Pest Library

Booklice

Booklice

November 22, 2013

Identification

Booklice or Psocids are members of an order of insects called Psocoptera. They are minute, soft-bodied, and vary in colour from translucent to greyish-brown colour. They are about 1 mm to 4 mm long, usually wingless, and may go unnoticed. They feed on organic material such as algae, fungi, pollen and decaying plants. They also have been known to be attracted to high humidity.

Signs Of Infestation

Booklice, also known as paper lice, may crawl in large numbers over stored papers, books, walls, furniture, and other materials in damp, warm, undisturbed areas in buildings. Sometimes they are found in newly-constructed dwellings containing uncured green lumber or plastered walls.

They feed on microscopic mould, fungi, dead insect fragments, pollen, and other starchy foods found in humid environments such as houses, warehouses, libraries, and structures where timber is stored or used. Sweating and high humidity may form in wall voids when new timber becomes enclosed, encouraging booklouse outbreaks.

Damp basements, crawl spaces, leaky and sweating plumbing, potted house plants, cereal, flour, bird nests, furniture stuffing of natural plant fiber, paste on book bindings, grains, and wallpaper, may harbour booklice.

Do booklice bite?

No. Unlike true lice, they do not feed on blood. They are not parasitic or vectors.

Control Measures

  • Ventilate the house or infested area with fresh air
  • Lower the relative humidity in rooms and buildings to less than 50 percent
  • Limit usage of air-conditioning
  • Place a few dehumidifier units in infested areas
  • Repair any leakages inside the house
  • Use a vacuum cleaner with proper attachments to remove debris from cracks and corners in storage areas
  • Clean up spilled food stuffs such as cereal and flour
  • Food stored for six months or more sometimes become infested especially if the storage area is damp, dark, warm and undisturbed

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