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*** Note: KnowYourInsects.org does its best to include correct identifications of insect photos. It’s always possible that we made a mistake, however, so if you see a misidentification, please contact us and we will correct it. Thanks!
Order Dermaptera: the earwigs — Examples:
Families represented below:
Diplatyidae, the Diplatyid earwigs
Earwig, probably genus Diplatys, adult and nymph, family Diplatyidae.
□ These photos show the adult (left) and nymph (two right photos) of an earwig, likely one in the genus Diplatys. One very obvious difference is the nymph has thin and extremely long cerci (the tail-like structures), while the adult has beefier and much shorter cerci.
□ This species is a member of the most primitive family of earwigs, and has some ancient traits. One lies in the adult male’s reproductive organs. Instead of having one functional sperm-delivering organ (called an aedegas in insects), the male has two. To learn more, click here (Journal of Zoology).
Photographed and identified by to order by: Liew Tze Seong. Identified to genus by: KnowYourInsects.org. Location: Malaysia. Date: 8 January 2017.
Seong says the adult “raises like a scorpion pose.”
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Basal earwig, male, Paradiplatys gladiator, subfamily Diplatyinae, family Diplatyidae.
□ Basal earwigs only reach about 12 mm (0.5 inches) long. They are rarely seen, and have not been well-studied. It is believed they usually live in tree canopies. The pincers of the male look fearsome (the female’s are much less robust), but they don't actually have a real pinch — they are more ornamentation to help the males get mates.
Photographed by: Sahara Subedi. Identified by: KnowYourInsects.org. Location: Morang District, Koshi Province, Nepal.
Date: 19 November, 2024.
Sahara says these earwigs have become regular, albeit unwelcome, household visitors at night.
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Tegmina is the scientific term for the forewings of earwigs. The tegmina in earwigs are short and only cover part of the abdomen. |
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Forficulidae, the short-winged earwigs
Smyrna earwig, male, Forficula smyrnensis, family Forficulidae.
□ This Smyrna earwig was spotted by 12-year-old Arda Akman. It was crawling in his house on the Mediterranean coast in the southwest part of Turkey. With its reddish, tan and dark coloration, and white markings, this earwig is one of the prettiest earwigs that KnowYourInsects.org has seen, so we are glad Arda is so observant!
Spotted by Arda Akman. Photographed by: Abdullah C. Akman. Identified by: KnowYourInsects.org. Location: Southwest Turkey. Date: 5 June, 2019.
Abdullah says the total length was 2 cm, or 0.8 inches, including the cerci (the curved pincers), and adds that it now “is safe and sound, released back in the garden.”
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Smyrna earwig, male, Forficula smyrnensis, family Forficulidae.
□ This Smyrna earwig is curling up its abdomen. This is a defensive/aggressive posture, and often these and other earwigs will curl even further — much like a scorpion — so the pincers are above the head.
Photographed and identified to order by: Kadri Arslan. Identified to species by: KnowYourInsects.org. Location: Antalya, Turkey. Date: 27 May, 2020.
Kadri saw this pretty earwig on the balcony tiles of the house.
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Smyrna earwig, female, Forficula smyrnensis, family Forficulidae.
□ The female Smyrna earwig has tail cerci, often called forceps, that are fairly straight, whereas the male’s are more curved. The genus name of Forficula means small scissors, and although it refers to the forceps, the forceps cannot actually cut.
Photographed and identified by: Blaz Rodic. Location: Brežice, Slovenia. Date: 18 September, 2021.
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European earwig, also known as common earwig, male, Forficula auricularia, family Forficulidae.
□ This male European earwig is white because it is newly molted. Its color will soon darken to brown, as seen in other photos of this species on this page.
Photographed and identified by Leslie Mertz. Location: Otsego Township (south of Gaylord), Michigan, USA. Date: 14 July 2017.
Leslie says, “It was just peeking out of a crevice between a sign and signpost, and the white color caught my attention. Once it ventured out, I got this photo.”
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European earwig, also known as common earwig, Forficula auricularia, family Forficulidae.
