Bed worms, also known as mattress worms, are not a specific type of pest, but a group of pests and their larvae that can end up infesting your mattress or bedding. Unlike adult bed bugs and fleas, their larvae have not yet developed into an insect with a hard exoskeleton, giving them a worm-like appearance.
Maggots don't just show up out of nowhere; they show up for a reason. Flies become attracted to some rotting material or spoiled food in your home and use that as a breeding ground to lay their eggs which hatch to become maggots.
The easiest way is to look at the larvae of each species: Bed bug larvae look like little worms, while carpet beetle larvae look like miniature fuzzy caterpillars.
Grub worms are the larvae of a variety of beetles. In the Southeast, the most common is the Japanese beetle. Grubs are C-shaped worms, typically cream-colored, white or grayish-white with an orange-brown head, and they inhabit your turf in the root zone below the soil surface.
These little white worms are Clothes Moth Larvae. This means that they will keep growing and changing until they turn into adult Clothes Moths. Clothes Moths Larvae eat animal-based fibers which contain the protein keratin. They will also eat materials such as cotton if they are soiled with sweat or blood stains.
If you've ever found small, white, or dark worms in your mattress, you may have an issue with mattress worms. These creatures are actually the larvae of several different insects, including carpet beetles and fleas. These bed worms can cause severe damage to your mattress and cause allergies to flare up.
Since high heat quickly kills bed worms, one of the best and simplest methods of getting rid of them is to run your dirty laundry and bedsheets through the dryer. Then, wash them in the washing machine at the highest temperature that a particular type of material allows, preferably above 130 F (55 C).
Maggots are attracted to rotting and dirty things. In the common household, maggots are mostly attracted by leftover food or decomposing perishable goods. Good maggot prevention, therefore, is about making sure there are no such things around the house – read our advice on deep cleaning your kitchen for help with this.
Flies are attracted to food and other rubbish; they lay their eggs on the rubbish; later the eggs hatch into maggots. You will only have a problem with maggots if flies can get to your waste. If flies settle on your rubbish they may lay eggs which can hatch out as maggots within 24 hours.
Generally, maggots live for around five to six days before turning into pupae and eventually transitioning into adult flies.
Bed bug eggs resemble grains of rice, but much smaller. Most are pearly white-gray in color with an elongated oval shape that's only about 1 millimeter long.
Dust worm goes by several names such as plaster bagworm, household bagworm, household case bearer, and clothes moth. It is a type of moth, which is small and brownish-gray in colour. The dust-like case is its cocoon: the pupal stage before a moth emerges from it.
Dust Mites
They thrive in warm and humid environments and are usually present in mattresses, upholstered furniture, carpets, and curtains. As scavengers, they don't directly feed on humans as bedbugs do. Instead, they feed on dead skin, pet dander, pollen, and bacteria.
Termite larvae are very small and about the size of the termite eggs. They have soft, white bodies and look like smaller versions of worker termites. This is because the larvae have not fully matured.
After the bed bugs hatch, they are referred to as bed bug larvae. Although adult bed bugs are very small, the bed bug larvae are even smaller. They appear like tiny grains of pepper and you can only see the eggs or other parts of their body by looking at them under a microscope.
Accidental myiasis: results from ingestion of eggs or existing maggots into the gastrointestinal tract. Local irritation, vomiting, and diarrhea are the usual symptoms.
Bed worms, also known as mattress worms, are not a specific type of pest, but a group of pests and their larvae that can end up infesting your mattress or bedding. Unlike adult bed bugs and fleas, their larvae have not yet developed into an insect with a hard exoskeleton, giving them a worm-like appearance.
Accidentally ingesting maggots does not generally cause any lasting harm. However, if a person has ingested maggots through eating spoiled food, they may be at risk of food poisoning. Symptoms of food poisoning can range from very mild to serious, and they can sometimes last for several days.
In general, maggots are not dangerous to healthy individuals. However, maggots can infect human tissue and cause a disease called myiasis. Symptoms of myiasis vary depending on the location and severity of the infestation, and it can affect both humans and animals.
White vinegar to the rescue
Maggots can't live in the acidity of vinegar. Mix 3 parts water to 1 part vinegar and pour the solution directly over the maggots. Let the mixture sit for about an hour before you discard the maggots and clean the area.
If maggots are currently in your house, that means a fly first found its way into your home through an entry point and decided to lay eggs somewhere. Flies tend to flock to rotting material, spoiled food, or old garbage and use that as their breeding ground.
Boiling water. It's free, it's quick, it's effective, and it kills maggots in an instant. No bug sprays or other insecticides required.
Change bed linen, towels and underwear daily for several days after treatment. Bedlinen and clothing should be machine-washed in hot water to ensure that all the eggs are killed.
They cower from light in any cracks they can find, be it in the walls, floors, or even inside your mattress. These nocturnal parasites also feed on blood, and they locate their prey, i.e. you, by your body heat and the CO2 which you exhale. These horrible parasites have two proboscises (tubes).
Adult bed bugs are reddish brown in color, wingless, and are about the size of an apple seed. Immature bed bugs (there are 5 immature or nymphal instar stages) can also be seen with the naked eye but they are smaller than adults, and translucent whitish-yellow in color.