some worms have specific ways of seeing or sensing light in order to crawl their way around the soil or a specific place.

Although our site is called “All About Worms” we deal with a variety of different creatures that aren’t technically worms. Often, when people reach out to us about a specimen they have discovered in their home, it is actually larvae of a moth or fly. However, on occasion, our readers do in fact discover worms. Most often, these are earthworms, and so this is what we will focus on. This post will inform readers of the simple way to remove earthworms from their homes using natural and non-toxic methods.