Have you also seen a small bug in your home or outside in your garden? Are you also wondering what these small bugs are? There are several tiny black bugs that look like poppy seeds but there are various possibilities as to what they could be. So to help you, in this article, we will talk about tiny black bugs that look like poppy seeds along with telling you what you can do about them.
Noticing such a tiny bug is not a unique experience as there are a variety of minor bugs such as ticks, ants, fleas, and beetles that can appear to be tiny poppy seeds.
Continue reading the article to take a closer look at some examples of tiny black bugs that resemble poppy seeds as we will explore their habits and how to identify them along with how to get rid of them so you don’t have to worry about misidentifying those problematic insects.
- Moss Mites
Moss mites are known by other names including oribatid mites, armored mites, moss beetles, and beetle mites. They are among the bugs that most closely resemble poppy seeds. These are tiny black insects with a round shape and a length of about 1-2 mm. You can easily find them outside in shaded areas of gardens and yards, and can specifically find them under plant leaves as well as in the soil or on compost piles.
However, the good thing is that Moss mites are not harmful in any way as they only eat dead organic matter. So, they won’t damage your flowery plants or vegetables. Moreover, they are beneficial to your garden as they help break down and decompose dead organic matter and thus enrich your soil with nutrients.
Besides this, sometimes, moss mites may attach themselves to pets, especially dogs. But they remain on the outside of the fur of the animal and don’t bite, so they are not risky to you or your pets.
So overall, if you have moss mites in your garden, there’s no need to get rid of them because they are beneficial to the soil. But if you notice them on your pet’s fur, then you can simply remove them using a comb.
- Fleas
Fleas are jumping parasitic insects that infest our pets and feed on their blood and bite us occasionally as well. Fleas have a very specific niche and there are over 2,500 species that have been identified, and the majority prefer to feed on a certain animal or group of animals. Fleas can grow up to 3mm and also resemble a poppy seed standing on its side. So if that’s what you see on your pet, it is probably a flea. Moreover, you may also suspect fleas if you notice excessive scratching on your pet.
Flea bites are typically not too serious, although they can transmit diseases. The bacteria that causes bubonic plague, Yersinia pestis, is carried by oriental rat fleas. This illness caused the Black Death pandemic of the fourteenth century, which killed more than a third of Europe’s population.
If you discover fleas in your home or on your pets, you should use a multifaceted strategy that involves vacuuming your home, washing all bedding, treating your pets for fleas, and applying flea repellents to stop them from coming back.
- Flea Beetles
As the name suggests, Flea Beetles resemble fleas and also look a bit like poppy seeds. They are small insects with shiny black oval bodies which are around 1 to 3 mm in length. They prefer to eat leaves rather than people or other animals for food. Flea beetle larvae consume leaves as well, and if they establish themselves, they can seriously harm ornamental plants or vegetable gardens due to their voracious appetites.
If a window is close to a plant where flea beetles are eating, they may also enter your home through open windows and harm indoor plants.
Furthermore, they can seriously harm anything you’re attempting to grow, but since they don’t bite or spread illness, they aren’t harmful to people or other animals.
Commercial insecticides should be used to get rid of flea beetles, however soapy water combined with olive oil also works well.
- Black Aphids
The majority of aphid species are white, but there are also black ones which are around 1-2 mm long and can resemble poppy seeds. In general, aphids remain dormant during the coldest months and active during the spring and summer. There are two species of black aphids that you are most likely to come across are citrus aphids and peach aphids and their names indicate their preferred choice of food.
Although black aphids are a pest that can destroy plants and trees, they are not dangerous to people. Citrus aphids feed on citrus trees, and peach aphids prefer young peach plants since it’s simpler to extract sap from them.
Spray an aphid-infested plant or tree with a solution made of water and dish soap to get rid of the pests. To make sure that all the aphids have been killed, you might need to repeat this process multiple times over a few days.
- Bed Bugs
Bed bugs resemble dark brown poppy seeds; however, after eating they get enlarged and take on a blackish-red hue. It just takes a one-bed insect with eggs to enter your home to create an infestation, and before you know it, there will be bed bugs everywhere. They conceal themselves inside your mattress as well as in any other crevices or gaps they can find during the day. After that, when you sleep, they come out to suck your blood!
Bed bugs are really disgusting and leave you covered in itchy, uncomfortable bites, but since they don’t spread any diseases, they aren’t dangerous, rather they are just annoying.
A steam cleaner is the most effective tool against bed bugs since it can eliminate them at any stage of their life cycle.
One method to get them out of your luggage is to unload your bags, give them a thorough wash in the shower, and then put them out in the hot sun because you can catch them by staying in a hotel with a bed bug infestation. As a result of this, all the bugs will flee.
- Ticks
Another bug that resembles poppy seeds is the tick. Ticks, like bed bugs, swell up after a meal and turn a dark brownish-black color. In moist, shady regions, dogs may pick them up when romping over long grass. Then they might bite the animal or switch to you and bite you. One on your skin will be a little insect that will not move whether you touch it or attempt to brush it off.
Ticks are undoubtedly the most harmful bug on our list because they are carriers of several diseases, including Lyme disease.
Although unusually, ticks would invade your home, dogs or even people may bring a few ticks inside after a walk through tall grass. Never attempt to remove a tick that has bitten you since the mouthpieces will come loose and remain within your body, spreading infection. If you don’t have a special instrument for twisting tick removal, just wait till the tick has finished its meal and it will fall off on its own.
