---
title: "What the sources say about the Silverfish | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "46 claims from the Silverfish profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/silverfish-1.webp"
canonical: "https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/silverfish/sources/"
---

# What the sources say about the Silverfish (*Lepisma saccharinum*)

> 46 claims from the Silverfish profile, each beside the words of the source that backs it. A "..." marks a cut in a quote and [brackets] an insertion.

Profile: [Silverfish](https://animaltracks.wiki/animals/silverfish/)

## Phillips & Gillett-Kaufman (2018). Silverfish Lepisma saccharina Linnaeus (Insecta: Zygentoma: Lepismatidae). EDIS.

https://doi.org/10.32473/edis-in1211-2018

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| A wingless, silver-scaled insect that keeps molting as an adult and can go up to a year without food. | Silverfish are wingless ... Adults can continue to molt throughout their life ... Silverfish are capable of going for long periods of time, up to an entire year, without food (note: tagline; silver-scaled: 'silver or pearl-gray in color with a body covered in tiny glistening scales' is claimed below) |
| Not Evaluated | Lepisma saccharina is a pest in urban settings (note: stats.conservationStatus. The prefetch found no Red List assessment DOI and GBIF holds no category for Lepisma saccharinum; ADW pages were unreadable. No IUCN reference is cited; the quote only identifies the species.) |
| Starchy materials such as paper and wood, and the glue in bindings and wallpaper | Silverfish have a preference for starchy materials such as paper and wood as their primary food source ... They have been reported to eat the glue used to hold up wallpaper, curtains, carpets, book bindings (note: stats.diet) |
| Keeps molting as an adult and can go up to a year without food | Adults can continue to molt throughout their life ... Silverfish are capable of going for long periods of time, up to an entire year, without food (note: stats.superpower) |
| Silverfish can keep molting throughout their lives, even as adults. | Adults can continue to molt throughout their life (note: Reviewer: NC State's 'Unlike other insects' line was a silverfish-and-firebrat group statement, cut; EDIS species scope used.) |
| Young silverfish molt six to seven times until they reach adulthood. | Immature silverfish molt six to seven times until they reach their adult, sexually mature stage. |
| Silverfish have been recorded molting 25 to 66 times in a lifespan. | has been recorded molting between 25 to 66 times in a lifespan |
| In optimal conditions, a silverfish can keep molting over a lifespan of up to four years. | If conditions for silverfish are optimal, they may typically continue to molt during a lifespan of up to four years (note: NC State's group page says 'Adults may live two to eight years'; not used.) |
| Getting from egg to adult typically takes one year. | The time of maturation from egg to an adult is typically one year |
| is silver or pearl-gray, with a body covered in tiny glistening scales. | Silverfish are silver or pearl-gray in color with a body covered in tiny glistening scales |
| The body tapers to the back end, where three long appendages with bristles appear. | The body is wide at the head and tapers down to the posterior end where three long appendages with bristles appear. |
| it can regenerate it in two to four weeks. | silverfish can regenerate terminal filaments and antennae in two to four weeks |
| Courtship starts with the male and female tapping each other with their antennae. | The mating behavior of the silverfish begins with the male and female tapping each other with their antennae |
| The male then spins a Y-shaped silk structure and leaves a spermatophore, a packet of sperm, near it. | The male then spins a Y-shaped silk structure and deposits its spermatophore, which contain male gametes, close to the silk structure |
| The female finds the silk and takes the packet up. | The female silverfish detects the silk spun by the male, and takes up the nearby spermatophore into her ovipositor |
| Eggs are laid in clutches of seven to twelve. | Eggs are laid in clutches of seven to twelve eggs |
| Silverfish are capable of going for long periods of time, up to an entire year, without food. | Silverfish are capable of going for long periods of time, up to an entire year, without food |
| Silverfish prefer starchy materials such as paper and wood. | Silverfish have a preference for starchy materials such as paper and wood as their primary food source |
| They like glazed paper best, which is paper coated with a starch-rich layer. | glazed paper, which is paper that has been coated with a starch-rich layer |
| They are reported to eat the glue behind wallpaper and in book bindings. | They have been reported to eat the glue used to hold up wallpaper, curtains, carpets, book bindings |
| Silverfish are nocturnal and rarely seen in the daytime unless disturbed. | Silverfish are nocturnal and only rarely seen in the daytime unless disturbed from their resting places |
| When they are, they dart away quickly. | When discovered or disturbed, silverfish will dart away quickly to conceal themselves |
| They are usually found indoors in concealed spots such as bathrooms, attics and basements. | Silverfish are usually found indoors in concealed, temperature-controlled areas such as bathrooms, attics, and basements |
| The species is found worldwide. | Lepisma saccharina is found worldwide |
| No. It is a wingless insect. | Silverfish are wingless ... Silverfish are in one of the simplest, least evolved orders of insects, the Zygentoma (note: FAQ 1; 'insect' from the order sentence.) |
| The name comes from its glistening scales, which people often compare to fish scales. | The scales are often described as fish-like. This is how it came by the common name silverfish. |
| Many species in the order Zygentoma are called silverfish, but the Entomological Society of America gives the official common name to only one of them, Lepisma saccharina. | Silverfish is a common name used to refer to many species in the order Zygentoma. The Entomological Society of America designates the term silverfish as the official common name to only one species, however: Lepisma saccharina Linnaeus. |
| At around 32 degrees Celsius, eggs can hatch in under 20 days. | Eggs can hatch in under 20 days if the temperature is around 32°C (note: FAQ 2) |
| At around 22 degrees Celsius, hatching can take up to 40 days. | the time until hatch may take up to 40 days if temperatures are around 22°C |
| Museums keep their climate under strict control, and silverfish are often serious pests in such buildings. | Silverfish are often serious pests in commercial buildings with strict climate controls, such as museums |
| Libraries and museums are also full of paper books and labels, which the insect eats. | It is a voracious feeder on materials high in starches, glue, and cellulose such as paper. Lepisma saccharina is a common pest in libraries and museums where paper books and labels are abundant |
| keeps molting as an adult | Adults can continue to molt throughout their life (note: vibe.reason, animal half) |
| has been recorded molting 25 to 66 times in a lifespan | has been recorded molting between 25 to 66 times in a lifespan (note: vibe.reason, animal half) |

