Thread 2839408

Hi, guys.

This hasn't really got a thing to do with the outdoors. Actually the bugs in picrel are indoors. But I killed like 40+ of them in two hours late at night when I'm really sick and should be resting for my internship early tomorrow. And I hate the feeling of these bugs dropping from the ceiling and flying into my ear and I need to evaluate what kind of pest threat they are. What are they? Do any of you recognize them? How do I get rid of them?

>more info coming soon

About myself and some environmental conditions:
>my location is northern Germany ; I live next to/~50yds from a large public garden area and my window faces the side of the student dorm with dumpsters – however, in my building, I live on the 7th floor
>it is the end of summer, it hasn't rained anytime recently, hasn't rained in maybe the last week
>I have literally never seen these bugs until two days ago, creeping along the outside of my window which was closed, leading me to believe they cannot cross a hermetically sealed boundary
>they only come late in the day/at night –as I write this, it is the morning and my window is open to get some fresh air in the room and the bugs are not here
>once inside they crawl on the ceiling or floor
>it was TONS more humid in my apartment when I had a roommate who loved his air fryer and making rice at the same time but now I live alone and the inside environment is mostly dry when I'm able to air out the rooms
About the bugs:
>on top: shiny dark brown exoskeleton
>six legs and two antennae that stick out front
>when killed and smooshed, they kinda crumble into pieces instead of turning into a goo or paste or whatever
>they have no particular smell either when killed
>they don't bite I don't think? I caught some in between my fingers and I don't think they ever bit me
>they were found exclusively coming from my window, hence they were only found in my bedroom ; I only found one roaming around the kitchen floor and none in the bathroom
>reminder: they came from the window which is facing the direction of the dorm's trash site

Please feel free to ask for more information coming towards a solution and I will certainly try to provide answers.

>>2839409
They look like flour beetles, did you buy any grain products recently? Check your flour bin, if you have one.

>>2839408 (OP)
What size are they? Where were the pictures taken? Is that a floor or a wall?

>>2839412
So, I don't think so. That was a pretty good guess just by looks though. Problems:
>just checked my bag of flour, nothing there
>the flour is behind a sealed door in my kitchen cabinet – zero bugs there
>these bugs only come in through the window and then reside in my bedroom and rarely leave to the kitchen full of food and dirty dishes (with food on them) –so even when there's like 40 bugs in my bedroom, they don't leave the bedroom for the kitchen
>they are attracted to light so they fly up to the bedroom lights and once I turn the lights off, they fall on your face
>ONE MORE THING: it's a REALLY hard exoskeleton –when they fall from the ceiling onto the floor, you can hear it or like you'll hear the sound of a plastic bead dropping onto the ground

It's the bit about the food and flying that confuses me. They aren't German roaches and they aren't flour beetles. Otherwise, they might go to the kitchen and they wouldn't fly (if it was a roach). But they look strongly like roaches (the flour beetle is like a glazed shiny, but these bugs are almost holographic shiny) but they fly. So what are they???

I'm going to go post on Faggit. The Deutschbags on /int/ were of little to no help. Or maybe they were lucky enough to never have this problem...

>>2839413
First pic: floor
Second pic: wall
Not sure how big. I've been trying to keep them out obviously now that I know where they're coming from. But if I could guess, I'd say they are smaller than 5mm. There were bigger ones and smaller ones. Are they babies of a larger species?

>>2839408 (OP)
they're probably carpet beetles, a neighbor has cats & isn't cleaning up the hair
check any fur coats you got btw, they'll ravage them, same with cotton clothing too

>>2839415
Hmm... Well I was going to suggest some sort of ground beetle, something in the Harpalus family. But they're going to be around 1.5-2cm

At that size....maybe some variety of carpet beetle.

>>2839416
>>2839417
I don't quite know how to reply yet. None of the images match what I saw when I type in "carpet beetle" or "northern German carpet beetle". But some of the characteristics match. I think this is the closest probability I'll get. I'm also going to go ask the downstairs neighbors near the trash site if they've had this problem to eliminate the whole dumpster/food probability.

