Latin: Anobium Punctatum
Among pests, we also find the woodworm, which lives in different types of wood. The woodworm is also known as the common wood boring beetle (Anobium Punctatum).
Appearance
Typically, the woodworm is characterized by its brown shell with dotted stripes on the cover wings. Their size is typically 3-5 mm. Traces of the woodworm are often found in older houses as well as outdoors, where it lives in wooden fences, dead trees, and other types of soft wood.
The woodworm will typically be seen during the summer months – especially from June to August due to the warmer weather. Hench the high number of woodworms in late June and early July. The woodworm does not live more than 14 days and during its lifetime it will move around different wooden surfaces, but they do prefer surfaces where they were hatched themselves. Woodworms can fly, which is why they often end up on the windowsill.
Biology and behavior
After the woodworms mating, the female can lay up to 60 eggs, these are placed where there is maximum protection as well as a relatively high humidity for favorable breeding condition. The eggs are provided with a whitish mass that acts as an adhesive to the surface.
The larva, hatches after 3-4 week, where it gnaws its way into the tree. The larvae are typically white and curved, and they measure 5-6 mm. Within 2-3 years, the larvae will be fully-grown, but in some cases, it can take up to 8 years. The ideal temperature for their development is around 22 degrees, if the temperature is above 28 degrees, they are not able to survive for long. The larvae do thrive at lower temperatures, but this also slows their development. In time they will create drilling dust, which consist of the larvae excrement. Throughout their development, they will expand the passages in the wood, as they exclusively reside inside the tree.
Damage
The woodworm lives in all kinds of wood, and they are often seen in many different furniture and wooden items in Denmark. Here they often reside in different baskets and plywood and is almost inevitable in the home.
The woodworm damaging behavior is how it eats its way through the wood, it is often a slow process which can be prevented before they have deteriorated the wood.
Prevention and pest control
The woodworm is dependent on a high humidity. Therefore, they rarely occur indoors in newer houses, due to the low humidity and warmth. If you do encounter a woodworm indoor, they will typically die out over time. You can slow down or eliminate an infestation by storing the infested furniture in a dry environment.
This can be done by optimizing ventilation and lower the humidity, with heating.
It is important to be aware that after an attack you may experience drilling dust coming out of the wood. You can experience this for up to several years after an attack, and you should always keep an eye out for new fly holes in the attacked wood. This will be an indicator of whether the attack has stopped.
A preventative method may be to treat the wood with a wood preservative approved for the control of woodworms. Here you will find a variety of different products on the market that are suitable for this purpose. The wood preservative is applied in two to three coats with a brush or sprayer and the amount should be the recommended dose.
On larger quantities of timber, it would be easier using a sprayer. You should also use a syringe if you need to fight an attack. As you can inject the agent directly into the holes, this treatment must be repeated annually before the flight time, which takes place in May. You can also use petroleum, this remedy is widely used, but not highly effective. It is only effective, if the larva is drowned in it; instead of petroleum it is recommended to use heat treatment. In general, heat treatment is an optimal way to control woodworms, as the pest quickly dies at temperatures above 55 degrees. This should only be done on wood does not get damage by the heat treatment. Attacks on smaller objects can often be handled by freezing the object for 1-2 days.
"Pests in House and Home"
"Bed Bugs - Bites, Stings and Itches"
"Food Pests"
"Husets dyreliv" (Insects Around the House - Only danish)
"Skadedyr i træ" (Timber Pests - Only danish)
"Stuefluen" (Common Housefly - Only danish)