Never heard of silverfish? Also known as bristletails or firebrats, these extraordinary insects have lots of interesting features:
- They’re prehistoric.
One of the oldest insects in the world, silverfish have inhabited the planet for over 400 million years – that’s 100 million years before dinosaurs even existed! - They live a very long life.
If you’re suffering from a silverfish problem in your home, you’re probably hoping they have a short lifespan. Not so. Silverfish live a very long life, from 3 to 6 years on average. In fact, some silverfish have been known to live over 8 years! - They’re hard to kill.
Silverfish possess an amazing tolerance to bug poisons, possibly due to their long history helping them build up an immune tolerance. - They have weird tastes.
If you think by stashing the sweets you’ll ditch your silverfish problem, think again. Silverfish can live up to a year without food, and have a very unusual diet, consisting mainly of paper, glue, and other starchy substances like toothpaste, pasta, and cardboard. Kind of brings new meaning to a high carb, high fiber diet doesn’t it? - They’re highly acrobatic.
Because of their small size and many appendages, silverfish are capable of scaling walls and ceilings, jumping as high as two feet vertically, and squeezing into tiny cracks in your walls. Good luck cornering a silverfish!
Bent over backwards trying to get rid of silverfish? Don’t get out of shape, contact Allison Pest Control today. Since 1917, Allison has been helping New Jersey residents solve their longest-lived pest control issues.