So, for now, just a couple questions: if I wash all my clothes now, will the warm water and detergent kill the bugs and the eggs? And how should I wash my bed? It's right next to the window (~8 feet away)

>>2839419
a standard wash will do perfectly fine for clothes & bedding, and everything else will do with vacuuming in turn
since you're in an apartment, you're not going to be able to clean your neighbors, so best thing you can do is seal any holes/cracks that the beetles are coming from

>>2839419
Regular wash should be fine for anything washable. If you have any hair or feathers around your place(taxedermy, fly tying materials, craft projects or supplies etc..), throw them in the freezer overnight. Vacuum well. Buy some sticky traps and place them between the bulb and shade of any lamps you use frequently. That'll catch the ones attracted to your lights. Diatomaceous earth around your window sill and any known cracks or holes you've seen insects like ants enter from. It won't kill them instantly, it's not poisonous. Diatom shells are tiny geometric shells made of silica that are only one or two atoms thick at the edges. They're like razor blades to insects. It cuts holes in the waxy layer that keeps water in insects and the dehydrate and die.

>>2839419
The carpet beetles I've seen all tend to be rounder, not long and thin. That's why I suggested flour beetles. but they're going to be in the 1-2mm range, again, from the ones I've seen. I get them occasionally in my quail feed.

>>2839409
This looks like Harpalus rufipes.

Check out Trechus quadristriatus. Body shape and color match and AI says they're 3.5-4.5mm.

>>2839425
>The carpet beetles I've seen all tend to be rounder, not long and thin. That's why I suggested flour beetles
That's what I thought too. But they really aren't bothering with food.

>>2839421
>>2839423
Ok. So, if I wash the house from top to bottom, and they're still there, that eliminates another factor.

>>2839427
They're too small. Just found out that the Strawberry Seed beetle's length is about twice as long as the beetles/bugs that I'm seeing.

>>2839428
>look it up
>first result is in German
>I live in Germany
Hol' up. We may have a winner...– ?? I need to check this.

I think it's over. I think I can decisively determine them as Trechus Quadristriatus. Picrel has the same rainbow/holo sheen as the bugs I smooshed. Great job, anon! According to naturespot.org, you identified a red identification difficulty insect!

But apparently, Trechus Quadristriatus (or the four striped ground beetle) first, has no stripes in my version, and second, is carnivorous on other bugs and larvae. So, how do I get rid of them and why are they trying to get into my house? There are 0 bugs inside until they came in. I read that they're potentially looking to nest and breed but what's so attractive about my apartment on the 7th floor? Should I just spray my window net with like DEET or something? Would that be the smartest solution?

>no need to read this unless you want to read my whinging sorry

Ok. I got some more answers searching up "Why do ground beetles come in my window at night" in German. So, they're attracted to light, heat, food, and a possibility of shelter. Problem: all the solutions mean I have to sleep at like 7PM or breathe in the stifling, stale air of my room with the window sealed shut.

So if I've left my window open for years on end, why are these buggers only coming in now?
According to German Overview AI:
>close windows or secure them with a net
Already have one. They're crawling through somehow. A second one would just mean a second hole to crawl through for them.
>reduce light sources
Never was a problem before. Even on the days when I would leave the light on all night. Not a single beetle. But now that would mean I can't even make my computer screen too bright.
>seal cracks
I can't physically fix a screen window protector to my window. The student dorm doesn't allow most modifications unless they're temporary like my window net.
>clean regularly
The window was cleaned a month ago but is still cleaner than most people's windows (you can see even from the ground floor)

>>2839431
If they're looking for bugs and not your stuff, I'd just let them be. Aside from the ick factor of having bugs in your place, they seem like they're the type to have, ones that will potentially eat other destructive insects that would also like to make your home theirs too. They'll probably disappear just as suddenly as they appeared. If you're really concerned, get some sticky traps and place them strategically. You'll see what else is crawling around that you're not seeing too.

Deet will do nothing for these. It's for insects that are attracted to your body heat, sweat and the CO2 in your breath.

>>2839431
>Great job, anon! According to naturespot.org, you identified a red identification difficulty insect!

I took your first picture and cropped it to just the lower beetle. I ran that through google lens with "<5mm Germany" added in the context window. It was the first to come up. I was thinking it looked like a ground beetle with it's raised up stature, but the ones I'm familiar with are all over 1cm. But when I searched for "Trechus quadristriatus size" I got a result in the range you were looking for. Lucky guess and AI assisted search, not much personal entomology experience aside from recognizing the general body shape of a ground beetle.

>>2839408 (OP)
Where I live there's sometimes these 'hatches' of Boxelder bugs, and theyll just swarm out of nowhere, and they like hiding underneath siding on houses. Ill not see them for a while and then suddenly one year ill be killing a few a day in my house. Maybe there was just a big hatch of these little bastards and your apartment with the direction it faces just happens to be the spot they want to go. Maybe a prevailing wind is blowing them against the building. Could see if they'll be attracted to 'Fly Paper/Ribbons', and if they are then that'll help keep them contained. Maybe get some carnivorous pitcher plants?