Global InformationCtenolepisma longicaudatum information
| Ctenolepisma longicaudatum | |
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Zygentoma |
| Family: | Lepismatidae |
| Genus: | Ctenolepisma |
| Species: | C. longicaudatum
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| Binomial name | |
| Ctenolepisma longicaudatum Escherich, 1905
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| Synonyms | |
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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 based on specimens collected in South Africa,[1] but is found worldwide as synanthrope in human housings.
In recent years, gray silverfish have increasingly become an issue in indoor environments in Europe, especially in newly built houses with a stable climate beneficial for the growth and reproduction of this species. As a food generalist with the ability to digest the cellulose contained in paper and cellulose-based textiles like rayon, Ctenolepisma longicaudatum is considered a pest species in cultural heritage institutions like libraries and archives.
- ^ Escherich, Karl Leopold (1905). "Das System der Lepismatiden". Zoologica (in German). 18 (43): 1–164.