What are these worms living under my coffee pot?

crazy_j North Street, MI Jul 05, 2010

I haven't cleaned the counter under my coffee pot in a couple weeks. This morning when I move it out of the way, I saw what looked like a bunch of mineral deposits from our incredibly rich well water. Upon closer inspection, and much to my horror, the things were moving! It turned out that there were hundreds of these little worms living under my coffee pot!

I know they're not maggots; I know they're not meal worms or something similar. I shudder to think that these things are coming in with my tap water. Here is a link to a cropped photo of them. Can anybody with some experience or expertise tell me what these worms are, where they come from, and whether I need to be going to the doctor to be checked for parasites?

http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/8716/wormscrop.jpg

Post #7944481

Quote

suunto Sinks Grove, WV Jul 05, 2010

These are harmless and they did not come from your tap water. They are fly larvae; possibly fungus gnats (Diptera: Sciaridae - see http://tinyurl.com/yzod6x8 for an example) or moth flies (Diptera: Psychodidae - see http://tinyurl.com/2723wgu for an example). Either way, they simply are nuisance pests that feed on decomposing organic matter.