Carpet Beetle Damaged Hair
The hair in this image runs from upper left to lower center and shows the damage done by a foraging carpet beetle. The food source here is the keratin of the hair. This home had a number of infestations as shown by the two mite frass pellets on the right of the photograph.
Definition/Function:
Significance in the Environment:
Carpet beetle larva will eat wool, silks, skins, furs, feathers, hair, horn, cereals, red pepper, fishmeal, etc, but their favorite food is dead insects and spiders. The adult beetle eats primarily pollen and nectar. The adult beetle tends to enter homes in the spring and early summer.Characteristic Features:
Associated Particles:
The characteristic hairs (setae) of the carpet beetle larvae are typically present in the sample.References:
Ebeling, Walter, URBAN ENTOMOLOGY, University of California Division of Agricultural Sciences, pp.310-313, 1975.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carpet_beetle#Carpet_beetle
