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Carpet Beetle Facts & Information

Protect your home or business from carpet beetles by learning techniques for identification and control.

Carpet beetle illustration
1 to 4 mm
Oval-shaped bodies
Black, white & yellow

Treatment

How do I get rid of carpet beetles?

What Orkin Does

Your local Orkin Pro is trained to help manage carpet beetles and similar pests. Since every building or home is different, your Orkin Pro will design a unique beetle treatment program for your situation.

Orkin can provide the right solution to keep carpet beetles in their place...out of your home, or business.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Behavior, Diet & Habits

Understanding Carpet Beetles

Appearance

  • Length: Most species of carpet beetle measure 1 to 4 mm in length as adults

  • Body: Their bodies are oval-shaped.

  • Color: black, white and yellow patterned coloration. Some species of carpet beetle may also exhibit orange coloration.

  • Larvae: typically are light brown to black and covered in dense, sometimes barbed, hairs. Three distinct golden hairs are located upon the abdomen at this stage of development. They usually are slightly larger than the adult beetles and measure approximately 2.5 cm in length.

Carpet Beetle

Diet

Adult beetles feed on seeds, plants, and flowers. Larvae, however, feed on a variety of animal and plant-based materials, including:

  • Animal hair

  • Felt

  • Fur

  • Leather

  • Silk

  • Wool

Habitat

Adult carpet beetles can live both indoors and out, but females prefer to lay eggs where larval food sources are abundant. These pests enter homes through doors, windows, and similar entrances. They can also be brought in by way of cut plants and flowers. Some live inside the nests of birds or other animals and can live in walls or chimneys, feeding on dead insects and animals.

Reproduction

In spring, female carpet beetles lay 25 to 100 eggs, which hatch into larvae within two weeks. Carpet beetle larvae are able to mature under a variety of humidity levels and temperatures, although they tend to avoid bright areas. Depending on food sources and climate, larvae may take over a year to develop into adults. As they develop, they shed their brown skins. Learn more about the carpet beetle lifecycle.

More Resources

Dig Deeper on Carpet Beetles

Visit the Orkin Pest Library to learn how to identify and control other pests.
Explore Our Pest Library

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Carpet Beetle Damage and Problems

Carpet Beetle Eggs

Carpet Beetle Infestation

Carpet Beetle Larvae

Around the House

Carpet Beetle Larvae in Furniture

Do Carpet Beetles Fly?

Life Cycle of Carpet Beetles

What Eats Carpet Beetle Larvae?

Can You Spray For Carpet Beetles?

Carpet Beetle in Dorm Room

Carpet Beetle Larvae Found in Basement

How to Get Rid of Carpet Beetles

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