Of course, earwigs don't belong in the apartment. But are they dangerous and do they really crawl in your ear at night? Here you will find the facts.
Earwigs - or earwigs in general - haven't really warmed to people since the Middle Ages. New findings have completely changed the light on him: now he should no longer be a malicious parasite of our ears, but a useful garden helper. We'll enlighten you on whether the earwig is useful, harmful or dangerous.
First we want to describe the earwig very soberly in its way and way of life, then we clarify whether earwigs actually do anything with our ears. And after we've summarized whether it's a beneficial or a pest, we'll explain how an earwig hotel in the garden can benefit the little animals.
Earwig: description and way of life
Earwigs belong to the order of earwigs (Dermaptera). The included genus Forficula, which also includes the American and North American earwig, has existed for at least 34 million years. Although earwigs are taxonomically a flying insect, most of them rarely or never fly. Their membranous hindwings are hidden under the hardened forewings, which they can fold up intricately. The hind wings of the common earwig (Forficula auricularia) are so reduced that it can hardly fly. It has biting-chewing mouthparts and is an omnivore. Rarely is he also interested in selected types of ornamental plants or fruits. With a body length of only 9 to 16 mm, it is a small representative of its order - in Australia, earwigs of up to 6.5 cm in length live.
The pincers - called cerci - are used in hunting, for defence, for unfolding the wings and for mating. Forficula auricularia is what is commonly referred to in Germany as "the earwig" or alternatively also hyrax, ear louse or even ohrawusler. Its way of life is cryptic, finding food under damp leaves or bark, in cracks and creviceslays its eggs there. It only gets into the house by accident, but sheds, garages, balconies and garden sheds are often chosen as quarters. Here you can find out how you can use traps to get rid of or combat earwigs in the house, apartment and garden.
Earwig in the ear: myth or truth?
In the Middle Ages, it was believed that earwigs crawl into our ears at night, rip the eardrum with their pincers, and then lay their eggs in our skull. It's true that the Middle Ages were long ago, but the naming still left a certain uneasiness. Incidentally, this was even anchored in the Latin name: auricula means "little ears". And the fact that earwigs like to stay in beds is just as easy to explain: beds are often slightly damp - nowadays only when they are not aired, but in the Middle Ages it was almost impossible to drive damp out of houses, especially in rainy times. The earworms also like the narrowness and darkness and this is probably how the myth of the dangerous, crawling pest arose. Perhaps as revenge, the animals were later used as ear medicine: ground up and sprinkled in the ears, they were said to cure hearing loss, ear diseases or even deafness.
Tip earwig bite: The "bite" of an earwig, i.e. pinching with the pincers (cerci) at the end of the abdomen, is not poisonous and does not hurt either. However, it can happen that an earwig defends itself in this way if it is pressed too much. He's also able to shoot at enemies up to 10 cm away with a secretion - a chemical weapon that isn't harmful to us though.
The earwig as a vermin
On grain stores, ripening grapes and peaches, and on some ornamental plants - including Clematis (Clematis), Trumpet Lily (Campsis radicans), Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia) and Dahlias (Dahlia) - earwigs can occur as pests. Although this behavior is the exception rather than the rule, no pesticide has yet been approved for combating it, so that an infestation in commercial cultivation can certainly lead to problems. Because the earwigs often get into the harvested crops, they also cause additional costs, because the harvest now has to be checked more laboriously. In most cases, however, the earwig is limited to those already damaged by other insectsto continue consuming fruits and plants - so he is almost never responsible for the primary damage.
It can occasionally appear in human dwellings, but there is no plague as the animals never produce more than two generations a year. In damp and dark sheds, garages, garden sheds and on shady balconies, however, they like to look for quarters that they then populate too many. If you want to break up such a camp, you can find out how this can be done in this article on earwigs in the apartment. Our Plantura ant repellent is an effective method of combating unpleasant subtenants. It can also be used indoors and poses no risk if used correctly.
The earwig as a useful creature
There's a reason there aren't any real remedies for outdoor earwigs yet: they're actually either harmless or even quite useful most of the time. Since they feed primarily on detritus - i.e. organic waste - and fungi as well as algae, they are part of the valuable soil life and are involved in the formation of humus and the release of nutrients. Because it also eats small insects, it serves us in part as a beneficial insect: aphids and other slower plant pests are occasionally eaten, as well as the eggs of various moths and even powdery mildew fungi. Last but not least, earwigs are of course also food for welcome garden guests such as sparrows, hedgehogs and shrews. So if you want to use the power of earwigs and can occasionally get over a nibbled leaf edge or a secondarily colonized apple, you should not hesitate to settle earwigs rather than fight them.
Conclusion: Is the earwig useful or dangerous?
In the garden, earwigs are more useful than harmful, and in our gazebos and sheds they are more annoying and unpleasant than actually dangerous. Its large pincers and primeval appearance scare children in particular. Here you should refrain from carrying on the old wives' tale about the parasitic ear crawlers. There are many non-toxic and therefore harmless methods for people and (pet) animals to get rid of the little animal - we have summarized them for you in this article on earwigs in the apartment. We advise to consistently remove the earwig from human habitation with the help of our Plantura ant remedyto keep away, but to tolerate or even encourage it in the garden. It's very easy: With an earwig hotel, which you can easily make yourself using our instructions.
Tip: Our Plantura ant remedy is not only effective against earwigs but of course also against ants (Formicidae), woodlice (Porcellio scaber) and Silverfish (Lepisma saccharrina) provide effective relief.
Attracting earwigs: hotel, flowerpot and co.
To encourage earwigs, you can craft them a good shelter. Such an earwig hotel quickly leads to veritable gatherings of the quite sociable animals. Eggs are also laid here and are protected from many predators.
How to build an earwig hotel?
- Use a classic clay pot. If you want to hang it up later, it should have a hole.
- Fill the pot with straw, hay or excelsior and sprinkle with a handful of soil.
- Pinch out a round shape from chick wire that extends beyond the rim of the pot by about 3cm when held in front of it.
- Close the clay pot to the grid by bending it around the opening of the pot and looping a piece of wire around it and twisting it tight.
- You can put the prepared pot in the bed or hang it on trees or sticks. When hanging, make sure that the pot is in direct contact with the tree or another natural climbing opportunity. It's also good if the pot doesn't get too wet inside when it rains: You can cover the hole in the bottom with glued-on potsherds, for example.
Tip: Of course you can also decorate the pot to make the Earwig Hotel an eye-catcher in the garden. Or they directly use particularly beautiful ceramics. A ceramic earwig hotel is easily made from any hollow open garden ornament. However, if you don't want to attract earwigs but want to get rid of them, you can find everything you need to know to successfully combat earwigs here.