Why do I have earwigs in my apartment or home?
Most domestic earwigs prefer moist soil areas with adequate cover and food source. Frequently, people will find earwigs in their home or apartment and ask “Why do I have earwigs inside?”
Apartments and homes become an unintentional host to earwigs for two reasons. These insects can invade by accident though human activities or they can actively seek to live in our space.
First, the earwigs might have been brought in accidentally. If boxes were stored in a wet garage area, for example, and earwigs found those boxes hospitable, they might have infested the boxes and when those boxes are brought inside, earwigs can surprise the homeowner. Another way for earwigs to be brought in is if they are living under plants between a plant pot and the saucer. If people bring these in for the winter, earwigs will be brought inside.
Second, if conditions are right, earwigs will enter our living spaces. If there is a damp basement area with perhaps much clutter and even leaves which had blown in, there can be an abundance of food and cover as well as insects for food if the earwig is predaceous. Wet basement walls can drip onto the floor and create hospitable conditions for earwigs. They are also protected from winter weather in this manner.
Earwigs do not typically prefer to live in our space, but through human activity or lack of good maintenance via screens, doors, or conditions leading to excessive moisture, these insects can come into our apartment or house.
What does an earwig infestation look like?
Are earwigs dangerous or poisonous to humans?
Do earwigs have wings and do they fly?
How do I control earwigs and will they hurt house plants?
How do I exterminate or get rid of earwigs?
How do I keep earwigs out of my house?
What are the difference
-between an Earwig and a Cockroach
-between Earwigs and Silverfish