Question

Silk and woollen clothes are often damaged by:
(A) Flies
(B) Insects
(C) Bacteria
(D) Animals

Answer 1

Hint: Silk clothes are made by the cocoons of the silkworm. They make cocoons out of one long strand of fibre, which means that a fully unravelled cocoon results in a single string of silk. On the other hand, Sheep grow a thick wool coat every and this coat can be turned into a variety of wool clothes.

Complete step by step solution:
Let's talk about each option in order to get the right one.
-Flies: In general, flies are attracted to organic decaying material. This includes fruit, vegetables, meat, animal and human faeces. Both female and male flies suck nectar from flowers as well. Flies are most active when it is warm i.e. when their larvae are most likely to hatch. Because of their sponging mouths, they only feed on liquids, which means they must liquefy food through regurgitation before consuming it.
-Insects: The million or so insects that occur in nature come with a variety of sizes, shapes and colours and exhibit a wealth of adaptations. Different species of insects eat clothes. Female moths typically pick clothes made from animal fibres such as silk, wool, cashmere, materials that contain keratin. Keratin is composed of fibrous structural proteins and can also be found in our skin and hair. Moth larvae avoid eating cotton and synthetic fabrics unless they're blended with animal fibre. That's because they don’t contain keratin. The larvae of the clothes moth (Tineola bisselliella) are the most common clothing destroyers. Unlike most moths, clothing moths hate the light and prefer to hide in the dark depths of closets, where they can discreetly deposit their larvae onto the nearest suitable garment.
-Bacteria: Like all organisms, bacteria also need energy, and they can acquire this energy through a number of different ways. This includes photosynthesis, by decomposing wastes and dead organisms, by chemosynthesis (breaking down chemical compounds in the environment) etc.
-Animals: They are divided into 3 categories depending on their consumption of different types of food. They are carnivorous, herbivorous and omnivorous which can feed on flesh, vegetables and both flesh and vegetables respectively.
From the above discussion, it is clear that insects are the only species which can feed on silk and wool.

Hence, the answer is (B)- Insects.

Note: Don't make a conclusion that insects only feed on clothes. There is an only particular type of insect who can feed on clothes. In reality, insects can eat practically anything they want. Lots of insects eat plants, some insects eat other insects, and some even drink blood. Many insects eat nectar from plants. And some insects will eat whatever scraps of food you leave. A few insects, such as mayflies and some moths, never eat.