5 Bugs That Look Like Chia Seeds

Let’s look at four bugs that look like chia seeds, how harmful they are, how to get rid of them, and more.

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Who doesn’t love chia seeds, the superfood for a healthy life? But if you suddenly find your chia seeds crawling around, that’s just too much health, isn’t it?

Bugs that look like chia seeds can pose a serious health hazard. Firstly, if they get into your chia seed container, you may end up eating some of them, which is gross (and possibly unhealthy).

Secondly, they might be carrying some disease or else destroying your clothes and soft furnishings by chewing through them. They may even be infecting your stored food, triggering allergic reactions, and doing a lot more harm!

Well, let me not stoke your fears even further. Let’s learn more about some of these bugs.

House mites and Flour mites

First up on our list is a very common pest – the house mite.

House mites can be extremely hard to detect, thanks to their small size. Quite often, these bugs go unnoticed until they’ve grown into a full-blown infestation.

Two of the most common types of mites that resemble chia seeds are house mites and flour mites. House mites (also known as dust mites) usually feed on dead skin cells.

Flour mites, on the other hand, are pantry bugs that feed on dry cereals and other foods. If you find mites in your chia seeds, they are likely to be flour mites.

 

 

Do they bite?

House mites don’t bite, but you might get an allergic reaction to them, causing itchy and red-looking rashes.

Flour mites can bite. Their bite causes Baker’s itch, an allergic reaction commonly seen in bakers who often deal in flour.

Can they spread disease?

These mites aren’t known to spread any diseases, but they can trigger asthma and allergic reactions.

Are they harmful to humans or pets?

These mites aren’t directly harmful to humans or pets, but flour mites can render both human and pet food unfit for consumption.

Can they get in the house?

House mites are extremely common house pests, and our homes are their natural habitats. Flour mites can easily get carried indoors when you take home an infested package of food.

How to get rid of them?

To get rid of house mites, you need to clean and vacuum your home thoroughly. Wash your clothes, pillow covers, blankets, and sheets in hot water to kill the bugs.

As for the flour mites, you should keep your pantry clean and store food in airtight containers to deny them a food source.

Where do they lay eggs?

House mites lay eggs on places like beds and sofas, while flour mites lay them on the surface of the food they have infested.

What are they attracted to?

Dark and humid pantries attract flour mites. House mites are attracted to items and furniture that have dead skin cells on them.

Weevils

Weevils thrive on a variety of foodstuffs (especially grains and cereals). These bugs are extremely common in granaries and pantries, and they can also mingle with your chia seeds.

These insects are easily identifiable by their long, elongated snouts, which can be up to a third of the length of their body.

There are different species of weevils, named after their feeding habits or habitat preferences, such as granary weevils, rice weevils, bean weevils, etc.

 

 

 

Do they bite?

No, weevils do not bite. They only eat grains and cereals; they have no interest in sucking human blood.

Can they spread disease?

Weevils don’t vector any disease, but they can contaminate your food. Even eating one or two of them does not cause much harm to you.

Are they harmful to humans or pets?

These bugs aren’t harmful to humans and pets. As mentioned earlier, they don’t like to feed on anything like human or pet skin.

Can they get in the house?

Weevils usually enter homes via infested food and grains.

How to get rid of them?

Use a vacuum cleaner to get rid of these bugs, their larvae, and eggs. You can apply a disinfectant spray and white vinegar on furniture or bedding.

Make sure to thoroughly clean containers of food that had a weevil infestation. Avoid using any chemical treatments – you could end up contaminating your food.

Where do they lay eggs?

Weevils lay eggs within the food they are infesting, which is why they often hatch inside sealed grain packets and infest the grains.

What are they attracted to?

Damp areas with suitable food sources attract weevils. They love munching on starchy foods and grains like rice, pasta, cereals, and flour.

Booklice

Unlike most lice species, booklice aren’t parasites. As their name suggests, they primarily infest books, especially old and damp ones.

They are relatively harmless bugs that simply feed on the binding glue and the mildew that grows on paper. A large presence of booklice can be annoying, and some subspecies of this bug can infest food items.

 

 

 

Do they bite?

Booklice get a bad rap from their hair-infesting cousins, but these poor bugs don’t bite you.

Can they spread disease?

No, these bugs don’t spread any diseases harmful to us. At worst, they can contaminate your food.

Are they harmful to humans or pets?

Booklice are mostly harmless, but they may appear harmful if they collect in large numbers.

Can they get in the house?

Yes, booklice can hitch a ride on old books, furniture, or other items and enter a new home.

How to get rid of them?

Clean out any mold, mildew infected books, window sills, etc., in your house, which will finish off their food source. Since these bugs love humidity, use a dehumidifier and reduce humidity levels below 50%. Let in ample sunshine to dry up any excess humidity.

Where do they lay eggs?

Booklice tend to lay eggs in moist and dark places, usually near a food source.

What are they attracted to?

These pests are attracted to dark and moist areas with stored food or mildew to feed on.

Shiny Spider Beetle

Thanks to its shiny and globular abdomen, a spider beetle looks very much like a chia seed. Even the color is similar, ranging from reddish brown to black.