- Black Carpet Beetles
Black Carpet Beetles are insects that are about 2-3 mm in length and enter homes in the spring and summer seasons to lay their eggs. All types of natural fibers, including wool, silk, cotton, leather, and more, are appealing to adult carpet beetles and their larvae in particular. They also consume carpet and rug fibers that are a blend of synthetic and natural fibers, which is how they got their name. Also, they can break into pantries where they lay eggs in food and edible items like flour and cereal.
Although carpet beetles are not harmful, their larval phase, which resembles small, black worms with bristles, can seriously irritate the skin.
Some of the effective ways to combat a black carpet beetle infestation are steam cleaning, insecticide, and the removal of any contaminated food.
- American Spider Beetles
American spider beetles are among the more peculiar animals on our list. At first glance, they resemble small poppy seeds, but upon closer inspection, they resemble small spiders with only one pair of legs. They are widespread throughout the Nation but are especially common in northeastern states. Together with dead insects and rodent excrement, these insects enjoy eating grains and flour.
Spider beetles can bite you, but once they realize you aren’t food, they won’t bite you again. Even if they have bitten you, their bite is also largely painless and exploratory in nature. They aren’t seen as dangerous because they don’t spread any infections.
The most effective method of eliminating spider beetles is steam cleaning.
- Fungus Gnats
Another problematic little fly that resembles a poppy seed as it lands is the fungus gnat. Although they don’t bite, they are occasionally mistaken for midges or mosquitoes. If you have houseplants, they can show up in your home where they lay their eggs in moist soil.
Although they may drive you crazy by flying in front of your face, these bugs are not harmful.
Fungus gnats and their eggs can be killed by spraying your plants and the soil they are in with a solution of washing-up soap and water.
- Drugstore Beetles
Drugstore Beetles are insects that like to infest bread products and also consume things like books, hair, and leather along with herbs and spices and this is the reason the name is given to them. Drugstore beetles also look like small brown poppy seeds.
Although these bugs aren’t harmful, their larval stage is when they can seriously harm the things they eat. Their infestations can be controlled by steam cleaning, using insecticides, and discarding contaminated food.
- Black Weevils
Black weevils are also popularly known as pantry bugs and are unwelcome guests as they can infest all kinds of food such as flour, pasta, bread, and other things in your pantry. These bugs resemble superficially poppy seeds, but if you closely look at them you will see an elongated snout.
Black Weevils insects aren’t dangerous, but they can easily ruin all your storage food so you should be aware of them.
The best way to get rid of black weevils is to throw out all the infected and ruined food items and then make sure that you keep everything they like to eat in sealed plastic containers so that they cannot reach out to your food.
- Spider Mites
These insects are tiny bugs that have got their names because of their trick of spinning fine webs which look like spider webs and thus they are known as spider mites. However, spider mites are insects that are not related to spiders in any way.
Spider mites are not dangerous, but if they infest your plants, they will keep multiplying and spinning webs until the plants die. So we can say that they are not harmful to humans but you should keep your plants safe from spider mites.
If you want to get rid of spider mites then you should use a solution of water mixed with dish soap and olive oil and spray it on the plants over several days and this will probably help you in dealing with them.
- Baby Black Oriental Cockroaches
Cockroaches are well known, however, the offspring of the black oriental species resemble poppy seeds and are only approximately 1-2 mm in length.
You should take action to eliminate these babies of black oriental cockroaches if you see them because doing so will also ensure that a healthy population of adults is present.
Although they are not threatening, cockroaches are unhygienic and can spread disease. Infestations with roaches are extremely difficult to tackle. So if you want to get rid of them then you might try using roach traps or a variety of commercial bug killers to kill them.
- Book Lice
Booklice are tiny insects that feed on paper, mold spores, and fungi and thus make them a problem around the home if not appropriately controlled. Booklice are usually between 1-2 mm in size and are translucent in color. Most people mistake them for sesame seeds but they most likely resemble poppy seeds.
In addition to this, Booklice are one of the common bugs that resemble bed bugs. Some people even said that they found a baby bed bug.
- Minute Brown Scavenger Beetle
When you look at a Minute Brown Scavenger Beetle you will find them scavenging on the ground and may think it’s a seed. These bugs are 1-2 mm in length and are dark brown in color. Moreover, these bugs are spherical, although poppy seeds are long and slender.
Minute Brown Scavenger beetles prefer to live in homes where there is a lot of moisture and food debris. These areas include underneath refrigerators, sinks in the kitchen, restrooms, and other damp areas so you should always check them out.
- Thrips
Thrips resemble brown seeds, although their droppings do resemble little black bugs that look like poppy seeds. You’ll see that as thrips feed on a plant, they leave behind tiny, black droppings on the stem and leaves.
We will suggest you use Neem oil or diatomaceous oil to get rid of thrips. Moreover, the usage of sticky traps, which are both affordable and efficient, is a viable alternative for getting rid of thrips.
In addition to this, you should know that thrips can be a bit difficult to get rid of, so the best thing to do is prevention so that you will not have to face them. For instance, as soon as you see any thrips on your plants start treatment in the ways mentioned above.
The final words
So overall, Homeowners may become bothered and alarmed by little black bugs, but the first step in taking control of the situation is to identify the bug. To identify the type of bug you are dealing with, you should pay attention to the size, color, and moisture levels in your home as different bugs are most likely to get attracted to different situations and feed on different items. We have shared the most common tiny black bugs that look like poppy seeds so that you can easily identify them and get rid of them. We hope you found this article informative and now you can easily identify such small black bugs.
