The Black Carpet Beetle

The larvae grow to 7 mm 0 28 in in length are reddish brown in colour and covered with bristles.

The black carpet beetle.

The larvae eat almost any type of animal product such as leather wool silk feathers hair dried meat dead insects and even dried plant material. The black carpet beetle is a pest in kitchen cupboards as well as in woolen carpets or clothes storage areas. Many people experience an allergic reaction to carpet beetle larval hairs and blood. The black carpet beetle is the most widespread and destructive carpet beetle in the united states.

It damages household products containing keratin a principal protein found in animal hair and feathers. They are numerous during the spring and early summer months. Larval stage is destructive to fabrics and plant materials. Damage often results in a number of small unevenly spaced holes.

The larval form feeds on natural fibres damaging carpets furniture and clothing. The black carpet beetle attagenus unicolor is a 3 5 millimetre long 0 12 0 20 in beetle that can be a serious household pest. The black carpet beetle in the arid southwest the black carpet beetle is particularly problematic as a pantry pest and they disperse throughout homes rapidly where they feed on a variety of items. This stored product pests common name refers to its all black coloration.