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Posted in Earthworms Segmented Worms Annelida Worms Found in the House

Long Black Worm in Toilet is an Earthworm

“Tonight I went to use the bathroom to urinate but when I looked down I noticed a living worm there”, writes Alberto in his submission regarding the dark, long, worm-like creature pictured below. “My first thought was that the worm came from me, and that it was a parasite (I did use the bathroom in the morning, but I didn’t use the bathroom until the night when I saw the worm), but when I started researching in Google it didn’t seem like the worm looked like the typical parasite that infects humans. Those seem to be white or cream, while this worm looks black with a bit of red and some transparent parts when it stretches. Also I didn’t have any symptoms the days before, like itching, however I did have some light digestive looseness the day before, but I think I’m pretty sure it was something I ate the same day, but I’m not sure though. I did take a dewormer just in case, but I would like to be sure if that worm could be a parasite that came from me. I’d leave a video and some other pics of the worm, thank you very much! I live in Monterrey, Mexico.”

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Posted in Drain Fly Larvae Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

Clear Worm with Black Markings in Sink is a Drain Fly Larva

“What is this?” asks Jennifer in her submission regarding the semi-translucent worm with black markings pictured below. “I found this in my bathroom sink while brushing my teeth. It was wriggling near the sink drain. The picture is magnified several times.” We think Jennifer has found herself a drain fly larva, and it is quite incredible that she captured it in such detail, especially considering the photo is magnified. These guys are really tiny, and to the naked eye they just look like little black worms, so we commend Jennifer on the excellent photo! Neither drain fly larvae or the mature flies are harmful to humans, though they can prove to be quite the nuisance.

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Posted in Worms Facts Worms Found in the House Worms Generally

White Worm-looking Creatures in New Home are Blow Fly Larvae

“I woke up this morning, granted the second day of a new home and all over the living room floor there were little whitish, worm-looking things”, writes this reader in her submission regarding the organisms pictured below. “What are they? Where did they come from? And how do I get rid of them?” Our reader asks all the right questions, and to answer her first one, we think these are blow fly larvae. ‘Blow fly’ as a term refers generally to a large group of flies (known as an order) called Diptera. The adult flies are characterized by their glossy, metallic bodies, which are typically green, blue, or black in color.

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Posted in Caterpillars Interesting Bugs Worms Found in the House

Moth with Silvery Wings is a Case-bearing clothes moth

“Is this a case-bearing clothes moth?” asks this reader in her submission regarding the silver moth pictured below. “I’m in Georgia. Thank you for your time.” Now, while we are in the business of identifying the worm-like offspring of insects, we are not the best people to ask about adult insects, so we will have to warn our reader that the information and advice we provide may not be the most credible she could find. With that said, we will do our best to identify this organism and help her. With that said, our opinion is that she has already done the bulk of the work for us, because this does indeed look like a case-bearing clothes moth.

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Posted in Earthworms Segmented Worms Annelida Worms Found in the House

Worms in Basement Toilet are Likely Earthworms

“I found the worms in the attached photo in the toilet in my basement which is not frequently used”, writes Emma in her submission regarding the mass of worms pictured below. “This is the second time we have found worms in this toilet in the past six months. Would you be able to identify them for me? Thank you!” Unfortunately, Emma’s photo is taken so far away from the worms that when we zoom in, the details become too blurry for us to give a confident and accurate identification. That said, we will still give an educated guess based on the general shape and coloration of the worms.

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Posted in Centipedes and Millipedes Worms Found in the House Worms Generally

Centipedes Infest Home for Two Years

“Infested house and garden, two and a half years trying to get rid of them”, starts Paula in her submission regarding the blurry creature with multiple appendages pictured below. “I’m disabled and can’t get any help. I’ve spent thousands on deadbeat alleged insect killer firms. Please help me.” Unfortunately, since the photo is so blurry, we will only be able to provide an educated guess as to the identity of this organism, as opposed to a confident and accurate identification. With that said, we are somewhat confident in our guess, as the outline of this creature’s shapes and what we assume to be its many legs points us in one direction: centipedes.

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Posted in Worms Facts Worms Found in the House Worms Generally

Thin White Worms Floating in the Air Infest Woman’s Home

“My home is infested inside and out with thin white worms that appear to be accompanied by or some stage of a thin black worm”, writes Shari in her submission regarding the worm pictured below. “They scatter through the air with the slightest disturbance. I tried spraying them down with bleach attached to water hoses, but they just end up floating in the air and landing on me. Pest control has been no help in identifying. I live in Sarasota, Florida. My house is old, built in 1959 and had a major plumbing issue. Cast iron pipes broke underground and the entire plumbing clogged up. It was so bad water was coming out of the vent pipe on the roof. I’m wondering if this worm issue is related to the plumbing. Especially since the pipes broke underground.”

