Insect ID: Indoors (in a house, greenhouse, garage, shed, etc.)
Return to Insect ID: Habitat
Kitchen and Food Storage Areas:
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- Ants (especially Pavement Ants which are pictured here)
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- American Cockroach (female)
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- American Cockroach (female)
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American Cockroaches
(Male versus Female)
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- Brown-banded Cockroaches
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- Brown-banded Cockroaches (female: left; male: right)
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- German Cockroaches
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- German cockroach (female) (Blattella germanica)
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- Ventral view of a female German cockroach, revealing her egg case called an ootheca
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- Female German cockroach with ootheca (egg case) attached to her abdomen
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- Blow Fly
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- Blow Fly
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- A type of blow fly commonly called a Green Bottle Fly.
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- Cluster Fly
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- Drain Fly (also called a Moth Fly)
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- Drain Fly (additional example)
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- Drugstore Beetles (Stegobium paniceum) (Alton, Maine; 8/2/2021)
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- Drugstore Beetle (Stegobium paniceum) (Alton, Maine; 8/2/2021)
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- Confused Flour Beetles and larvae
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- Confused Flour beetle
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- Flour Beetles (Left: Confused Flour Beetle; Right: Red Flour Beetle)
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- Broadhorned Flour beetles
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- A Broad-horned Flour Beetle and a larva of the same species
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- Larva of a Broad-horned Flour Beetle
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- Flour Beetles
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- Comparison of three different beetle pests of stored grains
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- Grain beetle (adult and larva/grub)
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- Lesser Grain Borers
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- Lesser Grain Borer damage to a grain of millet
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- Lesser Grain Borers and a Merchant Grain Beetle
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- Grain Beetles
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- House Fly larvae
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- House Fly
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- Pantry Moths / Flour Moths (Plodia interpunctella) (plus larvae and the webbing that the larvae spin, shown with one of their more unusual food sources: rodenticide pellets)
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- Pantry Moth / Flour Moth (Plodia interpunctella)
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- Larder Beetle larva
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- Larder Beetle larvae
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- Larder Beetle (Dermestes lardarius)
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- Larder Beetle (Dermestes lardarius)
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- Larder Beetle (Dermestes lardarius)
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Mealworms
(larvae and adults)
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- Silverfish
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- Four-lined Silverfish (Ctenolepisma lineatum)
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- Example of a wood roach (Dusky Cockroach, Ectobius lapponicus) (male) (Stetson, Maine; 7/13/2015)
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- Example of a wood roach (Tawny Cockroach, Ectobius pallidus) (male) (Acadia National Park, Maine; 10/11/2009)
Kitchen and Food Storage Areas:
- Ants (especially Pavement Ants)
- Blow Flies
- Broadhorned Flour Beetle
- Cluster Flies
- Cockroaches
- American Cockroach
- Brown-banded Cockroach
- German Cockroach
- Wood roaches (they only live outdoors but are attracted to lights at night so sometimes find their way indoors accidentally; visit our Cockroaches page for more information about them)
- Drugstore Beetles (Univ. of Florida) | See also Drugstore Beetle (BugGuide.net) and Drugstore Beetles (Univ. of Wisconsin)
- Flour Beetles
- Flour Moth
- Four-lined Silverfish
- Fruit Flies
- Grain Beetles
- Grain / Flour Mites (University of Kentucky)
- House Flies
- Indian Meal Moth
- Larder Beetles
- Lesser Grain Borers
- Lesser Mealworms
- Mealworms
- Pantry Moth
- Pavement Ants
- Sawtoothed Grain Beetles
- Silverfish
Sink, Tub, Pet Dish, Toilet, etc:
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- American Cockroach (female)
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American Cockroaches
(Male versus Female)
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- Egg Case (Ootheca) from an American Cockroach
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- American Cockroach
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- Brown-banded Cockroaches
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- Brown-banded Cockroaches (female: left; male: right)
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- female German cockroach with ootheca egg case attached to abdomen
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- Ventral view of a female German cockroach, revealing her egg case called an ootheca
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- German Cockroaches
