Striped Earwig

Labidura riparia — the striped earwig — is one of the largest earwigs in North America and one of about 20 species in family Labiduridae (the long-pincered earwigs — same family as the extinct Saint Helena giant earwig, Labidura herculeana, also in the Wild Files). The species is essentially COSMOPOLITAN — established in temperate and subtropical regions worldwide, including all of NA from southern Canada through the southern US to Central America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Adults are 3-4 cm body length INCLUDING the dramatic forceps (cerci) at the rear (the largest individuals up to 5 cm including cerci), with the species' diagnostic features: tan-yellow body with two dark longitudinal STRIPES running down the dorsal surface (the source of the 'striped' common name — distinguishing the species from the similarly-sized but unstriped European earwig Forficula auricularia, already in the Wild Files), reddish-brown legs, and prominent forward-curving CERCI. The species is one of the few NA earwigs commonly active during DAYTIME (most NA earwigs are nocturnal — striped earwigs are more diurnal, hunting actively in daylight on bare ground and in low vegetation). The species is a MAJOR BENEFICIAL PREDATOR of agricultural pest insects. Striped earwigs hunt and eat: FALL ARMYWORM larvae (one of the species' most important prey — see fall armyworm in the Wild Files), CORN EARWORM larvae (also see in the Wild Files), other LEPIDOPTERAN LARVAE in southern US row crops (cotton, soybean, corn), aphids, and various other small soft-bodied arthropods. Striped earwigs are particularly important predators in southern US cotton and corn agriculture, where they provide significant beneficial natural control of caterpillar pests. The species is also one of the most-cited examples of MATERNAL CARE in arthropods. Female striped earwigs CONSTRUCT UNDERGROUND BROOD CHAMBERS in moist soil, lay clutches of 30-60 eggs in the chambers, and AGGRESSIVELY GUARD THE EGGS through 1-2 weeks of embryonic development. After hatching, the female CONTINUES TO CARE FOR THE HATCHLING NYMPHS for an additional 2-3 weeks — providing protection from predators, regularly cleaning eggs and nymphs to prevent fungal infection, and foraging for food to provision the brood. The maternal care behavior is one of the most-cited examples of arthropod parental investment and is featured in essentially every modern textbook discussion of insect parental care. The species is harmless to humans (despite the dramatic appearance — earwig forceps cannot pinch hard enough to penetrate human skin, and there is no venom or sting).