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Posted in Army Worms Caterpillars Worms Found in the House

Bundle of Clear Worms on Website are Newly-hatched Caterpillars

“What are these things?” asks Mary in her submission regarding the swarm of tiny, worm-like creatures pictured below. “They look a little different from the others I’ve seen on your site. First I found a bunch on a spot on my ceiling yesterday. Now today I found a bunch on a windowsill in the room beside where I found the ones on the ceiling in the hallway. Thank you.” Mary sent a bunch of photos, as well as a video, but we have included the photo which we think shows the organisms most clearly, though they are still quite hard to see, as the photo is taken quite far away and the resolution is not the best. Luckily, the video does show the critters up close.

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Posted in Caterpillars Interesting Bugs Worms Found in the House

Feathery, White Moth is a Common Clothes Moth

“Can you please identify this moth type?” asks Shanan in her submission regarding the white moth with delicate, feathery wings pictured below. “I’m in South Georgia. I found this moth in my bedroom dresser. Thank you for your time.” Typically, we do not identify full-grown insects, but rather their offspring: larvae. That is simply because the nature of our website is to identify worms and worm-like organisms, which larvae are included in. With that said, we will still give this a crack, though Shanan should keep in mind that this identification may not be 100% accurate given that this is not our area of expertise.

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Posted in Cat Worms Grub Worms Worms Found in the House

Pink Worm with Forked Rear is a Beetle Larva

“My cat dropped this on my chest”, writes Taylor in his submission regarding the pink, worm-like creature with a white head and pronged rear. “What is it? A worm? A centipede? I included a picture of how it looks and a video to show how it moves. I appreciate your help!” Now, while being shaped like a worm and having clear-cut segmentation like a centipede, we do not believe this creature is either a worm or a centipede. We actually think it is a larva, specifically a beetle larva. We are not certain exactly which species of beetle this belongs to. The pink coloration reminds us of the scarlet malachite beetle, but the white head throws us off that course. In fact, the inchworm-like movements of the creature (as seen in the video linked below) has us doubting if it is a beetle larva at all.

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Posted in Carpet Beetle Larvae Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

Brown Striped Worms in Children’s Bedroom are Carpet Beetle Larvae

“What is this worm?” asks Billie in her submission regarding the brown-striped creature pictured below. “I found them on my children’s bedroom floor. We thought we had powderpost beetle infestation because we have small holes in some of our new hardwood floors. Maybe these bugs are unrelated? I found three at 6:30 in the morning after turning on the lights. The largest is probably less than 1/4 inch long.” We can tell Billie straight away that this is not a powderpost beetle or a powderpost beetle larva (which are white in color with a small black spot on its head), but is a carpet beetle larva. Billie may have heard of carpet beetles before: they are a notorious pest that do not feed on hardwood floors, but the rugs and carpets we put on top of them.

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Posted in Drain Fly Larvae Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

Toilet Full of Drain Fly Larvae After Weeks Away From Home

“We found these worms in one of our toilets after returning thirteen days later”, writes Jerry in his submission regarding the many, tiny, black, worm-like creatures pictured below. “No one used this toilet while we were gone. This toilet is on the second floor.” Considering the worms’ appearance and the context in which Jerry found them, we think he has found drain fly larvae. Also known as moth flies due to their stout, furry bodies which resemble moths more than the common house fly, drain flies are notorious bathroom pests. They are not pests so far as doing any real damage to the items in one’s home, but infestations of them can be hard to tackle and the flies can thereby become a real nuisance.

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Posted in Drain Fly Larvae Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

Black Worm in Bathroom is a Drain Fly Larva

“I found this in my bathroom and don’t know what it is”, writes Dainé in her submission regarding the bristly, black worm pictured below. “Could you please help me?” We are, of course, happy to help Dainé identify this creature. Although she does not provide much context, the little that we are provided, coupled with the fantastic photo, is enough for us to identify this organism, which is a drain fly larva. Otherwise known as moth flies, drain flies are commonly considered pests, though we would argue they really are not: they do not damage anything in the home, and they pose no real health threat other than potentially causing asthmatic reactions if an infestation of them is left for too long. Drain flies are attracted to bathrooms which have been left uncleaned or unused for a long time, laying its eggs on the organic film that forms in the lip of drains.

