PEST INDEX
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ANTS
ANTS
Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ants enter buildings to nest or forage. The are called “carpenters” because they excavate their nests in wood, creating smooth tunnels and galleries. They generally initiate colonies by excavating wood that is decayed or damaged by other insects. They also prefer wood with moisture.The Western black carpenter ant is the most common species on the West Coast, Satellite nests may be found in structural timber, voids, under insulation, and in fibreglass or foam core insulation. Its nest excavating is often audible. Colonies can contain up to 50,000 ants.
Mature colonies consist of a parent nest and often satellite nests are established nearby whenever a need exists for more territory, more resources, or a drier, warmer nesting site for development of larvae and pupae.
In temperate regions colonies break diapause (diapause means a period of dormancy or a state of suspended animation) from January to June. When the ants become animated once again, the queen will begin her first egg-laying of the season and foraging will be heavy and intense. A second peak of activity occurs in June when the queen again lays eggs again.
Since carpenter ants are primarily nocturnal, they rely heavily on physical cues and chemical trails for orientation to and from the nest.
Identify Carpenter Ants
- Colour: Black, red, or a combination
- Shape: Segmented, oval
- Size: 1/4″ – 3/4″ in length
- Region: Throughout the U.S. and Canada (including Kelowna, Vernon and Penticton!)
Odorous House Ants
What’s that smell? Tapinoma sessile! Or the common name “Odorous House Ant.” Also known as the stink ant or coconut ant, the odorous house ant is named from the strong, rotten coconut-like smell it gives off when crushed. These ants really enjoy honeydew, and other sweet treats.
Indoors, they are likely to nest near moisture sources, such as beneath leaky fixtures in bathrooms, under kitchen or bathroom sinks, in wall voids near hot water pipes, and also in wood damaged by termites.
Outside, they may be found in exposed soil or under stacks of firewood or other materials.
If you suspect an infestation of Odorous House Ants, call us at BugMaster!
Identify Odorous House Ants
- Colour: Brown to black
- Shape: Segmented; oval
- Size: 1/16″ – 1/8″ long
Thatching Ants
Thatching Ants derive their common name from the large mounds they create from forest debris, which resemble a thatched layered roof. In swarms, thatching ants build their home that resemble lifeless mounds in bad weather, while in good weather they are buzzing with activity. Keep your distance, as thatching ants pack a powerful bite!
Identify Thatching Ants
- Colour: Black and red
- Shape: Stocky with large heads
- Size: ants; 4-8 mm
Field Ants
They are called field ants because they prefer nesting in the open, but will also nest in woodlands (soil, decayed logs). They are rarely found inside of homes but are common around the home or building outside. Their mounds (which can reach over a foot wide) may create unsightly lawns.If nests are disturbed the ants may aggressively swarm and bite the intruder. Their bite can pierce skin, and they can spray formic acid which leaves a wound-like sting.
Identify Field Ants
- Colour: Ranging in black, brown, yellowish colour or bi-coloured red and black
- Shape: Profile unevenly rounded on upper side; segmented; 6 legs
- Size: Medium to large ants; 1/8-3/8” (3-9mm)
Pavement Ants
The pavement ant derives its name from its habit of nesting beside and under sidewalks, driveways and foundations. If ants are nesting indoors, the alates typically emerge from under baseboards, expansion joints, or from floor registers connected to heating ducts. In commercial buildings, they often become a nuisance when the alates emerge from openings in walls above false ceilings and drop into the rooms below. Usually, they will leave conspicuous piles of excavated soil in their paths.As household pests, they are attracted to both greasy and sweet foods.
Identify Pavement Ants
- Colour: Light, dark brown or blackish
- Shape: Segmented; oval; 6 legs; antennae
- Size: Smaller ants; 1/8″
Crazy Ants
The crazy ant derives its name from its erratic, jerky movement. Crazy ant nests in both dry and moist environments, in trash, plants, rotten wood and soil. They also nest adjacent to foundations in landscape mulch and behind thick vegetation. Indoors, their nests are located in wall voids, under carpeting and in potted plants.Crazy ants are omnivores, feeding on sweet substances, live and dead insects and various household foods.
