Fast, tiny bug - Ask Extension
There are some fast moving tiny bugs in my kitchen, bathroom and I found them in the living room now. Sometimes they are black, some light brown and s...
Knowledgebase
Fast, tiny bug #367191
Asked October 01, 2016, 8:41 PM EDT
There are some fast moving tiny bugs in my kitchen, bathroom and I found them in the living room now. Sometimes they are black, some light brown and some kinda white. I saw springtail online, but I don't think the one I have jumps.
They are tiny like coffee grind, since we ground our own coffee, sometimes I have to look at it for a few seconds to figure out if it's coffee grind or a bug because it's tiny.sometimes it doesn't move for the first few sec and when it moves, it moves fast. Thank you
They are tiny like coffee grind, since we ground our own coffee, sometimes I have to look at it for a few seconds to figure out if it's coffee grind or a bug because it's tiny.sometimes it doesn't move for the first few sec and when it moves, it moves fast. Thank you
San Francisco County California
Expert Response
To whom it may concern,
I commend your efforts to identify your pest before taking pest management actions. The insects in your images appear to be psocids, or pscocopteran book lice.
Psocids (also known as book lice or psocopterans) feed on mold, fungi, and decaying organic matter; they are associated with high-humidity environments. They don't bite people or other animals. UC IPM does not have any published pest management guidelines for booklice, but to learn more, here are a few other UC resources:
I commend your efforts to identify your pest before taking pest management actions. The insects in your images appear to be psocids, or pscocopteran book lice.
Psocids (also known as book lice or psocopterans) feed on mold, fungi, and decaying organic matter; they are associated with high-humidity environments. They don't bite people or other animals. UC IPM does not have any published pest management guidelines for booklice, but to learn more, here are a few other UC resources:
http://nathistoc.bio.uci.edu/Psocoptera/Liposcelid.htm
http://biokeys.berkeley.edu/inverts/psocoptera.html
http://biokeys.berkeley.edu/inverts/psocoptera.html
Here's an old (1978) reference from UC's urban entomology guru, Walter Ebeling:http://www.entomology.ucr.edu/ebeling/ebel10.html#psocids
Also...pretty good extension reference from Texas A&M:
http://extentopubs.tamu.edu/eee_00043.html
Most contact insecticides (including reduced-risk and organic oils) will kill them, but management is best accomplished through reduction in moisture and humidity and by removal of potential food sources (old and musty paper products, for instance, provide habitat for molds, fungi, and lichen, which is consumed by the psocids). Relative humidity for indoor environments should always be maintained at less than 50%, and ideally less than 40%. Try to find the source of these insects (anything moldy or musty) and remove from the environment; hopefully it's not mold growing on the walls. Once you eliminate the source, the area could be vacuumed thoroughly and gently washed with soap and water to remove any wandering psocids.
Best regards,
Andrew
Also...pretty good extension reference from Texas A&M:
http://extentopubs.tamu.edu/eee_00043.html
Most contact insecticides (including reduced-risk and organic oils) will kill them, but management is best accomplished through reduction in moisture and humidity and by removal of potential food sources (old and musty paper products, for instance, provide habitat for molds, fungi, and lichen, which is consumed by the psocids). Relative humidity for indoor environments should always be maintained at less than 50%, and ideally less than 40%. Try to find the source of these insects (anything moldy or musty) and remove from the environment; hopefully it's not mold growing on the walls. Once you eliminate the source, the area could be vacuumed thoroughly and gently washed with soap and water to remove any wandering psocids.
Best regards,
Andrew
