Return to Publications List ◄ Next Page►

2

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

The name earwig, according to Barnes (1946), comes from the Anglo-Saxon "eare," ear, plus "wygge," a short form of wiggle, referring to the way in which the insect walks. Other explanations of the origin of the word seem less probable.

H. J. Hansen's records, made in 1881, from the Faroe Islands show an abundance of earwigs. Gurney (1934) states that this species is native throughout Europe and western Asia and may be native to northern Africa. They have been introduced into East Africa, The East Indies, New Zealand, Tasmania and Australia, as well as North America. Crumb, Eide and Bonn (1941) found that in North America, earwigs were most numerous in British Columbia and the states of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, Idaho, Colorado, Utah, Washington, Oregon and California, with the heaviest concentration on the West Coast.

The European earwig shows an adaptability to many environments, but one of its preferred habitats is a pile of stones mixed with soil. Bushes and shrubbery are also satisfactory. Later-stage nymphs and non-breeding adults prefer to be off the ground except where the surface is dry, when they may be found under loose bark, in fence cracks and other similar places, according to Guppy (1946).

Native foods of the European earwig, according to Guppy (1946), include the narrow-leaved plantain, (Plantago 1anceolata) and to some, degree, clover. George N. Jones of the University of Washington (Crumb, 1941) found that mosses (Ceratodon purpureus, and other species), lichens, the green alga (P1eurococcus) and fungus spores were preferred.