Geographic Range
European earwigs are native to Europe, eastern Asia, and northern Africa. Today, they
can be found on all continents except Antarctica. Their geographic range continues
to expand, and they have been found on an island in the Pacific Ocean (Island of Guadalupe).
- Biogeographic Regions
- nearctic
- palearctic
- oriental
- ethiopian
- neotropical
- australian
- Other Geographic Terms
- cosmopolitan
Habitat
European earwigs are terrestrial organisms that live in mostly temperate climates.
They are found in a very large geographic range and at elevations up to 2,824 m. During
the day, they prefer places that are dark and moist to hide from predators. Their
habitats include forests, agricultural, and suburban areas. During the mating season,
females prefer a habitat abundant in rich soils as a place to burrow and deposit her
eggs.
- Habitat Regions
- temperate
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- forest
- Other Habitat Features
- suburban
- agricultural
Physical Description
European earwigs are brownish red in color and have elongated bodies that range from
12 to 15 mm long. They are equipped with 3 pairs of legs that are yellow to brown
in color. European earwigs are well-known for the set of forceps, known as cerci,
that protrude from the abdomen and are used for protection and in mating rituals.
Forceps display sexual dimorphism, with those of the male being longer and more curved
than those of the female. Forceps can also vary between males. Males with shorter
and highly curved forceps are called brachylabic, while males with long, straighter
forceps are called macrolabic. European earwigs have two antennae with 14 to 15 segments
long that contain many important sense organs, as well as a fully developed set of
wings.
- Other Physical Features
- ectothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- sexes shaped differently
Development
Females lay fertilized eggs in a burrow dug into the soil. After about 70 days, the
eggs hatch into first instar nymphs that remain in the burrow as the mother provides
protection and food. When the young become second instar nymphs, they emerge above
ground and find their own food. During the day however, they return to their burrow.
Third and fourth instar nymphs live above ground where they develop into adults. Nymphs
are similar to adults, but are lighter in color with smaller wings and antennae. As
the nymphs progress from one instar to the next, they begin to darken in color, the
wings grow, and the antennae gain more segments. Between each stage of development,
the young molt by losing their outer cuticle.
- Development - Life Cycle
- metamorphosis
Reproduction
European earwig mating rituals usually occur in September, after which mating pairs
can usually be found underground in a burrow into the winter. Courtship rituals involving
the forceps play a large role in the mating process. Males wave and bob the forceps
in the air, stroking and grasping the female. However, the forceps are not used in
the actual mating process. If the female accepts the courting male, the male twists
his abdomen into position for mating and attaches to the female. During mating, females
move around and feed with the male attached to her abdomen. Fertilization of eggs
takes place inside the female. Sometimes during mating, another male comes along and
uses his forceps to fight off the mating male and take his place with the mating female.
Males and females have multiple mates.
- Mating System
- polygynandrous (promiscuous)
European earwigs typically breed once yearly from September to January. Some females
actually breed twice during this time frame. Eggs are fertilized internally inside
the female and in late winter or early spring females lay 30 to 55 eggs. The offspring
become independent two months after hatching and no longer require parental care.
European earwigs reach sexual maturity at 3 months and are able to reproduce in the
next breeding season.
- Key Reproductive Features
- seasonal breeding
- sexual
- fertilization
- oviparous
Female European earwigs hibernate about 5 to 8 mm underground with their eggs, guarding
them and keeping them clean from fungi and other pathogens using their mouth. The
males are usually driven from the burrow in late winter or early spring and the female
proceeds to lay her fertilized eggs. Once the larvae hatch in about 70 days, mothers
provide their young with food by regurgitation until they reach the second.
- Parental Investment
- female parental care
-
pre-fertilization
- provisioning
-
protecting
- female
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
protecting
- female
-
protecting
-
pre-weaning/fledging
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
Lifespan/Longevity
A typical European earwig lives 1 year in the wild. Male earwigs often die before
females, when they are kicked out of the burrow during the winter months.
Behavior
European earwigs are nocturnal. They hide during the day in dark moist places, such
as under rocks, potted plants, wood piles, in fruits, flowers and other similar places.
At night, they emerge to hunt or scavenge for food. They are weak fliers and therefore
move around mostly by crawling and human transportation. European earwigs can be considered
both solitary and colonial. Female earwigs live alone during the mating season, but
during the other months of the year earwigs tend to congregate in very large groups.
European earwigs are considered to be a sub-social species as they provide parental
care for their young. When European earwigs feel threatened or their offspring are
threatened by a predator, they use their forceps as a weapon by snapping them quickly
together.
Home Range
There is little information on the home range of European earwigs. They are often
found far from their point of origin due to human transfer from hiding in objects
such as newspapers.
Communication and Perception
Adult European earwigs release a pheromone that attracts other European earwigs. Nymphs
also release pheromones, which encourage mothers to provide care to their young. Forceps
are also used as means of communication in mating and to show threatening behavior.
The segmented antennae of European earwigs contain many sense organs such as chemoreceptors
that aid in sensing odors. These antennae also contain important tactile hairs which
help the organism to get a sense of the surrounding environment. They also have compound
eyes, enabling them to use sight as well to perceive their environment.
