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Carpet beetles are a common household pest in Australia. If they remain out in the garden hanging out on plants and eating seeds, no big deal, but they can cause a few issues when inside the home. That begs the question: “What attracts carpet beetles, and why do they want to venture inside your house”? Let’s discover the reasons why and how they find their way inside in the first place.
How do carpet beetles get inside?
Being a flying insect, carpet beetles often fly inside through an open door or window. As they love flowers, they may also gain access to your home on freshly cut flowers from your garden. As many carpet beetles are small, they can find their way inside through small cracks and crevices around windows, doorways, broken fly screens and even through the ceiling in some cases.
Your home is inviting and protected
Rather than living out in the wild, at risk of falling prey to predators such as birds, carpet beetles are attracted to warm, cosy and protected locations, and your house might just be ideal. In fact, once inside, along with protection, they’ll find everything they need.
Carpet beetles want your food
Indoors, these beetles look for animal protein to feed on, in particular silk, wool, furs, feathers and even carpet. Food, oils and sweat are found on these items, and that’s what carpet beetles desire. They also adore grain-based foods and dairy products, so these will also be a target for these little critters.
Female carpet beetles want to reproduce
Your home is a huge drawcard when female carpet beetles are in reproduction mode. They’ll lay eggs in or near your kitchen or pantry and sometimes even in food items directly. When hatched, carpet beetle larvae enjoy feasting on seeds, pet food and grain-based products. Essentially, your home becomes an incubator for carpet beetle larvae when it’s time for females to breed.
Protect your home against a carpet beetle infestation
While carpet beetles are basically harmless and won’t hurt you, your children or your pets, you won’t want them taking up residence inside your house. Call in professional pest control services and be sure to block up any entry points to keep these beetles from getting inside. A thorough cleaning from Boas Cleaning Services will help rid your home of carpet beetles, their larvae and the food sources they’re attracted to, so contact us today.