The adult long-horned beetle. (Photo by Shutterstock)
Inspector Matt Skowron of The Floor Detective in Lake City, Fla., came across this during a wood flooring inspection:
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Inspector Matt Skowron of The Floor Detective in Lake City, Fla., came across this during a wood flooring inspection:
He had this to say about the creature:
“I eventually found three of them in a single 5-inch-wide-by-12-inch-long plank. These larvae are about 1/4 wide and 1 1/4 long. You can see the tunnels they made in the wood as they just chomped away. The consumer played me a video where you can hear them chewing inside the wood. I removed the planks and the critters and put them in a sealed bag. When it was quiet in the office, you could hear them still eating inside the bag!”
It isn’t a common occurrence in wood flooring (Skowron says it’s only the second time he’s ever run into a bug or larva that big in wood), and he wasn’t sure what type of insect it came from. WFB consulted a state entomologist, who identified it as the larva of a long-horned beetle.
Where did it come from? Skowron reports, “There was a rubber underlayment between the flooring and the plywood subfloor and there was no penetration of the rubber. There was no penetration of baseboard or quarter round, as well, so I think the critters came in the wood from the manufacturer.”
All Things Wood Floor, created by Wood Floor Business magazine, talks to interesting wood flooring pros to share knowledge, stories and tips on everything to do with wood flooring, from installation, sanding and finishing to business management.