Deceiving earwig
The deceiving earwig is a slim insect with a pair of pincers at the end of its tail. Its head is yellowish orange, its legs are yellow and its tummy is reddish brown. It lives in warm places around the Mediterranean Sea.
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Fun facts
Both males and females grow to about the same size.
It is found in many countries, from Portugal and Spain to Greece and Romania.
The pincers on its tail make up part of its length.
Most asked questions about Deceiving earwig
?Is the deceiving earwig dangerous?
No. It may pinch a little with its tail pincers, but it is harmless.
?How big is the deceiving earwig?
About 1.5 to 2 centimetres long, counting its pincers.
Myth buster
Myth: Earwigs crawl into people's ears while they sleep.
Truth: No. That is just an old story. Earwigs look for dark cracks outdoors, not people's ears.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Forficula decipiens
- Group
- Other insects
- Family
- Forficulidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Dermaptera > Forficulidae
- Lives on
- Europe, Asia, Africa
Where the facts come from
- Forficula decipiens (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Emanuele Santarelli. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
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