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- German Cockroach
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- Crickets (such as the Camel Cricket shown here)
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- Drain Fly (also called a Moth Fly)
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- Drain Fly (additional example)
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- Four-lined Silverfish (Ctenolepisma lineatum)
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- Horsehair Worm (these are not insects, of course)
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- A Horsehair worm that has emerged from its host cricket
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- Horsehair worm inside a 3.5″ diameter petri dish
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- House Centipede
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- House Fly
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- House Fly larvae
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- Mealworms (larvae and adults) (Found in areas with dry dog or cat food)
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Millipedes
(considered an ‘Occasional Household Invader’)
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- Millipede
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- Larder Beetle larva
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- Larder Beetle larvae
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- Larder Beetle (Dermestes lardarius)
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- Sowbugs
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- Sow Bug
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- Varied Carpet Beetle (Anthrenus verbasci) next to a U.S. penny for scale purposes (specimen from Orono, ME; 5/3/2023)
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- Example of a wood roach (Dusky Cockroach, Ectobius lapponicus) (male) (Stetson, Maine; 7/13/2015)
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- Example of a wood roach (Tawny Cockroach, Ectobius pallidus) (male) (Acadia National Park, Maine; 10/11/2009)
Sink, Tub, Pet Dish, Toilet, etc:
- Carpet Beetles
- Cockroaches
- American Cockroach
- Brown-banded Cockroach
- German Cockroach
- Wood roaches (they only live outdoors but are attracted to lights at night so sometimes find their way indoors accidentally; visit our Cockroaches page for more information about them)
- Crickets (most often in basements and garages)
- Drain Flies (also called Moth Flies) (around sewage or other wet areas)
- Four-lined Silverfish
- Horsehair Worm
- House Centipede
- House Flies
- Larder Beetles
- Mealworms
- Millipedes
- Silverfish
- Sowbugs (Univ. of Maryland / UMD Cooperative Extension)
Carpet / Clothing / Fabric:
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- Bed Bug (adult female)
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- Size Comparisons: Adult Bed Bug (Left), Bed Bug Nymph (Middle), and Sesame Seed (Right)
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- (additional example) Bed Bug (adult)
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- Carpet Beetles and Carpet Beetle larvae
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- Larder Beetle larva
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- Larder Beetle larvae
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- Larder Beetle (Dermestes lardarius)
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- Larder Beetle (Dermestes lardarius)
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- Varied Carpet Beetle (Anthrenus verbasci) next to a U.S. penny for scale purposes (specimen from Orono, ME; 5/3/2023)
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- Varied Carpet Beetle (Anthrenus verbasci) (magnified view; playing dead as they are apt to do)
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- Brown-dotted Clothes Moths / European House Moths (Niditinea fuscella) (they do not feed on clothing or fabrics; captured on a pheromone trap intended for fabric-damaging clothes moths; Peaks Island, ME; 6/28/2024) (Photo courtesy of Jean Hoffman)
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- Case-bearing Clothes Moth (Tinea pellionella)
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- Fleas (Cat Flea shown here)
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- Mites ( Dust Mites) (Parasitic Mites of Humans)
Carpet / Clothing / Fabric:
- Bed Bugs
- Carpet Beetles (including Larder Beetles)
- Clothes Moths
- Fleas
- Non-insect Possibilities:
- Mites
- Bird Mites [will bite people in the absence of their bird host(s)] (University of Minnesota Extension)
- Dust Mites
- Mold Mites / Tyroglyphid Mites (Iowa State University)
- Grain / Flour Mites (University of Kentucky)
- Parasitic Mites of Humans (University of Kentucky)
- Mites
Mattress / Sofa / Recliner (etc.):
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- Bed Bug (adult female)
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- Size Comparisons: Adult Bed Bug (Left), Bed Bug Nymph (Middle), and Sesame Seed (Right)
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- (additional example) Bed Bug (adult)
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- Fleas (Cat Flea shown here)
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- Head Louse
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- Head Lice
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- Masked Hunter (A type of Assassin Bug)
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- Varied Carpet Beetle (Anthrenus verbasci) next to a U.S. penny for scale purposes (specimen from Orono, ME; 5/3/2023)
Mattress / Sofa / Furniture:
- Bed Bugs
- Carpet Beetles (sometimes mistaken for ticks due to their small size)
- Fleas
- Head Lice
- Masked Hunter
- Non-insect Possibilities: Mites (not pictured)
- Bird Mites [will bite people in the absence of their bird host(s)] (University of Minnesota Extension)
- Dust Mites
- Parasitic Mites of Humans (University of Kentucky)
Firewood (On or Near):
See also the Maine Forest Service’s Insects From Firewood publication, and please remember: Don’t transport firewood!
