''Ctenolepisma'' is a genus of primitive

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

s in the order

Zygentoma Zygentoma are an order in the class Insecta, and consist of about 550 known species. The Zygentoma include the so-called silverfish or fishmoths, and the firebrats. A conspicuous feature of the order are the three long caudal filaments. The t ...

, closely related to the

silverfish The silverfish (''Lepisma saccharinum'') is a species of small, primitive, wingless insect in the order Zygentoma (formerly Thysanura). Its common name derives from the insect's silvery light grey colour, combined with the fish-like appearanc ...

and

firebrat The firebrat (''Thermobia domestica'') is a small insect (typically 1–1.5 cm) in the order Zygentoma. Habitat Firebrats prefer relatively warm temperatures (36–39 °C) and require some humidity. They are commonly found ...

but less reliant on human habitation, some species being found both indoors and outdoors and some found exclusively outdoors. The genus is distributed nearly worldwide in warm regions.

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

lacks native ''Ctenolepisma'', but is home to

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived ther ...

Nomenclature

Most authors have historically treated the nomenclatural gender of ''Ctenolepisma'' as feminine, but in 2018 the

International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN) is an organization dedicated to "achieving stability and sense in the scientific naming of animals". Founded in 1895, it currently comprises 26 commissioners from 20 countries. Orga ...

issued a formal ruling (ICZN Opinion 2427) stating the gender of ''Lepisma'' (and all genera with that ending) is neuter, following ICZN Article 30, which resulted in changes to the spelling of several well-known species, including ''Ctenolepisma longicaudatum'' (formerly ''longicaudata'').

Diversity

There are roughly 75 extant species presently recognized as valid in the genus, and one fossil:''Ctenolepisma'' - IRMNG
/ref> *''Ctenolepisma abyssinicum'' Mendes, 1982 (

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

) *''Ctenolepisma africanellum'' Wygodzinsky, 1955 (

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

) *'' Ctenolepisma algharbicum'' Mendes, 1978 (

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

) *'' Ctenolepisma almeriense'' Molero-Baltanás, Gaju-Ricart & Bach de Roca, 2005 (

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

) *''Ctenolepisma alticola'' Silvestri, 1935 (

Karakorum Karakorum (Khalkha Mongolian: Хархорум, ''Kharkhorum''; Mongolian script:, ''Qaraqorum'') was the capital city, capital of the Mongol Empire between 1235 and 1260 and of the Northern Yuan, Northern Yuan dynasty in the late 14th and 1 ...

) *''Ctenolepisma angustiellum'' Silvestri, 1949 (

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

) *''Ctenolepisma barchanicum'' Kaplin, 1985 (

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...

) *''Ctenolepisma basilewskyi'' Wygodzinsky, 1965 (

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

) *''Ctenolepisma boettgerianum'' Paclt, 1961 (

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

) *''Ctenolepisma burmanicum'' (Parona, 1892) (

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

)
ynonym: ''Lepisma burmanica'' Parona, 1892/small> *''Ctenolepisma cabindae'' Mendes, 2002d (

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

) *'' Ctenolepisma calvum'' (Ritter, 1910) (

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

)
ynonym: ''Peliolepisma calva'' Ritter, 1910/small> *''

Ctenolepisma ciliatum ''Ctenolepisma ciliatum'' is a species of primitive insect of the order Zygentoma. Described from Spain, it is a common species in subarid habitats of the Mediterranean bassin from Portugal to Western Asia West Asia (also called Western Asi ...

'' (Dufour, 1831) (

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

;

Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...

;

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

; Iran)
ynonyms: ''Lepisma ciliata'' Dufour, 1831, ''Ctenolepisma fuliginosa'' (Lucas, 1846), ''Lepisma fuliginosa'' Lucas, 1846 *''Ctenolepisma conductrix'' Silvestri, 1918 (

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

) *''Ctenolepisma confalonieri'' Silvestri, 1932 (

) *''Ctenolepisma decellei'' Mendes, 1982 (

Chad Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...

) *''Ctenolepisma desaegeri'' Mendes, 1982 (

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

) *''Ctenolepisma dewittei'' Mendes, 1982 (

) *'' Ctenolepisma dubitale'' Wygodzinsky, 1959 (

Leeward Island The Leeward Islands () are a group of islands situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean. Starting with the Virgin Islands east of Puerto Rico, they extend southeast to Guadeloupe and its dependencies. In Engl ...

