Bugs in the Bathroom: What They Are and Why They Come
Bathrooms are humid, and that is what most bathroom bugs are after. Slow drains, damp grout, leaky fixtures and wet towels give drain flies, silverfish and centipedes what they need. Drying the room out often solves more than any spray.
Pests you may find in the bathroom
AntsFormicidaeWingless workers with a pinched waist and elbowed antennae, often marching in a single-file trail toward sweets or grease.
CockroachesBlattella germanica (German cockroach) and Periplaneta americana (American cockroach)German: light brown, about 1/2 inch, with two dark stripes behind the head; American: reddish-brown, up to 2 inches, with a pale band around the edge of the shield behind the head.
Drain FliesPsychodidae (moth flies; e.g. Psychoda spp., Clogmia albipunctata)A tiny gray, hairy fly with wide moth-like wings folded roof-style over its body, usually resting on bathroom walls near a drain.
SpidersAraneae (common U.S. household spiders)Eight legs, two body sections (a front part bearing the legs and a rounded abdomen), and no wings or antennae. Insects have six legs and three body sections.
Brown RecluseLoxosceles reclusaUniformly tan to brown legs and abdomen with no stripes, bands or spines. A dark violin-shaped mark on the front body section, with the violin's neck pointing back. Six eyes in three pairs, which you need a hand lens to see.
SilverfishLepisma saccharinum (often written L. saccharina)A shiny silver-gray, wingless insect shaped like a teardrop, with long antennae and three thin tail bristles, that darts away quickly when uncovered.
House CentipedeScutigera coleoptrataA flattened yellowish-gray body about an inch long with three dark stripes and 15 pairs of very long, banded legs that make it look 3-4 inches across.