Bookworms are a group of larval beetles that feed on wood and paper. Anobium puntatum is a common wood-dwelling beetle found in seasoned sapwood timbers, which is the tasty outmost layer of a tree after it’s been cut down and dried. The larvae eat the wood and the adult beetles lay eggs in the cracks and holes. They can sometimes eat their way into books on wooden shelves. That brings a whole new meaning behind having to “eat your words”.

First identified by a Swedish entomologist named Charles De Geer, in 1774. Its name comes from New Latin roots describing a beetle that punctures wood. These bugs are known for the distinctly clean, round holes they make while they gnaw their way through the wood. The size of a Bookworm is 2.7 – 4.5 millimeters, about three times smaller than a watermelon seed!

Fascinating Fact: Woodworms found in London’s Westminster Hall in 1918 had been feasting on the timber roof for 400 years! They came for the food but stayed for the history!