Many hibernating females and their eggs have been found 5-8 mm below the soil surface. Rich garden soil with a southern exposure is a favorite place for egg deposition. Young earwig larvae resemble adults, but they are lighter in color, have no wings and only delicate, simple, slightly curved forceps or pinchers on the posterior end. Some females may produce a second brood in the spring. Most males die early in the spring after being driven from the nests.
Females die before midsummer.
Immatures of both broods become adults between late August and early October, when fresh male and female pairs enter the soil and construct their nests. Several species of parasitic flies are natural enemies of this earwig in Europe. The European earwig feeds on other insects, plants, ripe fruit, and garbage. Plants that it feeds on include clover, dahlias, zinnias, butterfly bush, hollyhock, lettuce, strawberry, celery, potatoes, roses, seedling beans and beets, and tender grass shoots and roots. It is nocturnal, hiding during the day and roaming at night to find food and water.