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If I were you I would look up a local Pest Control/Woodworm Treatment expert online and have them come and have a look. Guidance given on this site is mostly good but would you really trust your house to a complete guess.

A member called "Fillide" may be able to help if/when she reads this thread, but I agree with Flip - call a professional in to have a look.

It could well be a house longhorn - but it sounds so much more cuddly by its �������� name - il capricorno delle case - that I'm a bit surprised Esme isn't encouraging you to make pets of them! Is it attacking a softwood (pine or spruce beams)? Generally they can be pretty well ignored (the longhorn) if they are haviing a go at a hadwood (chestnut or oak) since they only nibble the sapwood - but they can rampage through softwoods. There are other wood borning insects which can do substantial damage to (predominantly) newly felled chestnut and oak, so it would certainly be a good idea to get a proper identification from somebody capable of destryoying them if that is necessary. Unfortunately, there are a lot of cowboys out there in the woodworm killing industry (even more in Italy than in the UK!) so it might be sensible to enquire of somebody you trust - maybe your builder or your joiner, or a decent geometra, or even a tecnico at the comune, for a recommendation. (The longhorn tends to be common only in limited geographical areas, so quite possibly the comune have some experience they could offer). Best of luck, but no need to panic.

There's enough scarrafone around here as it is Fillide without encouraging any more to move in! Good luck Janet - let us know how you get on.