The shiny spider beetle is relatively more reddish than the other spider beetle species and grows up to 1.5 to 3.5 inches in their adult life stages.

This bug feeds on an impressively diverse range of foods, including natural fibers like textile fabrics and silk, grains, fish meal, bread, flour, dried vegetables, old wood, etc.

When infesting a home in large numbers, they can be a huge menace.

 

 

 

Do they bite?

Spider beetles do not bite. They can harm a lot of things in your house because of their diverse range of food sources.

Can they spread disease?

While spider beetles don’t spread diseases directly, they can contaminate food and make it unfit for your consumption.

Are they harmful to humans or pets?

No, these bugs don’t harm humans or pets.

Can they get in the house?

Yes, spider beetles can hole up in dark and secluded places like attics and cracks in the wall.

How to get rid of them?

Throw away food infested by spider beetles, clean your home, and keep the rooms well-ventilated. Use airtight containers to store your food.

Where do they lay eggs?

Spider beetles lay eggs in food containers or on plant leaves.

What are they attracted to?

Shiny spider beetles are attracted to dark and damp places with a suitable food source, especially organic matter.

Frequently Asked Questions

What bug looks like flax seed?

The adult bed bug closely resembles a flax seed, with a flat and oval body. This bug is usually dark brown but has a somewhat transparent body during the younger life stages. Bed bug bites cause itchy welts on the skin. They can bite you on any part of your body, unlike fleas.

What bug looks like a white sesame seed?

Various bugs, such as bed bugs, deer ticks, rice weevils, and aphids, resemble sesame seeds. If the bug is white, it’s most likely an aphid.

However, broken segments of a tapeworm’s body might also look like a sesame seed. If you find something like this in your house, get yourself and your pet checked for tapeworm immediately.

What can be mistaken for springtails?

Fleas are often mistaken for springtails as they look quite similar. Moreover, springtails can jump far and wide, just like fleas, so the distinction is even harder.

However, remember that fleas are parasites that can cause severe illnesses in your pets, while springtails are relatively harmless. If the bug is on your pet and doesn’t jump when disturbed, it’s more likely a flea than a springtail.

Do dead bed bugs look like seeds?

Yes, dead bed bugs look like flax or apple seeds. If you find several such dead bugs in your bed, you likely have a bed bug infestation. While you can get rid of them yourself, you might need a pest control company if the infestation is severe.

 

 

Wrapping up

Besides the bugs discussed above, the seed-like pests in your home might also be carpet beetles, black citrus aphids, or black peach aphids.

Always look out for bugs that look like seeds on plants because those might be aphids or other harmful pests that can potentially kill the plant.

If your home is prone to bug infestations, it’s a good idea to keep a spray bottle with insecticidal soap handy. Soap solution typically works on most bugs.

Thank you for reading, and we hope you were able to identify that bug in your house!

Reader Emails

Given that chia seeds are superfoods, they have become very common in our homes. Unfortunately, some of the pests that look very similar to these seeds have also been invading our homes.

Read below some of the emails from our readers about such bugs, and their encounters with them.

Letter 1 – Unknown Thing is Impatiens Seedpod

 

Weird bright green swirly-curly-backed worm(?) July 22, 2009 Hi, there, Bugman! Love this site… it’s been quite helpful in the past, but I have been unable to find this on here. I’m in Western PA (Pittsburgh) and found this on my potted Impatients. Last week (mid July) when I was dead-heading them, I didn’t notice it and it pulled back! -Totally freaked me-out! So I pulled it off and took some pics. Unfortunately, the plumbers came right then and I didn’t have the presence of mind to keep the little bugger, just tossed him off the porch. Never seen another since. Any ideas? Are they going to override my plants eventually? Destructive? How do I get rid of them should I see more? Thanks for any help on this! Theresa Jones Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Hi Theresa, We haven’t a clue as to what this is.  Readership, help us.

Holey Moley!  didn’t think the Bugman could be stumped… At least all my friends who were also clueless won’t feel so stupid. 🙂 I’ll keep checking in on the site, but if possible, I’d appreciate an email if some info comes to light.  (if that’s not possible, I understand, though) Thanks again for your efforts! Best Regards, Theresa Jones Karl solves the Mystery Ripe impatiens seed pods explode rather violently, on their own or when they are touched. The green curly thing is what’s left behind. Regards. K Thanks Karl, We aren’t even entomologists, much less botanists, but we were relatively certain this was not animalian. Um, yeah, That’s a seedpod from an Impatients plant (oddly enough, where it was found.)  My mother used to have them in a basket on the porch and those pods would pop when the conditions were right, spreading the seeds by a little ol’ spring action.  I always thought they were pretty cool, because when they were ripe you could set them off with a touch, which is probably what startled Ms. Jones.  So in the end… flora not fauna.  The fact that this is the first one she’s seen though, means she is probably really good at keeping up with dead-heading. Weston Tulloch Bay City, MI

Letter 2 – Not Bugs, but Plant Seeds called Beggar’s Ticks

 

