Answer
Mar 13, 2013 - 06:50 PM
Carpet beetles are called "Carpet Beetles", because many years ago, they infested wool carpets and rugs made of wool. They eat the Kerotin which is a protein found in hair and natural animal coats.
Today, however, not many carpets are made of wool, so there really is not much they can actually eat other than wool sweaters, suits, and the occasional wool rug.
Carpet beetles can be one of any number of a different species of beetles that are known as "dermestid" beetles. There is a great article on dermestid beetles at wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dermestidae
The thing to remember is that this beetle like almost any insect, originates outdoors. They can feed and live on plants, shrubs, etc and they can also fly. So the question about where are they coming from? Outdoors. To say that the surrounding apartments do not have them is very unlikely. The question is, is this a carpet beetle, a hide beetle, or exactly what is it? If it is hide beetle, they can live and infest in birds nests in walls, attics, etc. They can also live in dead animals such as squirrels and rats that may have died inside a wall or attic.
Since you probably rent and do not own the property, I would talk to the property manager and let them know your concerns. If you need specific treatment advice, I need to know exactly what kind of beetle it is. You can always send us a sample specimen and we can identify it for you. Visit our www.epestsupply.com/ask_a_pro.php or just mail it to me at:
ePestSupply
Ron Dawson
13661 Jupiter Rd Ste 301
Dallas, Texas 75238
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