No Fishing

Yesterday evening my sister-in-law asked me what I know about silverfish. This was not a question concerning my amazing longline fishing skills, because I don't have any. She was asking about some insects she recently discovered inhabiting her basement. I happened to know exactly what she was talking about due to this insect's infamous repute in the museum and historic site realm. Thanks to their bad reputation they are mentioned a lot in museum studies courses and preservation workshops. Once during a course I was actually given a poster with many blown-up mugshots of the bugs that are considered the most common and destructive by preservationists. I had no more desire to hang this poster on my wall than I would a poster of third degree burns or Justin Bieber, but I do keep it safely tucked away in a drawer. One of the persona non gratas on this placard is the silverfish. Now let me tell you why and share some facts and links about this bug.

Silverfish are dreaded due to their diets, which consists of a lot of carbs and starches. Now in our obsessively weight conscious society this is bad enough, but these bugs don't get their polysaccharides from coffee and donuts they way we do. They prefer the carbohydrates and starches found in carpets, glue, clothes, and certain types of paper. They are capable of getting away with eating a lot because they are nocturnal and it would be a fluke to see any out during the day. Even so, they generally cause little to moderate damage unless a large infestation goes unchecked. I once visited a historic house where over half the original silk carpet of a period room had been overridden, eaten, and destroyed by silverfish. It went undetected for years because the insects were devouring it from the bottom up, starting with the glue and the woven substructure. The original carpet had to be removed and replaced with a less historically accurate carpet, which, as a precaution, was made of starch-free fibers in order to prevent another infestation. So in some rare cases the damage can be very bad. 

The name of the silverfish comes from their appearance. They have a long and thin silver body, though they are also sometimes red, brown, or black. They usually grow to up to a half inch or a full inch in length and their bodies have a flat, carrot-like shape. It is their silver coloring and the wiggling motion they make when they move that led to the silverfish comparison and their name. You can learn about the appearance and nature of the silverfish here.

The presence of silverfish in a home or storage area is a distinct sign of high humidity. They love damp and cool areas and in the house they are often found in basements, bathrooms, or kitchens. In a museum the best prevention is to maintain a low humidity level. When silverfish are detected there are a number of ways to eliminate the infestation. You can read more about silverfish and how to detect and remove them here. 

Silverfish may sound like the pretty, darting creatures that occupy and hypnotize from a household fish tank, and sometimes they are, but in the instance a silverfish is a carb-addicted pest that wiggles its way across the living room carpet, it's best to find a way to track and eliminate them immediately. Not only do they cause some damage, but they could also end up attracting other bugs into the building. I'll be sure to let my sister-in-law know. 

Have you ever dealt with an infestation of silverfish? What damage did they cause and how did you remove them?