) *''Ctenolepisma dzhungaricum'' Kaplin, 1982 (

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

) *†'' Ctenolepisma electrans'' Mendes, 1998b (Dominican amber) *''Ctenolepisma fasciatum'' (Lucas, 1863) (

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

) doubtful *''Ctenolepisma feae'' Silvestri, 1908 (

) *''Ctenolepisma gabuense'' Mendes, 1985 (

Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau, officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, is a country in West Africa that covers with an estimated population of 2,026,778. It borders Senegal to Guinea-Bissau–Senegal border, its north and Guinea to Guinea–Guinea-Bissau b ...

) *'' Ctenolepisma guadianicum'' Mendes, 1992 (

) *''

Ctenolepisma guanche ''Ctenolepisma guanche'' is a species of silverfish in the family Lepismatidae Lepismatidae is a family of primitive wingless insects with about 340 described species. This family contains the two most familiar members of the order Zygentoma: ...

'' Mendes, 1993 (Canary Islands) *''Ctenolepisma guineense'' Mendes, 1985 (Guinea-Bissau) *''Ctenolepisma gunini'' Kaplin, 1989 (

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

) *''Ctenolepisma halophila'' Kaplin, 1981 (Turkmenistan) *''Ctenolepisma howa'' Escherich in Voeltzkow, 1910 (

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

) *''

Ctenolepisma hummelincki ''Ctenolepisma'' is a genus of primitive insects in the order Zygentoma, closely related to the silverfish and firebrat but less reliant on human habitation, some species being found both indoors and outdoors and some found exclusively outdoors. ...

'' Wygodzinsky, 1959 (

Windward Islands The Windward Islands are the southern, generally larger islands of the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean islands or the West Indies. Located approximately between latitudes 10° and 16° N and longitudes 60° and 62° W, they extend from D ...

) *''Ctenolepisma immane'' Mendes, 2004 (

Socotra Socotra, locally known as Saqatri, is a Yemeni island in the Indian Ocean. Situated between the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea, it lies near major shipping routes. Socotra is the largest of the six islands in the Socotra archipelago as ...

) *''Ctenolepisma incita'' Silvestri, 1918 (Africa) *'' Ctenolepisma insulicola'' Mendes, 1984 (

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

) *''Ctenolepisma iranicum'' Molero, Kahrarian & Gaju, 2016 (Iran) *''Ctenolepisma kaszabi'' Wygodzinsky, 1970a (Mongolia) *''Ctenolepisma kermanshanum'' Molero, Kahrarian & Gaju, 2016 (Iran) *''Ctenolepisma kervillei'' Silvestri, 1911 (

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

) *''Ctenolepisma kuhitangicum'' Kaplin, 1993 (Turkmenistan) *''Ctenolepisma latisternatum'' Mendes, 1993 (

Congo Basin The Congo Basin () is the sedimentary basin of the Congo River. The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa, in a region known as west equatorial Africa. The Congo Basin region is sometimes known simply as the Congo. It contains some of the larg ...

) *''Ctenolepisma lindbergi'' Wygodzinsky, 1955 (Cape Verde) *'' Ctenolepisma lineatum'' (Fabricius, 1775) – four-lined silverfish (

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

); the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

of the genus ''Ctenolepisma'' *''

Ctenolepisma longicaudatum ''Ctenolepisma longicaudatum'', generally known as the gray silverfish, long-tailed silverfish or paper silverfish, is a species of Zygentoma in the family Lepismatidae. It was described by the German entomologist Karl Leopold Escherich in 1905 ...

'' Escherich, 1905 (syn. ''C. urbana'') – grey silverfish (

cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Internationalism * World citizen, one who eschews traditional geopolitical divisions derived from national citizenship * Cosmopolitanism, the idea that all of humanity belongs to a single moral community * Cosmopolitan ...

