While eating dinner at a family restaurant in the Boise area I noticed a couple of interesting insects on the wall right next to my booth. As I inspected the wall I noticed that they were carpet beetles. A lot of carpet beetles, like 20!
I spoke to the restaurant manager and asked him what was next door. He said that it was vacant currently but it used to be a home furnishing store.
I started to put the picture together. Carpet beetles like you see in the photos above are often observed in their larval state: Brown and hairy! They are usually found with stored woolens, carpeting, taxidermy, accumulations of lint and hair, in closets, drawers, and more often than not in stored foods and in pantries. I’m sure they were coming from the vacancy next door.
Adult carpet beetles are small black beetles approximately 1/8 of an inch long. Adult carpet beetles feed on pollen, not on fabrics or the other materials listed above.
Thankfully, carpet beetles are relatively easy to take care of. First step is to remove any harborage or food sources that they are currently feeding on. Regular cleaning of rugs, drapes, curtains, and closets are a must. Surface pest control treatment on carpeted areas or other infested areas are required to take care of these pesky little bugs
