Booklouse

Natural Habitat

Warm, humid environments; often found indoors in books, stored food, paper, and damp areas. Outdoors, they live on bark, leaves, or under stones.

Diet & Feeding

Molds, fungi, starch-based materials (e.g., paper, book bindings, wallpaper paste), cereal products, and other organic debris. They have chewing mouthparts.

Behavior Patterns

They are typically active, fast-moving insects, especially when disturbed. Many species are parthenogenetic, meaning females can reproduce without males. They prefer dark, undisturbed, and humid environments. Booklice do not bite humans or pets.

Risks & Benefits

Potential risks include contamination of stored food products or damage to paper goods and books due to feeding on mold and starch. They are not known to transmit diseases. Benefits include their role as decomposers, helping to break down organic matter, especially molds.

Identified on: 9/6/2025