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Posted in Caterpillars Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

White Segmented Worms are Clothes Moth Caterpillars

“What is this?” is all Kelly Jo writes about the segmented, white worm-like critters pictured below. It looks to us like the creatures are on a bed post, but that is mere speculation based on the little we can make out from the photo. Without more context, it will not be possible for us to give an exact identification, because the physical characteristics of this creature are so commonplace among worm-like creatures that it could be any number of things. With that said, we do think it is some type of insect larva (given the brown head and segmented body), and we will list some of the most likely creatures it could be, provided Kelly Jo found the creature in her home.

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Posted in Worms Facts Worms Found in the House Worms Generally

Sticky, Indestructible Creatures Invade Woman and Neighbor’s Home

“I have an infestation of white moving little things coming out of the corners of every room”, writes Debbie in her submission, which unfortunately does not include any photos. “They’re different sizes and very small and they stick to whatever they can and you can’t break them away from it. They also are in my neighbors house and all over her house counter tops and on her clothes. They can break apart and still live. Their texture is like a human being booger out if their nose. Please help if you know anything about this. Please respond.” We will say that we will not be able to identify this worm with 100% accuracy or certainty, given the lack of photo and how vague the physical descriptions are. All we can do is make some educated guesses.

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Posted in Drain Fly Larvae Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

Worm-like Critters in Cat Fountain are Drain Fly Larvae

“I found these worm-like critters living in my cat’s automatic waterer”, writes Linda about the black creatures pictured below. “What are they and where did they come from?” Based on the excellent photo and the context that Linda provided us, we think she found drain fly larvae in the waterer. Drain fly larvae are harmless to humans and cats, but can be quite a nuisance. As their name suggests, they are found near or inside drains, as the adult flies lay their eggs on the organic film that forms in the lip of a drain. They do this because the diet of the larvae largely consists of the organisms that grow in stagnant water, like algae and fungi, as well as microorganisms.

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Posted in Drain Fly Larvae Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

Worms Swimming in Toilet are Drain Fly Larvae

“I returned from a holiday to find these worms swimming in our toilet”, writes Siobha about the black creatures pictured below. “What are they?” We have to admit that, were it not for the size and color of the worms, as well as the location they were found in, we would not be able to identify these creatures based on the photo and video alone, because the quality is simply not that good. Fortunately, we can make an educated guess based on the aforementioned factors: we think these are drain fly larvae. As their name suggests, drain fly larvae are the immature form of a species of fly that like to infest drains. They are not harmful, but they can be quite a nuisance.

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Posted in Caterpillars Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

Yellow and White-striped Worm is a Caterpillar or a Sawfly Larva

“Can you please help identify this worm?” asks this reader in their submission regarding the white and yellow-striped worm-like critter pictured below. “Thank you. I really appreciate it.” Well first off, we want to say thank you to our reader for sending in this great photo! To us, this looks like a caterpillar of some kind, though we are not entirely sure what species of caterpillar it is. It could also be a sawfly larva, which are often mistaken for caterpillars. What we will say is that we recommend that our reader avoid direct physical contact with the creatures, since we do not know what they are. Allergic reactions can occur with unknown species. We do not think it is highly likely with this caterpillar, as typically poisonous caterpillars possess bristles, but that is not always a given.

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Posted in Earthworms Worms Found in the House Worms Generally

Long Red Worm in Toilet is an Earthworm

“Dear All About Worms Community, could you please let me know what kind of worm is this one that I have found in my toilet?” asks HC in their submission regarding the long, brown/red worm-like organism pictured below. “Does it look like a parasite to you? Thanks and kind regards.” To answer HC’s first question right off the bat, the worm they found is an earthworm. Earthworms are not parasites, so HC needs not worry about that. With that said, we actually cannot answer their second question directly, as only a medical professional is qualified and legally able to confirm the identity of parasites (which we are not), given the medical implications of their discovery. So, we will not be able to state whether or not this worm looks like a parasite, but we will say that it looks like an earthworm.

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Posted in Centipedes and Millipedes Worms Facts Worms Found in the House

Segmented Worms Swarming Home are Duff Millipedes

“In February we moved into a new house that we had just renovated, and in April we started seeing small larvae like pests showing up in our bedrooms, kitchen, bathrooms”, writes Jill in her submission regarding the small, segmented creature pictured below. “They are tiny and only noticed them because they were crawling up the wall/ceiling. Our pest company identified them as carpet beetles stemming from our attic. They have been coming down, inside the walls and I’ve treated those areas, as well as spraying inside and outside the home. We saw many die off over the next few weeks, and then they seemed to go away until July when they came back. I’ve never seen a beetle. We live in Colorado at 7,000 feet elevation. I’ve found them on all three levels of our house in every room. We do have large spruce trees near the home. A new pest company came and (with my help) identified them as duff millipedes. I would love this to be the case and would be interested in a second opinion. Photos and video attached.”