Hitchhikers in the Bathroom
by Liana Mahoney
If you wanted to find a pseudoscorpion outdoors,
where would you look?
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Hitchhikers in the Bathroom
by Liana Mahoney
If you wanted to find a pseudoscorpion outdoors,
where would you look?
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Answer:
Imagine this. You step up to the sink, wet
your toothbrush, and begin cleaning your
pearly whites. Out of the corner of your eye,
you see something moving on the wall.
Suddenly, you realize you’re not alone in the
bathroom. Your heart pounding, you turn
toward the tiny intruder to get a better look.
You’re horrified to see that it has eight legs,
and a pair of oversized pincers on its front
end. Is it some kind of miniature octopus, or
a bizarre crab? Is it going to sting you?
Actually, it’s a bug, and it’s no more harmful
to you than a housefly. This tiny bathroom
bug is called a pseudoscorpion (SOO-doh-
SCOR-pee-uhn). But don’t be fooled by its
name. It’s not really a scorpion; it’s just a
relative. The pseudoscorpion is a kind of
arachnid (uh-RAK-nid), which means it is
closely related to spiders, scorpions, and
mites. Like scorpions, pseudoscorpions have
a segmented body and two enormous
pincers. But pseudoscorpions lack the
curved stinger that all true scorpions have.
Pseudoscorpions
usually live outside in
mulch, under tree
bark, and in leaf litter.
So how do they end
up in the bathroom?
They use those pincer-
like claws to hitch a
ride on other bugs,
such as flies and
beetles. When these insects come in, so do
the pseudoscorpions - attached to their legs!
These tiny arachnids prefer moist places.
Since the bathroom tends to be humid after
bathing and showering, it’s a likely place to
find them. But they are easily overlooked.
Most pseudoscorpions are only about two to
eight millimeters long.
Pseudoscorpions don’t bite or sting humans,
and they can even be helpful. These bugs
feed on common household pests, such as
carpet beetle larvae, ants, mites, and small
flies. Welcoming this hitchhiker into your
home may mean there are fewer household
pests to “bug” you.