Could Bugs in Bed be Carpet Beetle Larvae?

Today we will discuss a bug that one of our readers discovered on her mattress cover. She first noticed the specimen about a month ago, but didn’t dwell on it since there was only one creature. She recently noticed another one of the creatures and it freaked her out. She explained that the organism fell out of her sheets AFTER she washed her bedding. She doesn’t know what the specimen might be, and doesn’t know what is attracting them to her bed. She said that she is a very clean person and washes her sheets several times a month. This is the photograph she sent us:

The specimen is small and has a brown and white body. Our reader mentioned that she found this creature in her freshly-washed sheets, which makes us wonder if its appearance might be altered. We think the creature shows some resemblance to a carpet beetle larva, but it doesn’t have the bristle-like hairs that most carpet beetle larvae have. Maybe the hairs rubbed off its body in the wash, but there is no way for us to know that. The general size, shape, and color match that of a carpet beetle larvae, and readers discover carpet beetle larvae in their beds and bedding fairly regularly! Therefore, while we can’t guarantee that this is a carpet beetle larvae, we think there is a good chance that this is the correct I.D.

Carpet beetle larvae feed on a wide range of linens, material, and other small particles found around a house. They also eat animal products such as feathers, felt, and wool. We think the larvae our reader discovered are feeding on an item of her bedding set. We recommend that she thoroughly investigate her bed, bedding, and the area around her bed for more larvae. Anything that shows signs of damage should be removed and either disposed of or professionally cleaned. Although getting rid of carpet beetle larvae can be an annoying task, it just requires dedicated cleaning! Our reader will need to vacuum, dust, and sweep every day. She should also do laundry often in order to eliminate any unseen carpet beetle larvae eggs.

To conclude, one of our readers discovered a worm-like organism in her bedding. We think the creature might be a carpet beetle larvae, which are some of the most common specimens found by our readers!