Fork tail beetles in my washing! Urgh!

[web-kitten]

Having trawled the web to no avail I am looking to you all for help! I had initially seen this little beetle around the garden and hadn't worried. Then one evening (6pm ish, not late) I was about to take my washing in and each piece had 3 or 4 of these creatures in it. Now we're finding them in the house too! In my son's toy box, and I brushed one off my neck at 2am this morning!

Please help me identify them and tell me about them. Could they bite? Why are they indoors? Should I call pest control? Are they seasonal?

They are about 25mm long, very dark brown. About one third of their body is a large fork tail. They move very very fast. They have quite long prominent antennae.

I have noticed that the garden has a LOT of them now and we have a very small garden. They're in the paddling pool too. I'm not normally squeemish but now I feel itchy and paranoid!

[charlieb]

Can you get a photo? Or maybe a drawing?

[loripo]

Could they be earwigs? Some v good photos in the Gallery - that might rule earwigs in or out...

[Tursiops2]

Earwig from the Gallery:


Harmless, but a bit off-putting if you have lots of them I expect the warm, damp, weather has brought them out.
T2

[web-kitten]

Yes yes that's it! Can't believe its just an earwig! I have just gone to give my son lunch and one was inside his bib! Which was on the breakfast table, which stands alone and doesn't touch a wall! How nimble are these creatures? What are they after? What can I do to discourage them? Have also found them inside my dish cloths today and its all starting to creep me out!

And what do they do with those pincers??!

Thank you so much for your replies; I feel better knowing what it is now and will be sleeping with ear plugs in tonight!!!

[JRsbugs]

It sounds to me like they have suffered from the hot weather and are looking for moisture, which we are now getting! They like damp sheltered places, so if you take them outside as you find them they might not return.

Perhaps you could provide a small area of the garden where they can hide, such as some old wood, ferns and leaf litter if you can find some!

Janet

[Madelinew]

I've just unpacked my car from spending the weekend at cub camp and it's all very earwiggy. Whenever I opened a box of anything or moved something (I was cheif cook and bottle washer) there were loads, especially tiny ones. Definitely having a good season here on the Isle of Wight.

[loripo]

The Beeb have a little on Earwigs, in Science & Nature/wildfacts. It says they cant fly well but are very good at cadging lifts and it would have to be a very confused earwig that would crawl into someones ear - but I think ear plugs are a very good idea

[web-kitten]

Thanks for all your comments... seems these little beasties get everywhere, especially after that burst of heat last week. Will just have to learn to live along side each other I guess!

Thanks again

[Action_Man]

You could always move up north, where its cold and wet all year ...