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- Blood-Colored Checkered Beetle (Zenodosus sanguineus) (These beetles are predators of woodboring insects) (Bridgton, ME; 10/20/2023) (Photo courtesy of Rebecca Long, UMaine Extension)
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- Carpenter Ants (workers) (one of the workers is feeding on a drop of honey)
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- Queen Carpenter Ant (wingless stage)
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- Carpenter Ant Queen (wingless stage; they shed their wings after mating)
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- Carpenter Ant (Winged Queen)
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- Carpenter Ant (Winged Queen)
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- Carpenter Ant (Winged Queen)
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- Carpenter Ant (Winged Queen)
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- Crickets (such as the Camel Cricket shown here)
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- Earwigs
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- Interior portion of ash bark showing the tunneling and brood chambers carved out by Eastern Ash Bark beetles (The egg galleries run perpendicular to the tree’s branch and/or trunk) (Easton, ME; 3/10/2022)
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- Eastern Ash Bark Beetle (Hylesinus aculeatus) (July 21st, 2021; from firewood in Pittsfield, Maine) (with three phoretic mites hitching a ride on its back)
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- Spongy Moth (Lymantria dispar) (male)
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- Spongy Moth (female)
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- Removing a Spongy Moth egg mass
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- Species of Horntail (also called Wood Wasps) (this one is the Pigeon Horntail, Tremex columba)
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- House Centipede
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- Introduced Pine Sawfly larva (July 11, 2015) (central Maine)
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- Introduced Pine Sawfly adult (Etna, ME; 4/15/2020)
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- Example of a Longhorned Beetle (so-named because of their very long antennae; this one shown here is a Roundheaded Apple Tree Borer)
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- Metallic Wood-boring Beetle (Family: Buprestidae)
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- Centipedes and Millipedes
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Millipedes
(considered an ‘Occasional Household Invader’)
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- Millipede
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- Powderpost Beetle
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- Sowbugs
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- Sow Bug
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- Northeastern Pine Sawyer (closer view)
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- Northeastern Pine Sawyer
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- Tanbark Borer / Violet Tanbark Beetle (Phymatodes testaceus) (Cape Elizabeth, ME; 5/4/2023) (Photo courtesy of MB)
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- Whitespotted Sawyer Beetles
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- Whitespotted Sawyer beetle (female)
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- Whitespotted Sawyer Beetle (female); Photo by C. Armstrong
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- A male Ectobius cockroach (likely a Tawny Cockroach, Ectobius pallidus) seen in Acadia National Park; Oct. 11th, 2009.
Firewood (On or Near):
- Bark Beetles
- Blood-colored Checkered Beetle (predators of woodboring insects) (BugGuide.net)
- Carpenter Ants
- Crickets
- Earwigs
- Eastern Ash Bark Beetles
- G**** Moth — find it now by its new name of Spongy Moth
- Horntails
- House Centipede
- House Crickets (most often in basements)
- Introduced Pine Sawfly
- Longhorned Beetles (and Roundheaded Borers) (Iowa State Univ.)
