Question
Hi.i live in the UK and i often hear a kind of scratching/scraping noise when im in my room. I sometimes see tiny white or black bugs and dont know if they make the noise as its not a particularly quiet scratching noise.The noise seems to happen more when there had been noise on my part such as vacuuming or listning to loud music.Our house has a damp problem as well so dont know if this has anything to do with it. Thanks

Answer
Ryan,

Scratching or scraping sounds can indicate either mice or carpenter ants. A large carpenter ant nest can make a lot of noise and some species are more common where dampness has softened the wood. One thing you might try is to isolate the sound. Use an inverted drinking glass as a sort of stethoscope. Place the open end against the wall and your ear against the glass bottom. Your might be able to locate where the sound is loudest. If the sound seems to move around a lot I'd guess it is probably mice rather than carpenter ants.

Here's an article about carpenter ants http://www.livingwithbugs.com/carpenter_ants.html that should be useful for background information. Also check some of the "Related articles" for control options.

Jack DeAngelis, PhD
Extension Entomologist (ret.)
My website about home and garden pests: http://www.livingwithbugs.com