Pest Library · 70 pests · 9 signs
What’s that bug?
Identify common household pests: match it by where you saw it, what it looks like, and whether it bites.
Browse by type
79entries
Mice & rats
Move indoors when it gets cold.
Cockroaches
Indoor breeders and outdoor visitors.
Ants & termites
Trails in the kitchen, damage in the wood.
Damages homeSubterranean termiteReticulitermes species
Damages homeCarpenter antCamponotus species
Bites or stingsRed imported fire antSolenopsis invicta
Health riskPharaoh antMonomorium pharaonis
Gets into foodArgentine antLinepithema humile
Damages homeDrywood termiteIncisitermes species
Mostly harmlessPavement antTetramorium immigrans
Gets into foodOdorous house antTapinoma sessile
Pantry & closet bugs
In food, wool and carpet.
Gets into foodDrugstore beetleStegobium paniceum
Gets into foodRice weevilSitophilus oryzae
Damages homeVaried carpet beetleAnthrenus verbasci
Damages homeBlack carpet beetleAttagenus unicolor
Gets into foodLarder beetleDermestes lardarius
Gets into foodIndian meal mothPlodia interpunctella
Gets into foodRed flour beetleTribolium castaneum
Damages homeWebbing clothes mothTineola bisselliella
Spiders & scorpions
Which ones matter, which ones help.
Bites or stingsBrown recluse spiderLoxosceles reclusa
Mostly harmlessWolf spiderLycosidae (family)
Bites or stingsBlack widow spiderLatrodectus species
Mostly harmlessHobo spiderEratigena agrestis
Mostly harmlessOrb weaver spiderAraneidae (family)
Mostly harmlessCommon house spiderParasteatoda tepidariorum
Bites or stingsArizona bark scorpionCentruroides sculpturatus
Damp-area crawlers
Basements and bathrooms.
Damages homeSilverfishLepisma saccharinum
Mostly harmlessEarwigForficula auricularia
Mostly harmlessHouse centipedeScutigera coleoptrata
Mostly harmlessSpringtailCollembola (order)
Mostly harmlessBooklice (booklouse)Psocoptera (order)
Mostly harmlessPill bugArmadillidium vulgare
Mostly harmlessMillipedeDiplopoda (class)
Mostly harmlessCamel cricketRhaphidophoridae (family)
Flies & gnats
Small flies and where they breed.
Fall invaders
Come inside for winter.
Wasps & bees
Nests near the house.
Bites or stingsYellowjacketVespula species
Damages homeCarpenter beeXylocopa virginica
Mostly harmlessCicada killerSphecius speciosus
Mostly harmlessMud dauberSceliphron, Chalybion and Trypoxylon species
Bites or stingsPaper waspPolistes species
Bites or stingsBald-faced hornetDolichovespula maculata
Bites or stingsEuropean hornetVespa crabro
Biters
Bed bugs, fleas, ticks, mosquitoes.
Bites or stingsBed bugCimex lectularius
Bites or stingsKissing bugTriatoma species
Bites or stingsChiggerTrombiculidae (family)
Bites or stingsMosquitoCulicidae (family)
Bites or stingsCat fleaCtenocephalides felis
Bites or stingsLone star tickAmblyomma americanum
Bites or stingsBlacklegged tickIxodes scapularis
Bites or stingsNo-see-umCulicoides species
Signs & evidence
Found a bite, droppings or damage but not the pest? Start here.