- Metallic Wood-Boring Beetles (Univ. of Minnesota Extension)
- Millipedes
- Pennsylvania Wood Roach
- Powderpost Beetles
- Sawyer Beetles
- Sowbugs (Univ. of Maryland / UMD Cooperative Extension)
- Spongy Moth
- Tanbark Borer / Violet Tanbark Beetle (often encountered when they emerge indoors from oak firewood) (BugGuide.net)
- Wood Roach
See also: Nuisance Wood Borers and Seed Insects in Homes (Univ. of Minnesota)
Wet or Damp Areas (including wet and rotting wood, damp books, etc):
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- Blow Fly
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- A species of booklice (possibly Trogium pulsatorium)
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- A species of booklice resting at the edge of a glass petri dish (closer view of the same specimen is shown in the adjacent image at right)
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- Carpenter Ants (workers) (one of the workers is feeding on a drop of honey)
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- Centipedes and Millipedes
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- House Centipede
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Millipedes
(considered an ‘Occasional Household Invader’)
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- Millipede
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- Crickets (such as the Camel Cricket shown here)
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- Drain Fly (also called a Moth Fly)
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- Drain Fly (additional example)
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- Earwigs
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- Dark-winged Fungus Gnats (Family Sciaridae) captured on a yellow sticky card placed in the pot of a houseplant (they are drawn to light and also to the color of yellow)
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- Fungus gnat larvae in a mushroom cap
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- Fungus gnat
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- A Horsehair worm that has emerged from its host cricket
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- Horsehair Worm (these are not insects, of course)
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- Mosquito (Ochlerotatus canadensis)
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- Mosquito Larvae
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- Silverfish
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- Four-lined Silverfish (Ctenolepisma lineatum)
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- Sowbugs
Wet or Damp Areas (including wet and rotting wood):
- Ants
- Booklice
- Blow Flies
- Carpenter Ants (attracted to wet/rotting wood)
- Centipedes
- Crickets
- Drain Flies (also called Moth Flies) (around sewage or other wet areas)
- Earwigs
- Four-lined Silverfish
- Fungus Gnats
- Horsehair Worm
- House Centipede
- House Crickets (most often in basements)
- Millipedes
- Mites
- Clover Mites (Penn State)
- Mold Mites / Tyroglyphid Mites (Iowa State University)
- Grain / Flour Mites (University of Kentucky)
- Mosquitoes (Maine Forest Service) see also:
- Mosquito Biology (UMaine Extension)
- Mosquito Management (UMaine Extension)
- Insect Repellents (UMaine Extension)
- West Nile Virus (CDC)
- Preventing Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) Virus in Maine
- Silverfish
- Sowbugs (Univ. of Maryland / UMD Cooperative Extension)
- Wood Roach
Potted Plants / Houseplants / Greenhouses:
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- Aphids on Pepper Leaves
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- Green Peach Aphids on broccoli
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- A species of booklice resting at the edge of a glass petri dish (closer view of the same specimen is shown in the adjacent image at right)
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- A species of booklice (possibly Trogium pulsatorium)
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- Dark-winged Fungus Gnats (Family Sciaridae) captured on a yellow sticky card placed in the pot of a houseplant (they are drawn to light and also to the color of yellow)
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- Fungus gnat larvae in a mushroom cap
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- Fungus gnat
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- Fungus gnat (closer view)
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- Mealybugs (Family Pseudococcidae)
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- Springtails (snow fleas) collected from a cranberry bog
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- Closeup of a globular springtail
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- Closeup of a Springtail
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- Closeup image of a Sprintail
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- Spider Mites (leaves with webbing are a telltale sign)
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- Two-spotted Spider Mites
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- Whiteflies
Potted Plants / Houseplants / Greenhouses:
- Aphids
- Booklice
- Fungus Gnats
- Leafminers (University of Florida)
- Mealybugs (on house plants) (Univ. of New Hampshire)
- Sowbugs (Univ. of Maryland / UMD Cooperative Extension)
- Springtails
- Thrips
- Whiteflies (University of Missouri)
- Non-insect Possibilities: Spider Mites / Two-Spotted Spider Mites | Cyclamen Mites (Univ. of Kentucky)| Broad Mites (Tennessee State Univ.)