4
$\begingroup$

So I found this tiny bug on my wall in the bedroom of my apartment. I estimate it is about 3mm long by 1mm wide.

Unknown Bug

Close up unknown bug

Is it a bed bug?

It does not seem to match any of the pictures I've seen online.

The apartment is very clean by most standards. The only other bug I've seen in here is the odd stink bug.

Northeast coast of USA.

Improve this question
$\endgroup$
3

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
7
$\begingroup$

I'm going to suggest it is the larvae of a carpet beetle. Initially I thought possibly the Varied carpet beetle because of the lighter patches near the posterior end similar to this picture from the wiki page on this species:

enter image description here

Having said that the geographical range might not be correct so it could be a similar species so I've dug a bit deeper. There are some 120 species in North America, from this link I'd say that the Buffalo carpet beetle is a contender.

Carpet beetles are classified as a pest species:

"larvae feed on natural fibers and can damage carpets, furniture, clothing and insect collections"

Not all bad though, the larvae are also known as wooly bears, how nice.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
2
  • $\begingroup$ Well that's good news. Better than bed bugs. Phew! Thanks! $\endgroup$
    – Brad Chadders
    Dec 13, 2014 at 18:23
  • $\begingroup$ well, woolly bears more often refer to a species of tiger-moth caterpillar: Pyrrharctia isabella $\endgroup$
    – theforestecologist ♦
    Dec 8, 2017 at 4:33

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.