Identifying House Centipedes
House Centipede Identification
[ House Centipede Identification | Inspecting For House Centipedes | Treating For House Centipedes | Preventing House Centipedes ]Identifying House Centipedes
House centipedes are found in many homes across America. They may not pose a direct threat to your family's health, but they are scary looking and can be a nuisance pest. The first step to getting rid of them in your house is to identify them.
We'll help you identify what House centipedes look like and show you where to look for the source of the infestation, as well as how to do treatments to get rid of them.
House Centipedes Size, Shape, and Colors
House centipedes have long, thin bodies, and two antennae. They have 15 pairs of legs (30 legs altogether, one pair per segment.) They use their two front legs to grab prey. Adult females last pair of legs are nearly twice the length of their body. These legs have an almost feathery-like appearance when they are moving.
House centipedes can range in size from 1 inch to 6 inches long, including their legs. The body of a house centipede may only be between 1 inch to 1.5 inches in length. The body of a house centipede is a yellowish-brown color with the three dark stripes going down their backs. The legs are also striped light and darker in color.
House Centipedes Locations Geographically
House centipedes can be found all over the world. They like to live in damp, dark places. Those areas include basements, crawl spaces, bathrooms, and closets. Outside, they can be found under rocks, leaves, and mulch.
Lifecycle of a House Centipede
House centipedes are born with as few as four pairs of legs, they will gain a new set of legs with each molting. They will go through three lifecycle stages and molt six times before they become an adult.
Female House centipedes will lay their eggs each spring. They can lay between 35 and 150 eggs at one time. Their eggs are generaly small and white and are usually laid in groups.
Nymphs are baby centipedes. They will hatch from their eggs in 2-4 weeks. Nymphs look just like adults, but they are much smaller. They will molt 5 - 15 times before they become full adults. Adult House centipedes can live up to 3 years and will molt every few months.
House centipedes can be considered beneficial insects as they will eat other insects such as spiders, silverfish, and cockroaches. They will also eat the eggs of those insects. Sometimes they will enter homes in search of food.
Will House Centipedes bite?
Centipedes do have poison claws behind their heads they will use to poison and paralyze their prey. Their claws are weak and will rarely penetrate human skin. A centipede bite is not any worse than a bee sting, and they rarely bite humans. Mostly they are a nuisance and do not threaten the health of humans or pets in a home.