About this discover she wrote, “I’m stumped. There are larger tubular globs that seem worm-like. There are also small spots (bugs? bug feces?) Nothing appears to be alive, and everything is concentrated on one side where there was a plastic cover between the cushion and the cover.”

Unfortunately, we think we might also be stumped. Based on the photograph, it looks 1 or 2 larger specimens might have been crushed, broken up, and dispersed across the cushion. It could be a millipede or a centipede that has disintegrated. We don’t know if this is what is causing her husband’s rash, but it could have something to do with it. Perhaps he has a slight allergy to this bug. Of course, the rash might have nothing to do with the couch. Since we aren’t medical professionals, we can’t offer much more advice about the rash, and so we recommend our reader’s husband visit the doctor if he is anxious about his health.

Since there are no live creatures hanging out in our reader’s couch, we think it would be best if she throw out the cushion covered in dead bugs and move on. As much as we may try to ignore them, the simple truth is that we share a world (and a home) with many different kinds of larvae, worms, arthropods, and other creatures. Luckily, few are dangerous and plenty actually make our ecosystems radically better. We hope our reader is able to appreciate this and not dwell on the strangeness of discovering bugs in her couch.