- Bites or stingsBrown recluse spiderLoxosceles reclusa
- Bites or stingsBed bugCimex lectularius
- Mostly harmlessWolf spiderLycosidae (family)
- Bites or stingsKissing bugTriatoma species
- Damages homeSilverfishLepisma saccharinum
- Damages homeSubterranean termiteReticulitermes species
- Bites or stingsChiggerTrombiculidae (family)
- Bites or stingsBlack widow spiderLatrodectus species
- Mostly harmlessEarwigForficula auricularia
- Mostly harmlessHouse centipedeScutigera coleoptrata
Mostly harmlessBrown marmorated stink bugHalyomorpha halys- Bites or stingsMosquitoCulicidae (family)
- Bites or stingsCat fleaCtenocephalides felis
- Damages homeCarpenter antCamponotus species
Health riskGerman cockroachBlattella germanica- Bites or stingsLone star tickAmblyomma americanum
- Bites or stingsBlacklegged tickIxodes scapularis
- Mostly harmlessHobo spiderEratigena agrestis
- Mostly harmlessSpringtailCollembola (order)
- Bites or stingsYellowjacketVespula species
- Damages homeCarpenter beeXylocopa virginica
- Mostly harmlessCicada killerSphecius speciosus
Mostly harmlessFungus gnatSciaridae (family)- Mostly harmlessMud dauberSceliphron, Chalybion and Trypoxylon species
- Bites or stingsPaper waspPolistes species
Bites or stingsAsian lady beetleHarmonia axyridis- Bites or stingsBald-faced hornetDolichovespula maculata
Mostly harmlessDrain flyPsychodidae (family)
Gets into foodFruit flyDrosophila melanogaster- Bites or stingsNo-see-umCulicoides species
- Mostly harmlessOrb weaver spiderAraneidae (family)
Health riskAmerican cockroachPeriplaneta americana- Who bit me?Bug bites ›
Mostly harmlessClover miteBryobia praetiosa- Gets into foodDrugstore beetleStegobium paniceum
- Bites or stingsRed imported fire antSolenopsis invicta
Mostly harmlessBoxelder bugBoisea trivittata- Gets into foodRice weevilSitophilus oryzae
- Mostly harmlessBooklice (booklouse)Psocoptera (order)
- Mostly harmlessCommon house spiderParasteatoda tepidariorum
Health riskDeer mousePeromyscus maniculatus- Bites or stingsEuropean hornetVespa crabro
- Health riskPharaoh antMonomorium pharaonis
Health riskOriental cockroachBlatta orientalis- Damages homeVaried carpet beetleAnthrenus verbasci
- Bites or stingsArizona bark scorpionCentruroides sculpturatus
Bites or stingsGiant water bugBelostomatidae (family)
Health riskNorway ratRattus norvegicus- Mostly harmlessPill bugArmadillidium vulgare
Mostly harmlessWood cockroachParcoblatta species
Bites or stingsAmerican dog tickDermacentor variabilis
Bites or stingsBird miteOrnithonyssus and Dermanyssus species
Health riskHouse flyMusca domestica
Health riskHouse mouseMus musculus- Mostly harmlessMillipedeDiplopoda (class)
Health riskPhorid flyMegaselia scalaris
Health riskRoof ratRattus rattus- Damages homeBlack carpet beetleAttagenus unicolor
- Gets into foodLarder beetleDermestes lardarius
Health riskBrown-banded cockroachSupella longipalpa- Gets into foodArgentine antLinepithema humile
- Damages homeDrywood termiteIncisitermes species
- Gets into foodIndian meal mothPlodia interpunctella
- Mostly harmlessPavement antTetramorium immigrans
Damages homeHouse cricketAcheta domesticus- Gets into foodOdorous house antTapinoma sessile
- Gets into foodRed flour beetleTribolium castaneum
- Damages homeWebbing clothes mothTineola bisselliella
Mostly harmlessCluster flyPollenia species
Whose nest?Wasp nests ›
Mostly harmlessSmokybrown cockroachPeriplaneta fuliginosa- Mostly harmlessCamel cricketRhaphidophoridae (family)
Whose poop?Pest droppings ›
What's that smell?Smells that mean pests ›
What laid these?Bug eggs and larvae ›
What's in the wood?Holes in wood ›
Who ate my sweater?Holes in clothes ›
Who's digging?Holes in yard ›
What's in the walls?Scratching in walls ›
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