A reader from Texas recently wrote to us about some small black worms he is finding in his recreational vehicle (“RV”), and sent us a picture of one that is on his floor. On some days, he finds as many as six or seven of the black worms (which can also be “charcoal grey” worms) in his RV, but he has also gone up to a week without finding any worms. After struggling to discern where the worms are coming from, he finally concluded that they are entering the RV through the heat vents. The reader lives in his RV, and so was naturally wondering what he is finding, and he also wanted to know how to get rid of the black worms that have taken up residence in his RV.

We received an interesting and highly specific question from a reader about ephydrid fly (shore fly) larvae, which are a type of maggot that live in natural hot springs. She wants to know if it is safe to sit in a hot springs that is “filled with ephyrdid fly maggots.” Psychologically, she doesn’t mind the presence of the larvae, and she is keen to enjoy the natural hot springs she comes across in nature, but she doesn’t want the larvae to “crawl up places they don’t belong.” She spells out this concern in more graphic detail, citing specific orifices, including a wound on her foot, and we’ll leave it to you to imagine some of the other openings she is concerned with. Are the maggots that live in hot springs dangerous, and will they crawl into places they don’t belong?

A reader recently sent us a photo of some sort of white and yellow larva, or perhaps a whitish, yellowish larva is the better way to put it because the colors basically blend together. The reader said the larvae “moves like a caterpillar,” and she said it doesn’t look like a worm or slug, and all of this contributes to our belief that our reader found a type of larva. (Caterpillars are larvae, for the record.) The reader found the creature on her leg when she was out walking and she can’t seem to find out any information about it. Technically, the reader didn’t ask any question, but we presume she wants to know what the white and yellow larva she found is, so this is what we have directed our attention toward.

Beetle larvae can be found in moist areas, compost piles, streams, slow moving waters, rivers, dams and lakes where they can find food easily.

A few days ago we received a question through the All About Worms Facebook page from a reader whose dog had recently eaten several grubs, or beetle larvae. (“Grub” is a generic term that could theoretically refer to any of the hundreds of thousands of species of beetle larva, but it is often used by people to refer to the fat, white larvae on their lawns – “lawn grubs” – in particular.) The reader was made aware of her dog’s recent dietary choices after she (the dog) threw up grubs all over her back porch. (What is more disgusting than vomit? Larvae-filled vomit.) Not surprisingly, the reader was wondering if it is harmful or dangerous for dogs to eat grubs, which we now turn our attention to.

“I found these small, white worms in my horse’s water bucket in the barn”, writes Jennifer about the organisms pictured below. “I have seen them hanging from a thin thread they weave in his stall before. I am trying to identify them to make sure they aren’t toxic to him if he did ingest them. Thank you in advance.” First things first, we have to make clear that, given Jennifer’s concern for her horse’s health, any suggestions we make as to the identity of these worms should only be considered in light of these organisms being deemed non-threatening to the horse by a veterinarian. Since we are not medical professionals, we are neither qualified nor legally able to identify parasites or other organisms that directly impact the health of humans or pets, as doing so is tantamount to diagnosing their medical issue. So, we recommend that Jennifer asks a vet to check her horse and inspect the worms to see if they are a threat.

“I am from Ohio and have seen this near the dog’s bowl am not sure if it is a worm or just mucus”, writes Santos regarding the white, worm-like object pictured below. “This is the only one I have seen. Thanks.” We are with Santos on this one: we are not sure if this is a worm either. It has qualities that remind of us worm-like organisms we have seen before, including a darker, circular bit that looks like a head, somewhere around the middle of the body. Obviously, that’s not where heads go on an animal, so this had us thinking this might be two worms rather than one, if it is a worm at all. In any case, it definitely looks suspicious for mucus, so we understand why Santos is concerned.

“Can you identify the worm or larvae in the pictures I attached?” asks Nicholas in his submission regarding the white creature with a brown head pictured below. “These were found in my home in Plantation Florida. So far, they have been found mainly on the floor, within approximately a 15-foot diameter area. There were several found inside a ceiling mounted light, they are in the picture displaying several individuals. There is no apparent point from which they have emerged. They have not come from, or gotten to, any of our food supplies yet. It is a cool area, near our a/c unit, a bathroom (where the aforementioned ceiling light is), and a bedroom, with a small hall area connecting the areas. From this area, a few have made it toward our kitchen and dining room, but they have hopefully mostly all been caught. We have lived in this home for six years and this is the first time seeing these. I am aware they “look like” black fly maggots, but I have seen maggots many times, these appear different. Six legs I believe, no easily visible hairs. Any information you may provide would be greatly appreciated.”

“Are these worms in this tree and this black stuff on a rock wall?” asks this reader about the mass of organisms pictured below. “It is from Mansfield, Ohio. Thank you for your time!” Based on the photo, this is nothing we think we have encountered before. The black organisms on the rock do not necessarily look like worms to us, and we cannot make out what organisms we are supposed to be looking at on the tree. Upon zooming in on the photo of the rock, it looks like the organisms could possess wings. That said, the photo makes it difficult to see the details of the organisms’ bodies, so this is merely an educated guess. In any case, we think these could be black bean aphids (otherwise known as blackflies). Usually, they are found swarming plants that they suck the sap from.

“I am trying to figure out what these critters are in the carpet, so that I can eliminate them”, states this reader from Oklahoma in his submission. “I fear they are larvae of some type.”

“What fresh hell is this?” asks this reader about the larva-like creature buried in a piece of lint pictured below. He describes it as having a “long white body and dark head.”

“I found one of these crawling on my bathroom floor” states this reader about the glossy, white creature in the photograph below. Our reader’s husband reported that two more of these segmented critters fell from the ceiling and onto his chair.

“I found this strange-looking, dark brown worm in my toilet, just floating there,” states this reader about the organism pictured below. She thinks it was already there before she used the toilet, and she asks if we know what the creature is.

“We seem to have an infestation of moths and what we’re thinking might be larvae,” states this reader in her submission regarding the array of photos below. Our reader wonders if the appearance of this moth and its larvae could be connected to parasites “in some way.”

“Why do I keep finding this bug in my vehicle?” asks this reader in her submission concerning the small, gray, spiky bug on the face mask in the photo below. Our reader states that she does not allow eating in her car, which she just purchased and keeps very clean.

Carpet beetles are a household pest. While the adults cause little damage, their newly hatched eggs become larva that are very destructive.

“What kind of worm is this? Please let me know,” asks this reader in his submission. The worm our reader is referring to is an off-white, semi-transparent color, with a dark brown, bulbous head and a tubular body.

“What are these caterpillars collected in Western North Carolina on pagoda dogwood in mid August?” asks this reader of the creatures in the photograph below. The critters, as we can see, are black and yellow in color, with clear segments divided by gray lines and multiple legs on the underside of their bodies.

What looks like small, black worms were photographed by this reader, who wonders if they are grout worms. The photographs display organisms with an array of various body shapes; there are small curled up bodies, long straight ones and the last photograph is of what simply looks like a black dot.

If one were to look up ‘cod worms’ on the internet, one would be met with a plethora of woeful tales of people finding worms in their fish. Ranging from personal accounts posted on social media to articles published on news sites, the cod worm has made quite the buzz on the internet.