- Communication Channels
- chemical
- Other Communication Modes
- pheromones
Food Habits
European earwigs are omnivorous organisms that are both scavengers and predators and
feed using their chewing mouthparts. They feed on other organisms, both dead and
alive, including
aphids
,
maggots
,
mites
,
spiders
, and
protozoans
. They also feed on both living and decaying plants, including lichens, algae, fruits
and flowers.
- Primary Diet
- omnivore
- Animal Foods
- eggs
- insects
- Plant Foods
- leaves
- fruit
- flowers
- bryophytes
- lichens
- algae
Predation
European earwigs are preyed upon by several species of tachinid flies (
Diptera
), as well as certain beetles (
Coleoptera
). These include ground beetles like
Pterostichus vulgaris
,
P. algidus
,
Carabus nemoralis
, and
Calosoma tepidum
, as well as flightless tiger beetles (
Omus dejeani
). Other predators include toads (
Anura
), snakes (
Serpentes
), and certain birds (
Aves
) like Chinese monal pheasants (
Lophophorus ihuysii
). European earwigs have several different defense mechanisms used to avoiding predation.
These include using their forceps as a weapon and using glands found in the abdomen
to secrete chemicals that act as a repellent to predators.
Ecosystem Roles
European earwigs are common hosts to several different parasitic organisms including
certain tachinid flies (
Thriarthria setipennis
and
Ocytata pallipes
) and nematodes (
Mermis nigresens
>). They also serve as predators of other types of insects such as aphids (
Aphidoidea
) and some protozoa. European earwigs are also important scavengers in the ecosystem,
feeding on almost anything that is edible.
- nematodes ( Mermis nigresens )
- tachnid flies ( Thriarthria setipennis )
- tachnid flies ( Ocytata pallipes )
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Aphids
, a staple in European earwigs' diet, can cause great destruction to apple and pear
orchards. European earwigs can help to control the population of
aphids
, thereby decreasing the amount of pest destruction to the crops.
- Positive Impacts
- controls pest population
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Since European earwigs tend to hide in dark, moist places such as newspapers or inside
fruits, they are commonly carried into homes. European earwigs are essentially harmless
to humans, but their unpleasant odor and appearance make them unwanted guests in the
home. They can also cause damage to fruits and other crops as they feed on them. They
are not as nearly destructive as
aphids
or other pests, but their feeding can still cause considerable damage to crops.
- Negative Impacts
- crop pest
- household pest
Conservation Status
European earwigs are not endangered or threatened.
Other Comments
A common misconception about earwigs based on their name is that they crawl into the
ears of humans. This is actually a myth, and there are few known cases of earwigs
actually crawling into the ears of people. The name earwig is actually derived from
the fact that the hind wings of the organism resemble the shape of an ear.
Additional Links
Contributors
Morgan Vincent (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Catherine Kent (editor), Special Projects.
- Nearctic
-
living in the Nearctic biogeographic province, the northern part of the New World. This includes Greenland, the Canadian Arctic islands, and all of the North American as far south as the highlands of central Mexico.
- introduced
-
referring to animal species that have been transported to and established populations in regions outside of their natural range, usually through human action.
- Palearctic
-
living in the northern part of the Old World. In otherwords, Europe and Asia and northern Africa.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- oriental
-
found in the oriental region of the world. In other words, India and southeast Asia.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- Ethiopian
-
living in sub-Saharan Africa (south of 30 degrees north) and Madagascar.
- introduced
-
referring to animal species that have been transported to and established populations in regions outside of their natural range, usually through human action.
- Neotropical
-
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
- introduced
-
referring to animal species that have been transported to and established populations in regions outside of their natural range, usually through human action.
- Australian
-
Living in Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, New Guinea and associated islands.
- introduced
-
referring to animal species that have been transported to and established populations in regions outside of their natural range, usually through human action.
- cosmopolitan
-
having a worldwide distribution. Found on all continents (except maybe Antarctica) and in all biogeographic provinces; or in all the major oceans (Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific.
- temperate
-
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- forest
-
forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality.
- suburban
-
living in residential areas on the outskirts of large cities or towns.
- agricultural
-
living in landscapes dominated by human agriculture.
- metamorphosis
-
A large change in the shape or structure of an animal that happens as the animal grows. In insects, "incomplete metamorphosis" is when young animals are similar to adults and change gradually into the adult form, and "complete metamorphosis" is when there is a profound change between larval and adult forms. Butterflies have complete metamorphosis, grasshoppers have incomplete metamorphosis.
- polygynandrous
-
the kind of polygamy in which a female pairs with several males, each of which also pairs with several different females.
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- fertilization
-
union of egg and spermatozoan
- internal fertilization
-
fertilization takes place within the female's body
- oviparous
-
reproduction in which eggs are released by the female; development of offspring occurs outside the mother's body.
- female parental care
-
parental care is carried out by females
- nocturnal
-
active during the night
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- sedentary
-
remains in the same area
- solitary
-
lives alone
- colonial
-
used loosely to describe any group of organisms living together or in close proximity to each other - for example nesting shorebirds that live in large colonies. More specifically refers to a group of organisms in which members act as specialized subunits (a continuous, modular society) - as in clonal organisms.
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- pheromones
-
chemicals released into air or water that are detected by and responded to by other animals of the same species
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- omnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats all kinds of things, including plants and animals
- ectothermic
-
animals which must use heat acquired from the environment and behavioral adaptations to regulate body temperature
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
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