Earwig

Earwigs

When and Where Found.

Earwigs Earwigs are found from around late May to around late October (Spring until around Autumn.) You can find them under the bark of dead trees, heads of lettuce, rotting apples, bird feeders, old buildings, and inside flowers like marigolds or dahlias (to get them out, shake the flower very gently.)

Parts of Earwig.

Wings
Wing cases
On an earwig's body are shiny cases. Most of the time, the earwig keeps them closed. They keep the earwigs wings protected. When they fly the wing cases snap open. They hardly ever fly.
Flight wings
On wing cases, you can see the flight wings. The wings are so big, the earwig needs to fold the wings 40 times. The earwig hardly ever flies.
Legs
An earwig should have six legs. A leg contains several parts. Sometimes, an earwig's leg might come off.
Body
The back part of a earwig's body is made of segments. If you watch an earwig turn a corner, it wiggles its segments.
Eyes
On an earwigs head are its eyes. Each part has a lens. Its eyes are so big it can see in many directions.
Pincers
Earwigs have small claws called pincers. The earwigs use their pincers to defend themselves from their enemies.
Mouth parts
Earwigs eat a lot of different things. They eat petals and vegetables. They also eat the insids of dead animals including rabbits, hares and birds, and some eat garden pests like aphids.
Antennae
Earwigs use their antennae to feel smell and taste. All earwigs don't have the same segments of antennae, as you will see if you look closely at one when it is walking about.

Earwigs through the year.

Earwig eggs hatch in the spring. Young earwigs are called nymphs. They look like adult earwigs, but they are smaller and they haven't got wings.
The nymphs stay in their nest with their mother, who brings them food.
A nymph eats and eats until it's skin splits. Underneath is a damp, soft skin. The nymph wriggles out of it's old skin, and swells up before the new skin dries and hardens.This process is called moulting. It is the only way an earwig can grow.
After a week or two, the nymphs leave the nest. The mother earwig leaves too. She may live a month or two longer before she dies.
Young earwigs grow six times before they are fully grown. After their last moult, in late summer, they have wings and are ready two mate.
Earwigs mate in late Summer or Autumm.
Some time between January and April female earwigs lay between 20 and 80 eggs in a sheltered place -like a hollow in the ground or under a stone.
Female earwigs look after their eggs. Scientists have noticed that if they disturb an earwig's eggs, she will collect them together again. This is very unusual - hardly any other insects do this.
During the winter female earwigs hibernate. But from time to time they wake up to lick their eggs. This stops them going mouldy.
Most male earwigs die during the winter.

How many legs does an earwig have?
A) Six.
B) Twenty-five.
C) They don't have any.

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