Earwigs don’t go looking for human ears, and nothing in the evidence links them to ears at all.1Acta Musei Silesiae, Scientiae Naturales. Superstitious beliefs about earwigs (Dermaptera) The idea that they burrow into sleepers’ heads is a superstition, yet it is so old that nearly every European language names the insect after the ear.2Acta Musei Silesiae, Scientiae Naturales. Superstitious beliefs about earwigs (Dermaptera) Bugs do sometimes end up in ears, but the usual culprit is a different insect, and what leads it there is an ordinary habit rather than anything sinister.
Where the Earwig Myth Came From
The story is likely traceable to Pliny the Elder, a Roman writer whose Natural History is often called the first encyclopedia.3ENT & Audiology News. How the earwig got its name By the 11th century the belief had turned up in medical treatments.4ENT & Audiology News. How the earwig got its name Older versions went further, claiming earwigs laid eggs in the ear or burrowed into the brain, causing deafness or insanity.5ENT & Audiology News. How the earwig got its name
The name keeps the myth alive. The English word comes from Old English ‘ēare’ (ear) and ‘wicga’ (insect).6PubMed Central. Earwig Crawling in the Ear: Myth or Truth In German the insect is ‘Ohrwurm’, or earworm, partly because it can look legless and wiggle like a worm.7ENT & Audiology News. How the earwig got its name In Hungarian it is ‘fülbemászó’, ear crawler.8ENT & Audiology News. How the earwig got its name
A scary-looking insect made a believable villain. Earwigs turn up at night in damp, hidden places, including bedding and the edges of houses, and the pincers at the rear look threatening even though the animal is mostly harmless. Before modern medicine, unexplained ear pain or hearing loss needed a cause, and a visible bug was handy.
Nothing in the story could be disproved by everyday life. Most people never see an earwig in an ear, but they also never see one leave, so the tale was never contradicted. Before anyone could check animal behavior, a claim from a respected writer like Pliny could be copied from book to book for centuries, and repetition looked like confirmation.
Which Bugs Actually Get Into Ears
Bugs in ears are real, but accidental. Insects are the most common thing doctors remove from adults’ ear canals, making up about a quarter of cases at one ear clinic.9PubMed. Epidemiological characteristics and surgical management of external auditory canal foreign bodies: A 16-year single center retrospective study Cockroaches crawl into ears more than any other bug.10ThoughtCo. Do Bugs Crawl in People’s Ears? The Truth Behind the Myth They love squeezing into small spaces and explore in the dark, so a sleeper’s ear can look like a shelter.11ThoughtCo. Do Bugs Crawl in People’s Ears? The Truth Behind the Myth The ear canal is also warm and sits right at pillow level, and a sleeping person stays almost motionless for hours. The bug is looking for cover, not food.
Earwigs share the hiding instinct. They also squeeze into tight spaces during the day.12Science World. Ever Wonder About Earwigs? So an earwig could, like any small crawler, end up in an ear by chance, but it isn’t seeking one out. There is no evidence connecting earwigs specifically with ears.13Acta Musei Silesiae, Scientiae Naturales. Superstitious beliefs about earwigs (Dermaptera)
The odds rise in homes with a cockroach problem, and for people who sleep on the floor, in a tent, or outdoors, where crawlers have easier access. Finding an earwig on your pillow doesn’t mean one went in your ear; it usually means it wandered in looking for a hiding spot and found a bed. If you notice no sounds, movement, or pain in your ear, there’s no reason to think a bug is in there.
Are Earwigs Dangerous to People
Earwigs use the pincers at their rear to catch prey, defend themselves, and fold their wings.14Wikipedia. Earwig Most earwigs have wings and can fly, though they are rarely seen flying.15Wikipedia. Earwig The thin hind wings fold like a fan beneath short front wings, unlike any other insect’s.16Encyclopedia of Insects. Dermaptera: Earwigs
Earwigs have no stinger and no venom or poison sac, so they cannot sting or poison you.17Orkin. Are Earwigs Dangerous or Harmful to Humans?
A pinch almost always happens because someone grabbed, pressed, or trapped the earwig against skin, since it uses its pincers when it feels threatened. Larger earwigs can give a sharp nip, but it seldom breaks the skin and usually fades quickly. Washing the spot with soap and water is enough, the same as for any minor scrape. If redness spreads, the area swells or turns warm, or it hurts more after a day or two, treat it like an infected small break in the skin and get it checked.
Their other defense is smell. Earwigs can release a foul-smelling liquid from glands on the abdomen to deter predators.18PubMed. Multifunctional weaponry: the chemical defenses of earwigs That liquid kills some bacteria and fungi, which helps keep their hiding spots clean.19PubMed. Multifunctional weaponry: the chemical defenses of earwigs One species spits a rotting-flesh odor when bitten, and a lizard that tried one once avoided earwigs for weeks.20PubMed. Earwigs (Labidura riparia) mimic rotting-flesh odor to deceive vertebrate predators
To handle one safely, brush it into a cup rather than squeezing it, and expect a bad smell if it feels threatened. Pets that catch one may drop it because of the odor.
