“I keep finding these worms in my bathroom,” writes Chase in his submission regarding the long, thin worm pictured below. “First two times I was in the shower, then by my sink. I see them only on the walls. What are they? I am in Arizona.” The photo is somewhat blurry, so we cannot make out the finer details of the worm’s physical characteristics, but based on what we can see, as well as the fact that it is climbing Chase’s walls, we think this could be a flatworm. Generally speaking, flatworms are predatory creatures. We say generally speaking because there are thousands upon thousands of flatworms species and a good portion of those are parasites. Not to worry, most flatworm parasites cannot survive outside the body of a host, so when someone finds a flatworm in the wild, 99% of the time they will be a predator.

“I found a long, small, black worm while I was showering”, writes Kylee about the creature pictured below. “It’s the only one I’ve found, and it was so fast! But it doesn’t look at all like an earthworm. I’ll try to attach a photo.” This is a curious case, because once we think we land on an identification, one of the facts that Kylee gives us seems to put us back in a corner and reevaluate. For example, given where this creature was found, as well as its body shape and coloration, we would instinctively identify this as a drain fly larva. Yet, when we take into account that it supposedly moves “so fast”, then this explanation seems less likely. But in any case, from the picture it looks like the critter does not have legs, like most species of worms, and many species of insect larvae, and if this is the case, then how can it move as fast as Kylee suggests?

“I found this in my shower”, writes Anita about the yellow, long and thin worm-like creature pictured below. “I’ve never seen anything like this. Your insight is greatly appreciated!” Well, without wasting a minute, we will just right ahead and say that what Anita found is a centipede! That’s not maybe the best news Anita has received all year – centipedes are a common phobia among many, and are feared because of their many legs which they are known for. And it’s true, centipedes can be sort of creepy. There are not that many other creatures on this planet with that many legs: centipedes have a pair of legs sprouting from each of its segments, and on top of that they also have long antennae and pincer-like appendages near their head called forcipules.

“I found millipedes in the shower”, states this reader in his submission. “How do I get rid of them? Are they harmful?” he asks.

“This worm/larva was found crawling up a shower curtain”, states this reader living North of the 45th parallel. “Any ideas what it might be?” he asks. No further context is provided, but the photo below depicts the white, semi-transparent organism our reader is asking about.

“This critter was found on the top edge of a shower tile, where it meets the drywall” states this reader about the pink, segmented creature below. Our reader asks if this is a centipede larva, and we will do our best to answer him.

“I think small black flies are breeding in me” starts this reader in his submission concerning the small, gray-black organisms photographed on his bathtub ledge. He asks what these are, and specifically if they are larvae or pieces of grass.

This woman found a clear worm on her shower floor and hopes that we can “shine a light” on what they might be. According to our reader, the worm is about a fingernail’s width in length.

We believe the small red worms our reader noticed in his shower are bloodworms. Although these larvae aren’t known to carry or transmit human diseases, we still think he should act fast to get rid of them!

One of our readers is very concerned about the worm-like creatures that are invading his daughter’s home. He said that she has orange worms coming out of her shower walls. He described them as being about three inches in length, long and round. He did mention that she lives in east Texas and just wants to make sure that they are not dangerous to her health. He did not include a picture with his email, so it is difficult to identify these worms.

A reader wrote to us recently about some worms that she found in her shower. As she notes, they look like earthworms, but they are “smaller and thinner.” The reader is uncertain how they ended up in her shower, but she offers some speculation: they might have come from the drain, or she might have brought them in herself, maybe in her hair, as she took a shower after taking a hike. Our reader is wondering what she found, and she is also wondering if she should be worried about the worms that turned up in her shower.