Common Pests
Ants
 Carpenter Ant
This is among the largest of the ant family, measuring 1/4" to 1/2". Its color is usually dark black. It has a large heads with strong mandibles (jaws) used for chewing. Carpenter ants may be seen infesting homes or buildings at any time of the year searching for food. Although they chew their way through wood they do not eat wood. Instead, they feed on a wide range of insects, plant materials and, occasionally, on household foodstuffs. They are of great concern to homeowners because of their ability to tunnel into wood to build their colonies. An infestation can cause serious structural damage if left unchecked.
 Odorous House Ant
The odorous house ant is about 1/8" and dark brown in color. It gets its name because when crushed the workers give off a rotten coconut odor. These ants normally nest outdoors under items on the ground, within landscape mulch, beneath loose bark on trees, under ground cover, in potted plants and other suitable voids They are often found invading and nesting in homes. Odorous house ants may develop huge colonies containing thousands of workers and numerous queens making this species very difficult to control.
 Argentine Ant
The argentine ant is light to dark brown measuring 1/10". This ant is readily adaptable and can nest in a great variety of situations. Colonies are massive, and may contain hundreds of queens. Their nests are usually located in moist soil, along sidewalks, or beneath boards. They often invade residential and commercial buildings in search of food and/or shelter. They travel in trails and forage day and night. The ant can eat almost anything but prefers sweets. It has no important natural enemy in the United States.
Flying Pests
 Yellow Jacket
These wasps are about 3/4-to 1-inch in length with black and yellow stripes. Yellow jackets are social insects that live in colonies containing thousands of individuals. They prefer to locate their nests in the ground, usually in an old rodent burrow or similar hole; but will commonly locates its nest inside the walls of a building by entering through cracks or holes in the outside walls. Yellow jackets will aggressively attack when their nest is disturbed, and can inflict painful stings. Unlike a honeybee, which stings only one time and then dies, a single yellow jacket can sting multiple times. Colonies located in or near a home can pose a threat to the persons living in the home.
 Indian Meal Moth
The bottom half of the adult moth's front wing is reddish brown/coppery. Overall color varies between dirty white, greenish, pinkish, or brownish, with a dark head. Adults have five hooked pairs of well developed prolegs on the abdomen. The Indian meal moth is one of several moths that live on and in stored food. Like the cockroach, the result is contaminated, devoured, and destroyed product.
Cockroaches
 German Cockroach
The German Cockroach is about ?" in length and can be easily recognized by the two dark, longitudinal stripes on the "shield" at the front of the body under which the head is located. The German cockroach is the most prolific breeder among all cockroaches and like all cockroaches; it is omnivorous and will eat virtually anything. This pest will first locate itself in bathrooms and the kitchen, as close as possible to food and moisture sources and then spread throughout a home or building as the population grows. During its life it will spend about 80 percent of its time resting in cracks and voids.
Rodents
 Deer Mouse
The deer mouse is pale grey to reddish brown in colour and has a bi-coloured tail, white below and dark above.This species has several closely related cousins that are colored similarly. Unlike the house mouse, the deer mouse is not found in cities but is associated more with rural areas and buildings located in or near wooded areas. It does not commonly invade homes, but in some instances one or more deer mice may invade structures seeking food and shelter. The deer mouse is a medically important species because it carries the Hantavirus. This virus can result in a serious, often fatal, respiratory disease in humans.
 Norway Rat
The Norway rat has a stocky body measuing 10"-12" (without the tail). They are much larger that mice, and can weight as much as one pound. It has a blunt nose and its scaly tail is shorter than the head and body combined. Rats contaminate food and cause extensive damage to buildings and equipment in houses, granaries, restaurants and other areas they inhabit. Rats are able to gnaw through wood, electrical wires, and even unfinished concrete. Rats are excellent climbers and need a hole only as big as a quarter to gain entry into a home. Rats are known to be a source of numerous diseases affecting man, such as the Plague and Murine Typhus.
Spiders
 Hobo Spider
Vary from ½" to 1 ¾" in body length, with dark brown carapace. The abdomen has a chevron pattern that often fades in older specimens. The hobo spider actually helps control many insect pests. During late summer the male travels about looking for mates. Hobo spiders bite when startled or threatened. What starts as a small spider bite can grow into a large wound as its powerful venom slowly kills the flesh.
 House Spider
House spiders are very common and are typically brown or tan with various markings. Their size varies and can reach 3/8" in length. House spiders are those web-building spiders common in the corners and garages of most homes and buildings, and are responsible for most of the cobwebs found inside. Cobwebs are actually old webs that have collected dirt such that they become easily visible. These spiders are common in garages, crawl spaces and basements as these areas are less disturbed and tend to harbor more insects. Their bite is not dangerous, and therefore are not considered a threat to man.
Occasional Invaders
 Crickets
Crickets are generally black or brown and vary in size from 3/4" to 1-1/2" in length. Crickets are easily recognized by their enlarged back legs designed for jumping. They generally live and breed outdoors and invade buildings searching for food, moisture, or shelter. The adults are attracted to bright lights on buildings and may fly to homes and other buildings by the dozens or even hundreds in mid- to late summer. Once near the building, crickets will crawl through any crack or hole that allows them access inside. Once inside these insects have been known to feed on and damage clothing, and become extremely annoying with the "chirping" sounds they emit.
 Silverfish
Silverfish are small elongated, triangular insects, usually between 1/2" and 1" in length. There body is covered with metallic scales. Silverfish are easily recognized by three characteristic long, thin appendages extending from the rear of the abdomen. They are nocturnal, and prefer out of the way, humid, dark areas. They may be brought into homes in cardboard cartons, books or papers, that have come from infested areas. Silverfish are of concern because they can damage natural fabrics, books, and papers. Signs of their presence can be seen in irregular chewing marks, holes eaten directly through paper, small dark feces and minute yellowish stains associated with feeding.
 Drugstore and Cigarette Beetles
Adults are very small, brown to reddish, with the head tucked under the overhanging pronotum. The Cigarette beetle is shinier, more rounded, with antennal segments all small and equal in size. Life cycle completes in about one month, with both larva and adult actively feeding. Drugstore and cigarette beetles are two of many "stored product" beetles. Infestation can destroy both food and nonfood items. Look for these beetles in stored dried food, bulk food, dried flowers, arts & crafts, decorative items, and fur. Even small amounts of infested food can quickly result in major infestations of these nuisance insects.
|
