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These include carpet beetles, Fur beetles and the Case-Bearing Clothes Moth.
Reasons for Control.
They damage objects that contain hair, wool, fur, feathers, horn and silk. Including clothes and furnishings
Biology.
Beetles
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Anthrenus (Carpet Beetles) and Attagenus (Fur Beetles)
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Life Cycle: - Egg – Larva – Pupa – Adult
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Their original habitat was in bird nests and animal dens
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Carpet beetle adults are 1.5 – 4mm long they are round and covered in a variety of colours.
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The larvae are covered in dark brown hair because of their appearance they are sometimes know as ‘woolly bears’
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The larvae are resistant to starvation
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The life cycle lasts about 7 to 14 Months
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Fur Beetles are 4 – 6mm long
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They have one white spot on each wingcase.
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The larva are very similar to the carpet beetle but are covered in golden-brown hairs.
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The life cycle is 6-36 months.
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The adults of both beetles can bite through textiles, but it is only the larvae that feed on them.
Moths
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The Case-Bearing Clothes Moth (Tinea pellionella)
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They have a similar life cycle to the textile beetles
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The larva live in a case which they carry around
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The adult has a wingspan of about 15mm
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The life cycle can be completed in as little as 7 weeks.
Prevention & Control.
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Regular cleaning e.g. washing, dry cleaning or steam cleaning can protect textiles.
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Vacuum clean carpets regularly as textile pests prefer undisturbed areas such as under furniture
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Bird nests should be removed as they may harbour textile pests
Treatment.
If material is heavily infested it should be removed and destroyed.
The area should then be vacuumed included cracks and crevices.
A residue insecticide can then be applied.
Although we do treat for textile pests on carpet, we will not treat clothing that is infested.
Please click here to see useful contacts for pest control matters.
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