Dr McEwan: "We're dealing with animals that are highly adaptable and opportunistic"

Around 20,000 different species of insect enter the average British home at one time or another, according to the report.

These include cockroaches, clickbeetles, craneflies, earwigs, fleas, gnats, centipedes, mosquitoes, houseflies, and woodworm.

Dr Peter McEwen, from the University of Wales, Cardiff, and Insect Investigations Ltd, who carried out the study, said our homes offer hundreds of places where insects can thrive.

He predicts that the bugs will move and reproduce at a much faster rate as the effects of global warming take hold.

He warns of the danger that warmer temperatures will allow cockroaches to become far more common in British homes.

New insects from abroad that are unable to survive British winters at present are also likely to establish themselves.

Chemical resistence

In addition, rapid reproduction will allow the insects to develop chemical resistance at a much faster rate - this at a time when many household insecticides are diluted to make them safer to humans.

"Historically, there is what you might describe as a war between insects and human beings," he told the BBC.

"We're not too worried at the moment, but you could imagine the situation in the future where our arsenal of techniques for controlling insects isn't keeping on top of the problem."

"This report lends weight to science fiction theories, such as the one seen in the recent film, 'Starship Troopers', that bugs are a more dominant life form on the planet than humans," Dr McEwan said.

"Already bugs have colonised more areas of the planet than humans. Now we share our homes with more uninvited creatures than ever before, and this number looks set to increase."