Book and clothes lice

You may have even encountered these insects one day in a room in your home where you keep old furniture or old school books. Have you ever wondered what these insects are, what their names are, and why they are found in these specific places? You'll find the answer in the following lines.

What is a book louse?

Booklice, or paperlice as some call them, is the name given to a type of insect that is found specifically between the yellowed pages of books that have been left unused for a long time.
The leaf louse is a very small insect that is almost beige in color, but sometimes its color tends to be transparent white or brown.
This type of insect is found inside the folds of old books to feed on their pages, but this is not the only source of food for booklice.
They also eat dead insects and rotting things, in addition to their ability to eat some human food products.

The difference between booklice and woodlice

Booklice are a type of common louse that can be found in children's hair. They belong to this category, and are found indoors in the form of small, lice-like insects.
However, they do not feed on blood, as head lice do, which feed on the blood inside the scalp of the infected person.
While woodlice are a type of crustacean, they are not just insects as some might think.
Woodlice have an armadillo-shaped body and are relatively large, compared to booklice.
Some call the woodlice the woodlice, and they are found in both hot and cold places.
However, it is more prevalent in hot areas, as fungi are more common in hot and humid areas.
These crustaceans are found clearly under wood or some small rocks, or even in areas of crops and shrubs.
These crustaceans are extremely beneficial to humans because, when they are present in agricultural lands, they purify the agricultural soil of minerals and some substances harmful to human health.

Causes of the appearance of paper lice

There are many mistakes that some people make that ultimately lead to bringing in moisture lice, or book lice as they are known, including, for example:

• Leaving books unwashed for a long time can attract booklice, as booklice feed on mold.
• Leaving books in areas with high temperatures and humidity can attract damp and mold insects. This is because booklice thrive in areas with high humidity, and their bodies cannot tolerate low temperatures. They die automatically in these areas.

Since these insects are found in large and obvious quantities in humid places, they are also found inside the bathroom due to the humidity there, and they may also be found inside some other rooms of the house. Their presence is not limited to libraries and book collection areas.
Not providing your home with good daily ventilation and light is also one of the reasons that leads to the appearance and spread of such insects inside your home.

Booklice infestation

These insects reproduce by mating, where the male and female mate, and the female then carries the offspring and begins laying her eggs.
In some cases, five to six eggs are laid at a time.
A female leaf louse will only mate with one male, while a male can mate with more than one female at the same time.
These insects grow relatively quickly, reaching maturity in about a month.

The harmful effects of book lice

These insects are not directly harmful to the human body. They do not transmit any organic disease to humans, and they do not bite like other types of predatory insects.
But they harm home furniture, as they feed on some fabrics, in addition to worn books and wallpaper.
Its large presence inside the house is clearly harmful to the eye, especially when guests are in your home, as this gives a bad impression of the family members.
Although these insects are harmful to both books and the home environment, there is another type of insect that lives within the book environment but is harmless to the paper. This type is called the book scorpion. Below, we will provide you with detailed information about this insect.

Bookkeeper Bug

It is a type of insect that lives between the folds and pages of books, but it works to protect the paper from harmful organisms.
As they feed on paper lice, they do not cause any harm to humans or books.
This insect is called the book scorpion because of its shape, which resembles the external structure of a scorpion's body.
The book scorpion feeds on other types of harmful insects, not just the book louse, and is therefore beneficial to humans and helps keep their surroundings clean.

How to get rid of wall lice?

Another name given to paper or book lice is wall lice. Now that we've learned about the harmful effects of wall lice, we must point out the ways to get rid of these insects, which are as follows:
Paper lice can be eliminated by keeping the house at relatively low temperatures, as these insects cannot tolerate low temperatures and die.
Eliminate moisture inside your home by treating areas that retain moisture, to avoid creating a breeding ground for these insects.
Clean books regularly to prevent insects from entering between the folds of old or worn books.
Keep air and light in your home by keeping windows open.

Moisture and clothing lice

You may be wondering now, are these insects that gather inside the folds of books and feed on their pages attracted to clothing?
The answer is no. These insects are not attracted to or walk on clothing, but rather are attracted to worn papers, whether book pages or wallpaper, as well as to damp areas and moldy materials.
Therefore, there is no need to worry about your clothes being affected by leaf lice, as they are not considered one of the insects that eat clothes like moths.
You have learned with us in detail what the leaf insect is, as we presented to you its different names, its locations, and the ideal methods that you can follow to get rid of this type of insect with its small and delicate shape. You also learned the difference between leaf lice and wood lice, and what the book guard insect is.
It is worth noting here that the bookworm, also known as Pseucoptera or Booklice, first appeared during the Permian period, more than two million years ago, so it is not a recent discovery.
However, due to changing environmental factors over the ages and increased humidity, these insects may be more prevalent in some relatively hot regions, or at certain times, especially during these years.