You know those hairy centipedes with about a million and one legs? Yeah, my guess is that you know exactly what I’m talking about. Whenever I see one in my house, I scream, yell for my husband to come and capture it, and jump onto the nearest elevated surface. In fact, even writing about them right now is making my skin crawl.
House centipedes tend to make their way into our homes in the fall, when the weather starts getting cooler. And although their appearance alone is enough to make anyone cringe, it’s actually not a good idea to reach for the nearest shoe whenever you see one scuttling through your house.
Firstly, house centipedes rarely ever actually bother humans. They’re shy, and prefer to live in your home unnoticed. Although they look rather disgusting, centipedes can actually provide many benefits for you and your home. They love to feed on other critters including small spiders, flies, silverfish, earwigs, and more. So although a centipede might be running through your home, it likely means that they’re taking care of other pests.
If you can’t fathom the idea of letting a house centipede exist in your home, try to refrain from killing them. Trap them with a napkin or cup and release them back outside. In order to prevent them from making their way into your home in the first place, try to dry out any damp areas of your home and keep junk and clutter to a minimum. Now that you know more about these generally harmless pests, you might not shriek as loudly the next time you see one!