Silverfish
Lepisma saccharina
- Identification
- Silvery, teardrop-shaped, wingless insects with three tail bristles and a wriggling motion.
- Lifecycle & behavior
- Slow-developing but long-lived; thrive in humid, dark areas feeding on starches, paper, and glue.
- When it's active in Central NY
- Year-round in damp CNY basements, bathrooms, and stored boxes; more active in humid conditions.
- Risk & damage
- Damage books, paper, wallpaper, and stored fabrics; a nuisance rather than a health threat.
- Why DIY falls short
- They hide in cracks and tolerate many home sprays; moisture is the real driver.
- How we treat it
- Moisture reduction, crack-and-crevice treatment, and reducing harborage in storage areas.
Silverfish or firebrat?
Both are teardrop-shaped, wingless, and fast, with three tail filaments. Silverfish are silvery-gray and prefer cool damp conditions. Firebrats are mottled brown-gray and prefer hot places — near boilers, furnaces, hot water pipes, and ovens. Where you find it is usually the quickest identification.
Silverfish in Central New York
Silverfish are strongly associated with damp basements, bathrooms, and the undersides of stored cardboard and paper, all of which the region's older housing provides. They feed on starches and cellulose — paper, book bindings, wallpaper paste, cardboard, and natural fabrics — and can damage stored documents and books over time.
They are slow-developing and long-lived, so a population builds gradually and tends to indicate a persistent moisture condition rather than a recent event. Storing paper and textiles in sealed plastic rather than cardboard, and reducing humidity, addresses the conditions directly.
Dealing with silverfish?
Our general pest preventative service handles it — guaranteed, family-owned, and local.
Silverfish — common questions
What are silverfish eating in my house?
Starches and cellulose — paper, cardboard, book bindings, wallpaper paste, and natural fabrics. That is why they turn up in stored boxes, bookshelves, and basements. Moving stored paper and textiles into sealed plastic containers removes the food source and the harborage at once.