□ This is a male European earwig, which has large, curved forceps, also known as cerci. (The forceps are the pincer-looking things at the end of the abdomen). The female’s forceps are straighter and much less robust (see the photo of a female elsewhere on this page).
Photographed by Gary Villegas. Identified by: KnowYourInsects.org. Location: Lincoln Park, Michigan, USA. Date: 23 June 2017.
Gary says, “The earwig was found on my backyard table.... I am so excited to know that there’s a website where I can go and identify all my bugs in my yard.” KnowYourInsects.org replies, “And we are so excited to find people like you who are intrigued by insects!”
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European earwig, also known as common earwig, Forficula auricularia, family Forficulidae.
□ This female European earwig has smaller pincers, called forceps, than the male (pictured elsewhere on this page). Earwigs live loosely together, so it is not unusual to find a couple dozen of them together. Occasionally, they group in even larger numbers (see the comment below).
□ The European earwig was introduced from Europe to the northwest United States in 1907, had spread south to California by the early 1920s, and had made its way into much of the rest of the United States — and Canada — by the 1940s.
Photographed by Mara Fox. Identified by: KnowYourInsects.org. Location: Oakland, California, USA. Date: 23 June 2017.
Mara says, “I’m usually not too squeamish about bugs, but a huge colony (at least 100) of these were living in some sawhorses sitting in my yard .... I disturbed them, and they all cascaded out and headed straight for the house!” She adds, “Thanks for your informative website.” KnowYourInsects.org says, “Glad to help!”
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Anisolabididae, the anisolabid earwigs
Ring-legged rarwig, female, Euborellia annulipes, family Anisolabididae.
□ This female ring-legged earwig has a pair of rather straight forceps, or cerci, whereas the male has much more curved forceps. Note the pale-colored ring around her neck.
□ This species looks quite similar to the African earwig (Euborellia cincticollis, which has more bead-like segments in its antennae: 17–20 segments for the African earwig, and 14-16 for the ring-legged earwig, according to BugGuide. To learn more and see the African earwig posted at BugGuide, click here.
Photographed by: Andy Nicholson. Identified by: KnowYourInsects.org.
Location: Yadkinville, North Carolina, USA. Date: 21 February, 2019.
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Ring-legged earwig, female, Euborellia annulipes, family Anisolabididae.
□ The ring-legged earwig has a ring on the femur of each pale-colored leg, which is clearly seen in this photo. In fact, the species name of Euborellia translates to ring-legged. To separate female from a male, count the abdominal segments: the female also has only eight, while the male has 10.
Photographed by: Mike Weyer. Identified by: KnowYourInsects.org.
Location: Jacksonville, Florida, USA. Date: 19 September, 2019.
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Pygidicranidae, the pygidicranid earwigs
Giant pygidicranid earwig, Cranopygia pallidipennis, subfamily Pygidicraninae, family Pygidicranidae.
□ This giant pygidicranid earwig is quite attractive with its very long and thin antennae, and the patterning on its thorax and its short tegmina (the short forewings covering just the most-forward bit of its abdomen). Its body and pincer-like forceps, or cerci, can be up to 2 cm (more than 3/4 inch) long, and that is not counting the antennae. Note: This species was formerly listed under the genus Forficula.
Photographed and identified to order by: Shahrul Nizal. Identified to species by: KnowYourInsects.org.
Location: Selangor, Malaysia. Date: 22 February, 2020.
Shahrul found this earwig in his bedroom. He says, “I tried to search it on the internet, but there was not much information about it...although I’m amazed with its look.”
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Despite the many legends and horror movies, earwigs do not enter human ears to lay eggs or access the brain. Earwigs lay their eggs in the ground, often under fallen logs. |
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Unless noted otherwise, photographs on this website are the property of the photographers and may not be reused without written permission from the photographers. To obtain permission, request it here.
Photos at the top of this website by: Leslie Mertz, Ph.D., LMERTZ@nasw.org.
Reproduction of material from any KnowYourInsects.org webpages without written permission is strictly prohibited.
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