While silverfish don’t bite or sting, they are an unpleasant surprise for customers and they can cause damage.
Are you dealing with silverfish in your business? For over 100 years, Assured Environments have been protecting business in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut from silverfish, and other pests.
Read on to find out the answers to all these questions: What are silverfish? Do silverfish bite? Where do silverfish live? What do silverfish eat? Are silverfish dangerous? Are silverfish harmful to businesses? What is the life cycle silverfish have? How to get rid of silverfish?
Silverfish (Lepisma saccharina) are sometimes called “bristletails” and belong to the scientific order Zygentoma.
Their name is derived not just from their color, but from their fish-like swimming motion. They use a lateral undulation technique—moving their bodies in a side-to-side wave—which provides significant propulsion on flat surfaces.
Size: About ¼ to ½ inches long, with a “carrot-shaped” body that’s thicker near the head, and thinner at the rear
Color: Dark gray or silver, with metallic-looking or shining scales
Body: They’re called “bristletails” as they have three tail-like appendages on the rear of their abdomens. The two “bristles” that point sideways are called “cerci,” while the one that points straight backward is called a “filament."
Silverfish prefer dark, moist, and warm locations. They’re usually found near bathtubs, sinks, closets, basements and other humid locations. Their ideal temperature is between 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit, with 75 to 95% relative humidity.
Silverfish eat carbohydrates like sugars, and starches in vegetables, flour, cereal, dried foods, dead insects, beef, and sweet foods. If they can’t access carb-rich food, silverfish can also eat the starches in fabrics, paper, glue, and other adhesives; bookbinds, photographs, and more. They can survive months without eating.
Silverfish have three life stages: egg, nymph, and adult. Overall, they usually live two to three years in favorable conditions, but can live up to 8 years. It mainly depends on the temperature of the rearing environment.
Egg: A female silverfish produces several fertilized oval-shaped eggs after mating and can produce around 100 eggs in her lifetime. She lays eggs in crevices and dust, plus in food and on cloth. In warm environments, her eggs may hatch in just 19 days. In colder environments, eggs can stay dormant for up to 6 weeks and then hatch when temperatures rise.
Nymph: They grow slowly and emerge as miniature, paler versions of adults. They molt many times as they grow and start to develop their signature metallic scales.
Adults: Unlike most insects, silverfish continue molting throughout their lives. This gradual development means they reach reproductive maturity slowly and can stay exceptionally resilient to harsh environments.
Silverfish are nocturnal and have bad eyesight. So they use two long, slender antennae or “feelers" as highly developed sense receptors, plus their three long tail-like appendages (cerci) at the rear, as their main way to navigate around. These organs detect even minute changes in air pressure or vibrations, allowing them to react and reach top speed almost instantaneously when they sense a predator.
Their flattened, teardrop-shaped body means they can squeeze through tight cracks, and crevices with minimal resistance. As they’re vulnerable to spiders, centipedes, and other predators, they’ve evolved to move in short, unpredictable “stop-start” bursts, so it’s hard for their enemies to track their trajectory.
Yes, silverfish cause more harm to businesses than just being an alarming sight that puts off customers.
They can also hide away and damage important materials in commercial environments by feeding on them and causing yellow staining as they are attracted to starch based materials including:
The best way to get rid of silverfish is to combine cleaning, moisture control, and targeted treatment:
Reduce humidity. Fix leaky pipes and faucets, plus use a dehumidifier to improve ventilation in bathrooms and kitchens
Declutter and remove food sources. Reduce stacks of newspapers, magazines, cardboard boxes, and other hiding places, plus store important paper and clothing in sealed containers. When you store above ground, you deprive silverfish of potential hiding places.
Seal entry points. Add caulk to cracks around skirting boards, walls, pipes, and cupboards where silverfish hide and lay eggs.
Vacuum regularly. Clear dust and crumbs from baseboards, behind furniture, and inside cupboards.
Let in natural light: This deters silverfish as they dislike direct light.
Use sticky traps. These reduce the silverfish population and monitor the problem.
Apply insecticides carefully. Follow the instructions when applying them to cracks, and crevices and avoid spraying in living areas unless necessary.
Consider desiccant dusts. Silica gel or diatomaceous earth (food-grade) applied in dry, inaccessible areas can kill silverfish by damaging their protective outer layer. Keep these products away from children, and pets, and follow the label directions.
Contact a professional pest control service
Still seeing silverfish months after these measures? You may have a hidden infestation, a hidden moisture problem, or both. So contact a pest control company to ask for a free inspection.
See how Assured Environments can help your business for Silverfish Control Services in the Tri-State Area.
No. You will have no silverfish bite marks as they don’t bite. They have very weak mandibles that are not capable of biting. They scrape the surface of paper products or food to get nutrition. They’re also terminally fearful and will probably skitter away before you have any chance to worry about a silverfish bite.
Silverfish are not particularly harmful, but their appearance can be startling and won’t encourage customers. They don’t bite or carry disease, but they can damage books, boxes, clothing and upholstery. They may leave behind a yellow waste smear.
Yes. There are 24 species of bristletails in the U.S. but only a few that you’re likely to find in your home or business. These include the common silverfish, the gray silverfish, the four lined silverfish and the firebrat which prefers warmer temperatures.
The name comes from the small, silvery scales on their bodies and the wave motion they use to propel themselves forward. These scales detach very easily, which makes silverfish surprisingly difficult for predators to grab onto.
Silverfish get around so quickly as they need speed to survive as they don’t have wings, stingers or hard shells to defend themselves. Their legs on either side mean they have a wide stable base to sprint. Plus, they have specialized tarsal claws that allow them to maintain grip even at high speeds.
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