What Happens If a Bug Gets in Your Ear
Insects struggle to walk backward, so they get stuck in the ear canal.21PubMed Central. Insect in the Ear—Response and Treatment of an Uncommon Prehospital Emergency: A Case Report A trapped insect moves erratically, causing loud, distressing sounds, odd sensations, and pain.22PubMed Central. Insect in the Ear—Response and Treatment of an Uncommon Prehospital Emergency: A Case Report The noise seems huge because the insect is only a short distance from the eardrum, which picks up every scratch and flutter.
Most cases are harmless, but a small share lead to infection, hearing loss, or dizziness.23PubMed. Management of Live Insects in the External Auditory Canal: A Wilderness Perspective If an insect damages the middle or inner ear, it can cause bone infection behind the ear or facial weakness.24PubMed Central. Insect in the Ear—Response and Treatment of an Uncommon Prehospital Emergency: A Case Report Among patients who reached specialists with advanced complications, some had lasting hearing loss or facial paralysis, and two died.25The Journal of Laryngology & Otology. Hazardous complications of animate foreign bodies in otology practice A patient in that group who came in early recovered fully.26The Journal of Laryngology & Otology. Hazardous complications of animate foreign bodies in otology practice
See a doctor for any of these:
- Pain, bleeding, or fluid coming from the ear
- Hearing that stays muffled after the bug is out
- Dizziness or a drooping face
- Any part of the bug you can’t get out, or a child who can’t describe what happened
How to Get a Bug Out of Your Ear
In complete darkness, shining a light into the ear has coaxed live insects out without any tools.27PubMed Central. Light-assisted removal of ear canal live insect–A noninvasive approach for first level responders Many insects head toward light, and the ear is the only bright exit.
Start in a completely dark room. Tilt your head so the affected ear faces up, and gently pull the outer ear to straighten the canal a little. Hold a flashlight or phone light close to the opening, without pushing it in, for a few minutes. If nothing happens after several minutes, stop and get medical help.
Cotton swabs, tweezers, and fingers can push the insect deeper or scratch the canal and eardrum, so leave them alone. Don’t pour liquid into the ear if you have ear pain, drainage, or any reason to think the eardrum may be damaged, since it can reach the middle ear and cause harm. Don’t let a child dig at the ear, and keep them calm and still while you get help.
An urgent care or ENT doctor can look in with a lit scope. They may stop the bug moving before removing it, and they check the eardrum afterward for damage.
What Earwigs Actually Do
Earwigs eat insects, mites, dead matter, and growing plant shoots.28UC Statewide IPM Program. Earwigs / Home and Landscape / UC Statewide IPM Program They feed heavily on aphids and insect eggs and can noticeably control garden pests.29UC Statewide IPM Program. Earwigs / Home and Landscape / UC Statewide IPM Program They also chew leaves and fruit on many plants.30GrowVeg. Dealing with Earwigs in your Vegetable Garden
Ragged holes in soft leaves, petals, or fruit that appear overnight can be a sign of earwigs feeding, though slugs and other night feeders leave similar damage. If you see only a few earwigs and your plants are healthy, they may be helping by eating aphids, which is a fair trade. To find out who is feeding, go out after dark with a flashlight, since earwigs are active at night. Act only if the damage is clearly theirs and keeps spreading, because earwigs hiding by day are not proof that they caused it.
Mother earwigs guard and clean their eggs for about 50 days through winter.31PubMed. Heat waves during egg development alter maternal care and offspring quality in the European earwig That is unusual for insects, most of which lay eggs and leave them alone. The grooming removes mold spores and coats the eggs with protective chemicals, which matters in damp soil.32Behavioral Ecology. Maternal care provides antifungal protection to eggs in the European earwig Eggs left without a mother survive less well.33Journal of Insect Behavior. Maternal Care by the Earwig Doru lineare Eschs. (Dermaptera: Forficulidae)
How to Keep Earwigs Out of Your Home
Look for how earwigs are getting in, and seal cracks and gaps.34UC Statewide IPM Program. Earwigs / Home and Landscape / UC Statewide IPM Program Clear ivy on walls, ground cover, bark mulch, leaf-filled gutters, woodpiles, and piles of newspaper near the house.35UC Statewide IPM Program. Earwigs / Home and Landscape / UC Statewide IPM Program Indoor insecticide does little to prevent them coming in.36UC Statewide IPM Program. Earwigs / Home and Landscape / UC Statewide IPM Program
A walk around the house shows most entry points. Check door sweeps, window screens, and gaps around pipes and cables, since earwigs can squeeze through small openings. Look at the foundation, especially where mulch or plants touch the siding, because that gives them a bridge to the house. Note damp areas such as basements and the space under sinks, and repair leaks and drainage, since earwigs favor moisture and a drier house is less appealing than the yard.
In the bedroom, keep the bed frame off the floor and away from walls so crawlers have fewer routes to the mattress. Shake out bedding or blankets that have been stored in a garage or basement before using them. If you find an earwig indoors, pick it up with a cup and paper or vacuum it up.