## Molero-Baltanás et al. (2024). Worldwide revision of synanthropic silverfish (Insecta: Zygentoma: Lepismatidae) combining morphological and molecular data. Journal of Insect Science.

https://doi.org/10.1093/jisesa/ieae045

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| Buildings worldwide, and in southern and central Europe also under stones, bark and leaf litter | this species is a facultative synanthropic species that can be found both inside and outside houses in southern and central Europe. Free-living forms have been found in chestnut, pine or oak forests and Eucalyptus plantations as well as shrublands, from coastal areas to mountainous environments, under stones, rocks, bark of different trees, leaf litter (note: stats.habitat; 'worldwide' from silverfish-2018 'found worldwide', claimed in the body) |
| Adults are usually 7 to 10 millimetres long and can reach 11 millimetres. | Body length up to 11 mm in adults, usually 7–10 mm. (note: Lepisma saccharinum, the species' own diagnosis. English Heritage: adult 10-15 mm (not used, wider range).) |
| Most earlier works spell the name Lepisma saccharina; a recent naming change altered the ending. | Although most works cited the genus Lepisma and Ctenolepisma as feminine, recent nomenclatural changes have assigned them to neuter gender, resulting in corresponding changes to the endings of some species names (note: The feminine spelling saccharina is the one EDIS 2018 uses ('Lepisma saccharina Linnaeus'); the revision uses saccharinum.) |
| A recent revision says it is probably native to the Mediterranean region. | Robla et al. (2023) show a map with records of the natural habitats of this species in the Mediterranean region. This suggests that Lepisma saccharinum is native to this area. (note: 'probably' carries 'suggests'; 'recent' = the reference's 2024 year.) |
| In southern and central Europe it lives both inside and outside houses. | can be found both inside and outside houses in southern and central Europe |
| Outdoors it has been found under stones, rocks, bark and leaf litter, and sometimes in ant nests. | under stones, rocks, bark of different trees, leaf litter, and pine cones, and sometimes they are found living with ants (e.g., inside Aphaenogaster , Messor , Lasius , Tapinoma , and Tetramorium nests) |
| In the rest of the world where it has been reported, it occurs as an obligate synanthropic species: there it has been recorded only in human buildings, not in the wild. | this species is a facultative synanthropic species that can be found both inside and outside houses in southern and central Europe ... In the rest of the world where L. saccharinum has been reported, this species occurs as an obligate synanthropic (note: The gloss follows the paper's own contrast: facultative = found both inside and outside houses (Europe), so obligate = in human buildings only. 'only' is that contrast, not an added absolute.) |
| Neither it nor any other Lepisma species has been found in natural habitats in America. | neither Lepisma saccharinum nor other Lepisma species have been found in natural habitats in America |
| A recent revision of household silverfish says that in most of the range of Lepisma saccharinum, the grey silverfish Ctenolepisma longicaudatum seems to be becoming more frequent. | in most parts of its geographical range, it seems that C. longicaudatum is becoming more frequent (note: FAQ 3. 'grey silverfish' for C. longicaudatum is English Heritage's usage ('Grey Silverfish ... Latin name Ctenolepisma longicaudata'); the revision calls it Ctenolepisma longicaudatum. 'Recent' = the reference's 2024 year.) |
| Some papers use the name common silverfish for each of them. Because common names can mislead, the authors say to use the scientific name. | The name “common silverfish” has been used for L. saccharinum in some papers ... some publications use the name “common silverfish” for C. longicaudatum ... Since common names could lead to misinterpretations, the scientific name should be used |

## Pinniger. Pest Fact sheet No 8: Silverfish and grey silverfish. English Heritage.

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/siteassets/home/learn/conservation/collections-advice--guidance/silverfish-and-grey-silverfish---fact-file-8.pdf

| The page says | The source says |
| :--- | :--- |
| On paper, they scratch the surface and leave bare or translucent patches, and they can eventually eat holes through it. | Silverfish scratch the surface of paper and books leaving, bare or translucent patches. ... They will eventually eat through the paper leaving holes with irregular thinned edges. |
| Adults are frequently found in damp areas | Adult Lepisma silverfish are frequently found in damp areas |
| eggs are laid only in damp conditions. | They will only lay eggs in damp conditions |