★ Are the bugs in your home pests or harmless visitors? Why do they show up even in clean apartments? This book teaches you to “identify first, then act.”
★ The book covers 46 topics: from cockroaches and bedbugs to fleas, dust mites, spiders, and silverfish—explaining where they come from, what they eat, and how to control them.
★ It distinguishes between pests that truly need to be dealt with and “harmless regulars” with whom you can coexist responsibly, helping you save time and money while avoiding unnecessary use of chemicals. Perfect for apartment owners, renters, families with children, and pet owners—approach your tiny neighbors like a detective solving a mystery.

What exactly are the creepy-crawlies in your home—pests or invaders? Why do they show up even in clean apartments? How can you tackle this problem quickly without resorting to unnecessary chemicals?
This is a wise and engaging guide that introduces you to humanity’s “tiny neighbors”—the creatures you might encounter in your apartment, house, or villa. The book imparts a key principle to save you time and money: identify first, then act. You’ll quickly learn what kind of creature you’re dealing with, where to look for the root cause, and which measures are truly effective—without unnecessary chemicals or unnecessary mess. This isn’t a horror story or a dry reference book; it’s packed with practical tips and real-life examples.
This book is perfect for apartment and house owners, summer residents, families with children, pet owners, and anyone who enjoys accessible science and wants to know what’s really going on under the same roof.

[Author] Viktor Prokaev
A prominent young science communicator and popularizer of natural sciences in contemporary Russia, he is also a highly acclaimed educator on biological topics. He excels at demystifying relatively niche fields like zoology and entomology for the general public, employing a modern, ironic, humorous, and accessible style. As a flagship work developed in close collaboration with the major Russian publisher Eksmo, this book blends rigorous scientific observation with a sharp, witty writing style, focusing on the insects that inhabit urban homes. Through an engaging “detective-style” approach, he systematically classifies household arthropods, helping city dwellers to distinguish—without unnecessary panic—between harmless common visitors and genuine pests, while offering eco-friendly, scientifically grounded strategies for coexistence and pest control.

Table of Contents

Dedication and Acknowledgments 9
Introduction 11
Chapter 1 Your Apartment Is Rich in More Than Just Insects 17
Chapter 2 The Diversity of Arthropods 20
Chapter 3 Counting Legs 29
Chapter 4 House Dwellers, Building-Side Residents, and Those Not at Home at All 32
Chapter 5 When You Can Simply Show an Insect to Google 39
Chapter 6 Who Wears Clothes, Who Has Wings 43
Chapter 7 Tails 47
Chapter 8 Jumping Insects 49
Chapter 9 Recognize the “True Face” of Parasites! 52
Chapter 10 Wormlike Creatures That Are Not Worms 57
Chapter 11 If an Arthropod Still Remains Unidentified, What Else Is Worth Noticing? 61
Chapter 12 The Red Cockroach and Everything Else… 64
Chapter 13 Bed Bugs 86
Chapter 14 Fleas 111
Chapter 15 Psocids, Also Known as Booklice or Bookworms 130
Chapter 16 House Ants and Semi-House Ants 146
Chapter 17 Carpet Beetles and Their Hairy Larvae 157
Chapter 18 Flour Beetles 171
Chapter 19 Furniture Beetles, Longhorn Beetles, and Other Wood-Boring Insects 178
Chapter 20 Warehouse Beetles 188
Chapter 21 Blood-Sucking Mites 196
Chapter 22 Soft Ticks 206
Chapter 23 Storage Mites 215
Chapter 24 Dust Mites 225
Chapter 25 Predatory Mites 235
Chapter 26 Pseudoscorpions 241
Chapter 27 Spiders 245
Chapter 28 Springtails 255
Chapter 29 “Little Fish,” “Silverfish,” or Simply Fish Moths 264
Chapter 30 Moths 271
Chapter 31 Woodlice 286
Chapter 32 Flies 294
Chapter 33 Mosquitoes 310
Chapter 34 Butterflies 319
Chapter 35 Millipedes 323
Chapter 36 Termites 334
Chapter 37 Neighbors We Have to Deal With 344
Chapter 38 Indoor Plant Pests 356
Chapter 39 Permanent Human Parasites 366
Chapter 40 How to Find the Biter 378
Chapter 41 Invisible or Imaginary Parasites 386
Chapter 42 Uninvited Guests 397
Chapter 43 Localized Problems 406
Chapter 44 How to Check Whether a House Is Infested with Insects 411
Chapter 45 General Rules for Household Arthropod Control 418
Chapter 46 The Apartment as a Fortress 433
Instead of a Conclusion 438