Who is a wood lice - acquaintance with a pest and its domestic species

Mokritsa loves dampness and a humid environment, so a city apartment is far from always attractive to them. For this reason, only the most unpretentious species of these crustaceans are able to take root in megacities. Let’s find out who we should be afraid of and why?

Characteristic

Many people think that wood lice are an insect, but if you say it right, it is a representative of the suborder of crustaceans and belongs to the isosceles order. She has a dense shell and gills.

Let's look at the structure of wood lice in more detail:

• the body has an oval shape and its upper part is slightly convex;
• on the head are two pairs of antennae, the first of which is poorly developed, the second is strongly;
• eyes are located on both sides of the head;
• there is a jaw and its upper part is devoid of tentacles;
• the body is divided into eight segments, the first one covers the head from two sides, and the last has a notch; segments on the abdomen free;
• legs are well adapted for walking - only 7 pairs;
• the inner branch is the gills; the solid outer branch covers the respiratory organs.

Breeding

Now let's talk about how wood lice grow. This process has some features.

These crustaceans begin to copulate in the spring - approximately in April-May. During sexual intercourse, the testes of the female are filled with seminal fluid. After a while, they burst and the seed is in the oviducts. At this time, the female undergoes molting, after which her appearance changes slightly - the genital paired openings close, transforming into unpaired slots, and a brood chamber forms on the first five pairs of legs. Fertilized eggs penetrate this chamber, where their development takes place.

On a note! It is interesting that not all the seed that enters the testes of the female is then converted into eggs. Some of it remains unclaimed and participates in fertilization only after the first generation is born!

From the eggs appear larvae of the lice, which for 40-50 days continue to develop in the brood chamber. The larva has 6 pairs of legs. And before becoming an adult, she experiences 10-12 links.

Common species

In total, there are about 3,500 species of wood lice. On the territory of our country you can meet no more than a dozen different species, and in the conditions of modern houses and apartments, only two of them can exist.

Next, we learn about the features of the most common types of woodlice.

• wood lice are an ordinary armadillo - a species that is able to withstand with dignity all the hardships of life in a metropolis. These individuals have a dark and high shell. Most often they are found in basements and cellars, and the apartments themselves are quite rare;
  

  On a note! In the USA, an armadillo wood lice was imported from Europe and it spread there with incredible speed. Even today, on the coasts of California there are many of their colonies, consisting of 10 thousand individuals!

• rough wood lice - representatives of this species run much faster than armadillos and cleverly move between floors of large houses.What does a wood lice look like? These crustaceans have a soft flat shell, which can be painted in light gray, yellow, red or almost black.

Based on the above descriptions, we can say that it is the rough wood louse that is homemade. It penetrates into houses and apartments, settles in bathrooms, bathrooms and other damp rooms. This parasite leads a predominantly hidden lifestyle, showing activity only at night. Adults get out of their shelters in search of food that is found in bins and simply on the walls.

On a note! Many apartment owners confuse wood lice with millipedes! These creatures are indeed very similar in appearance, but at the same time, the latter are extremely rarely climbed into human habitation. Millipedes live mainly in the wild - under stones and in forest litter!

Food source

What do woodlice eat? These creatures are very picky and as a food source will be suitable for them:

• rotting food debris;
• a thin layer of dust;
• mucus on the walls;
• plant remains;
• fine microflora.

Therefore, the first stage in the destruction of these crustaceans is a thorough cleaning of the premises and the elimination of dampness.

Distribution paths

Many are interested in where wood lice come from. Initially, they settle in the basements of apartment buildings, in wet attics, where there is a leak, in garages unauthorizedly attached to the house, in cellars and sewers. Gradually, they begin to move to apartments, more often to those located on the first and last floors.

The instigators of the appearance of wood lice are:

• excess moisture, which appears due to a malfunction of plumbing fixtures and sewer pipes;
• garbage in a bucket is a real magnet for wood lice. Rotting food debris attracts these creatures - rotten vegetables and fruits, the remains of polyethylene, which only exacerbate the processes of decay, plant debris;
• stagnant water in trays with plants and dishes in the sink.

We bring to your attention the article “Choosing an effective remedy for wood lice: tips from professionals!»

Harmfulness from wood lice

The answer to the question whether wood lice bite will be unequivocal - no. For this reason, they do not pose any direct threat to humans. However, these creatures can still cause harm:

• lodging in cellars and cellars, wood lice are spoiling the products that are stored there;
• these creatures can settle in a pot with an orchid, which is always grown in moist soil, and thereby disrupt its normal development;
• they attack seedlings on the balcony, compacting the soil and disrupting normal air exchange in it;
• and, most importantly, why woodlice are dangerous - they carry fungus and mold on their paws and shells, which can be on your dishes and products.

As you can see, wood lice are not as safe creatures as it might seem at first glance. To prevent their appearance, it is enough to monitor the serviceability of the water supply system, constantly ventilate all the rooms in your house and often pay attention to tropical ornamental plants that are on your windowsills. Mokrits is attracted by dampness - and knowledge of this fact will help to avoid infection.