📸 PhotoPhoto: Helio Lourencini · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons Source
Gray silverfish
Ctenolepisma longicaudatum (Gray silverfish · Gray silverfish)
Not Evaluated (NE) on the IUCN Red List yet.
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 Its body length of 18 mm is equal to the diameter of a Korean 10-won coin (18 mm) (Comparison).
- 💡 It is known for chewing on books, paper, and wallpaper, and in Europe it is also found in homes, museums, and archives (Insects paper).
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The gray silverfish is a wingless, primitive insect that chews on paper and starches inside buildings.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
It is a wingless primitive insect (order Zygentoma) that continues to molt even after reaching adulthood. Its size is described as about 13–18 mm, similar to the German cockroach.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
It feeds on plant-based materials such as paper, book bindings, wallpaper, photographs, cellulose, and starch. Resistant to dryness and cold, it is spreading rapidly in homes, accommodations, warehouses, and archives across Europe.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
It is listed under the Korean name 'Jom' (Korean name) on the National List of Species of Korea.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List: not evaluated (NE) — cross-checked with the Wikidata conservation-status entry
- • catalogueoflife.org — N4X77
- • 국가생물종목록(국립생물자원관) ktsn 120000038824 — https://species.nibr.go.kr/home/mainHome.do?cont_link=009&subMenu=009002&contCd=009002&ktsn=120000038824
- • wikidata.org — Q141486955
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Ctenolepisma longicaudatum - iNaturalist 97661106.jpg
- • pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov — PMC7760683
- • pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov — PMC8471186
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Gareth Monger · CC BY 3.0 (Related taxon silhouette — Lepisma saccharina)
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.