) *''Ctenolepisma madagascariense'' Escherich in Voeltzkow, 1910 (Madagascar) *''Ctenolepisma maroccanum'' Mendes, 1980 (

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

) *''Ctenolepisma nigericum'' Mendes, 1982 (

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

) *''Ctenolepisma nigrum'' (Oudemans in Weber, 1890) (syn. ''Lepisma nigra'') (

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

) *''Ctenolepisma petiti'' (Lucas, 1840) (syn. ''Lepisma petiti'') (

) doubtful *''Ctenolepisma picturatum'' Wygodzinsky, 1955 (South Africa) *''Ctenolepisma pinicola'' Uchida, 1964 (

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

) *''Ctenolepisma pretorianum'' Wygodzinsky, 1955 (South Africa) *''Ctenolepisma przewalskyi'' Kaplin, 1982 (

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Kyrgyzstan, largest city. Kyrgyz ...

) *''Ctenolepisma roszkowskii'' Stach, 1935 (

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

) *''

Ctenolepisma rothschildi ''Ctenolepisma rothschildi'' is a species of silverfish in the family Lepismatidae. It is found in Africa, Australia, the Caribbean Sea, Europe and Northern Asia (excluding China), Central America, North America, Oceania Oceania ( , ) ...

'' Silvestri, 1907 (syn. ''C. diversisquamis'', ''C. reducta'') (Africa; Iran) *''Ctenolepisma sabirovae'' Kaplin, 1980 (Turkmenistan) *''Ctenolepisma sagartianum'' Molero, Kahrarian & Gaju, 2016 (Iran) *''Ctenolepisma sanctaehelenae'' Wygodzinsky, 1970b (

Saint Helena Saint Helena (, ) is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a remote British overseas territory. Saint Helena is a volcanic and tropical island, located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 1,874 km ...

) *''Ctenolepisma sergii'' Kaplin, 1982 (

) *''Ctenolepisma serranoi'' Mendes, 1985 (syn. ''C. gambiana'') (

) *''Ctenolepisma somaliense'' Mendes, 1988 (

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

) *''Ctenolepisma submagnum'' Silvestri, 1908 (Guinea-Bissau) *''Ctenolepisma subterraneum'' Molero, Tahami, Sadeghi & Gaju, 2018 *''Ctenolepisma sudanicum'' Mendes, 1982 (

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

) *'' Ctenolepisma tanzanicum'' Mendes, 1982 (

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

) *'' Ctenolepisma targionianum'' Silvestri, 1908 (Africa, Americas) *'' Ctenolepisma targionii'' (Grassi & Rovelli, 1889) (syn. ''Lepisma targionii'') (

) *''Ctenolepisma tavaresi'' Navás, 1906 (

) doubtful *''Ctenolepisma tenebricum'' Silvestri, 1949 (

central Africa Central Africa (French language, French: ''Afrique centrale''; Spanish language, Spanish: ''África central''; Portuguese language, Portuguese: ''África Central'') is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries accordin ...

) *'' Ctenolepisma terebrans'' Silvestri, 1908 (South Africa) **''Ctenolepisma terebrans pluriseta'' Silvestri, 1908 (Africa) **''Ctenolepisma terebrans terebrans'' Silvestri, 1908 *''Ctenolepisma turcomanicum'' Kaplin, 1993 (Turkmenistan) *''Ctenolepisma unipectinatum'' Mendes, 1982 (Kenya) *''Ctenolepisma unistila'' Silvestri, 1908 (Cape Verde) *''Ctenolepisma vanharteni'' Mendes, 2004 (Socotra) *'' Ctenolepisma versluysi'' Escherich, 1905 (

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Antilles The Antilles is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east. The Antillean islands are divided into two smaller groupings: the Greater An ...

) *'' Ctenolepisma vieirai'' Mendes, 1981 (

Madeira Madeira ( ; ), officially the Autonomous Region of Madeira (), is an autonomous Regions of Portugal, autonomous region of Portugal. It is an archipelago situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, in the region of Macaronesia, just under north of ...

) *''Ctenolepisma villosum'' (Fabricius, 1775) (syn. ''Lepisma villosa'') (

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

, Japan,

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

) *''Ctenolepisma wahrmani'' Wygodzinsky, 1952 (

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

) *''Ctenolepisma weberi'' Escherich, 1905 (South Africa)

Gallery

bh_silverfish01.jpg, ''

'' Ctenolepisma lineata pae.jpg, '' Ctenolepisma lineatum'' Ctenolepisma villosa eggs day19.JPG, Eggs of ''Ctenolepisma villosum''

Nomenclature

Diversity

Gallery

References

Further reading