What Kind of Bug Is This in My Home?

Identify the bug by its physical features:

1. Winged, flying insects

• 2–3 mm long, powdery-looking wings, gather near damp walls or drains → drain flies (moth flies)
• 3–4 mm long, clear wings with dark spots, hang around fruit or fermenting food → fruit flies
• 2–3 mm long, yellowish to reddish, cluster on walls like specks of dust → booklice
• 3–5 mm long, black or dark brown, long slender antennae, found in closets or along carpet edges → clothes moths
• 5–8 mm long, V-shaped dark marking on the back, drawn to light → grain beetles, cockroaches

2. Crawling small bugs

• 4–5 mm long, flat and oval, reddish-brown, hiding in mattress seams or sofa crevices → bed bugs
• 1–2 mm long, laterally flattened, dark brown, can jump, found on pets or in carpet → fleas
• 3–5 mm long, can jump, white to grayish-brown, gather around bathroom or kitchen sinks → springtails
• 1–2 mm long, dark brown, pinhead-sized, slow-moving on walls → psocids (barklice)
• 2–3 mm long, translucent white, look like tiny grains of rice, found in clothes left unworn in the closet → silverfish nymphs

3. Round or shell-backed bugs

• 15–30 mm long, black or dark brown, active at night, found in kitchens or dark areas → cockroaches
• 1–2 mm long, round, reddish-brown, hard shell, found in grain, dried herbs, or spices → drugstore beetles
• 1–3 mm long, oval, brown to black, with hardened forewings, found in dried beans → bean weevils

4. Nearly invisible micro-pests

• 0.3–0.5 mm long, look like tiny specks of dust, live in bedding and dust, trigger allergies → dust mites
• 0.5–1 mm long, translucent to white, appear in large numbers in grain or flour → grain mites

If you're not sure, take a photo with your phone, zoom in for a closer look, then compare it with the pest images in this encyclopedia.