I’m trying to identify a bug I keep finding in my house February 6, 2010 Hi there, I appreciate your help!! For the past 1-2 years, I keep finding this one particular bug in my house, I am the only one who seems to notice it, but I keep finding it on my bed, on the floor and the latest -stuck to my pijama pants by its little” horns”. Please see pic. I’ve found it during all seasons of the year and whenever I find it it is always dead. If it wasn’t for those little horns, I wouldn’t even think it was a bug. I’ve never seen it living. When I first started finding this bug, I thought that it was perhaps something my ‘semi-indoor-outdoor’ cat dragged in. But being that it is the dead of February in Toronto, Canada …there really aren’t that bugs outside. So I don’t know. I think that is all the information I can give you for now. Thank you so much for reading this and for your consideration to help me out. Take care. Carla Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Hi Carla, WE couldn’t help but to chuckle when we saw your letter.  These aren’t bugs at all, nor are they even animal in origin.  They are the seeds of a plant.  The “horns” are projections on the seed that lodge in animal fur or human clothing and this helps to transport the seed to a new location where if conditions are favorable, a new plant will germinate.  Though we recognize this seed, we are not certain from which plant it is produced.  We might be able to identify them properly should we take the time, but then we run the risk of adding a new category to our site, and frankly, we haven’t the time to expand into “What’s That Seed?” Hi Daniel, Thank you for getting back to me!  I have to say, that I too had quite the laugh when I read your email  — Wow, I had a seed keeping my up at night.  As long as plants don’t start growing in the middle of my living room, then I think I will be fine with it.  Again, thank you for taking the time to answer my email. I’ve made a small donation to your website… just in case I am plagued by a seed again. Sincerely, Carla Campli

Letter 3 – Pansy Seeds and Aphids

 

What is my egg? Location: Redding, CA (Far Northern Calif) April 2, 2012 9:42 am These eggs were laid on my pansies in Redding, CA. I found them on 3/31/12. As you can see by my picture, there are 3 leaves with eggs and 1 with bugs (maybe aphids?) Signature: Jan

Dear Jan, We got a chuckle thanks to your letter.  The eggs in question are actually Pansy Seeds.  When they are ready to disperse, the pod pops open.  It does appear that you have Aphids, but they are unrelated to the seeds.

Thanks for the quick response! Silly me

Letter 4 – Beggar’s Ticks: Seeds not Bugs

 

Subject: Not sure what this is Location: Rockford il January 29, 2016 9:23 pm This is the second day night I’ve went outside and walked in my yard with my dog. Each night once I come I side I see this leaf like flat bug on my pants. First night it was only like 4 tonight was about 70 of them all up and down my sweat pants. This scares me a lot can’t find anything g online. Like I said both time I did not brush up against anything g or lean on anything. Please help me. Signature: Kelsey Stephen s

Dear Kelsey, Though they are commonly called Beggar’s Ticks, these are actually seeds not bugs.  The seeds of plants in the genus Bidens have adapted to stick to animals’ fur or peoples’ clothing to help in dispersion.  See Illinois Wildflowers for more information on the plant.

Letter 5 – Possibly Plant Seeds not Bugs

 

Subject:  Do you know what these guys are Geographic location of the bug:  Ontario canada Date: 10/04/2017 Time: 10:12 AM EDT Hoping you can tell me what these guys are How you want your letter signed:  Val

Dear Val, These are not insects.  We believe they are plant seeds.

Letter 6 – Seeds mistaken for insects

 

Subject:  Strange bug Geographic location of the bug:  Panorama city/van nuys, california Date: 05/13/2019 Time: 11:48 PM EDT Your letter to the bugman:  Hi! Hoping you can help me?…Im finding TONS of these, strange, “furry”(?) white bugs, in the weeds of my, overgrown, lawn – and, especially, on a, large,thistle plant…and, i cannot seem to find ANYthing like them, online (maybe, im not describing them, correctly?)! At first, i thought they were spiders – but, now, im not sure? They have many, silky/delicate-looking, legs or spines – look, almost, like the top of a dandylion. They move slowly…dont jump or fly…almost, seem to “roll” over the leaves?…and, like to perch in, small, clusters Is theres ANY way you could get back to me, ASAP?…as, TOMORROW afternoon, the gardener is going to be mowing the yard, and, probabky, cutting down the thistle plant (im trying to ID THAT, too – to see if its native, and, if i should keep it or not?), and…im feeling, real, guilty…because, these bugs seem to like the thistle, so much – and, i may, inadvertantly, be committing a ” bug-genocide”! Hopefully, therell, probably, still, be SOME of them left – and, if so…i, also, need to know IF they bite or are venemous, etc…and, whether i need to keep my dogs away? Thank you, SO, much! P.S. i have another photo which shows the body, but, it said i couldnt attach it because i had exceeded the maximum weight (i could send it, seperately, if you need it?) How you want your letter signed:  Madelaine

Dear Madelaine, We do not see any insects in your image, but based on your description, we believe you are mistaking airborne seeds like those of a dandelion for insects.  The seeds might be from salsify or some other plant that uses the wind to disperse seeds.  Foodstuff has an image of salsify seeds.  They are most likely thistle seeds.