Identify Crazy Ants
- Colour: Dark brown to black with grey sheen
- Shape: Slender body with 6 extraordinarily long legs and antennae
- Size: 1/16 – 1/8” (2.2 – 3.0 mm)
Pharaoh Ants
Colonies of pharaoh ants are larger in size, with multiple queens and nests making these especially difficult to treat. An application of residual insecticides, for example, often triggers the splintering of a colony into numerous satellite colonies. In bad cases, infestations can spread over an entire building.Opportunistic ants, they will occupy any crack or crevice with sufficient warmth and high humidity. In houses, they are frequently found in kitchens and bathrooms near a source of water. Nests are often located in inaccessible spots such as interior wall voids, under floors, behind baseboards or window sills. Kitchens, laundries, boiler rooms, around toilets, sinks, heading ducts, and pipes are all fine locations in commercial buildings for the pharaoh to habituate. They are potentially dangerous in hospitals because of their ability to transmit disease organisms.
Pharaohs forage both day and night, feeding on fats, proteins and carbs.
Identify Pharaoh Ants
- Colour: Yellowish or light brown to reddish in colour
- Shape: Monomorphic with segmented body; 6 legs; have stinger, but unable to sting
- Size: Very tiny ants; 1/16” (1.5 – 2.0 mm)
Fire Ants
Be wary of these red ants! The variation found in British Columbia, is the “European Fire Ant”. This ant will rapidly swarm and sting when its nest is disturbed. Unlike many of the ants in BC, the fire ant has a stinger and is inclined to use it. The European fire ant injects venom under the skin that initially burns then itches for a few days to a week. Some individuals experience very serious reactions to these stings, and need hospital treatment.Irrigated lawns and gardens and a moderate coastal climate, make for ideal conditions for fire ants to establish dense colonies. When it is warm and humid the ants become more active and are highly prone to swarm and sting.
Identify Fire Ants
- Colour: Red/reddish brown, some with a darker head
- Shape: Constricted waist with 2 segments
- Size: 4-5 mm
Black Widow Spiders
Widow spiders are known worldwide for their ability to cause pain and suffering in humans. The black widows found in the Okanagan have a strikingly beautiful colour combination of shiny black body with bright red markings, which adds to the apprehension people have for the spider. The red markings often involve an hourglass on the underside of the abdomen, but variations include a dorsal red stripe and dorsal spots.Black widows produce about 300 eggs per egg sac and can store sperm from the original mating to produce more than 10 egg sacs over many months.
Aside from detriment to human health, the desire to control populations of black widows and other spiders often erupts out of a need based on psychology (arachnophobia), nuisance (disgust, symbols of poor housekeeping), commerce (transport of goods), or even litigation (prevention of lawsuits).
Because black widow spiders can potentially cause severe envenomation symptoms, rigorous control efforts are necessary when the spider is found inside a home or other building:
- Sanitation – removal of potential hiding places outside the building such as lumber, debris, heavy vegetation touching the structure, covering holes in brick and stucco with mortar or stucco putty, improving storage practices to reduc4e available harbourages.
- Removal – vacuum, vacuum, vacuum! This is a simple technique to immediately remove existing spiders, webs and egg sacs as they are discovered during inspection. Black widows are generally easy to find because their webs are found in accessible areas under furniture, in corners and in, on or under stored items. Remember to remove the vacuum bag soon after finishing and seal in a plastic bag before disposing.
- Exclusion and Lighting – seal all cracks in the exterior of buildings, ensure weather stripping and screens are tight, exterior lighting should have dim lights to attract fewer insects which are prey for black widows.
- Treatment – call your pest professional!
Identify Black Widow Spiders
- Colour: black body with bright red markings
- Shape: roundish body
- Size: 3-10 mm
Brown Recluse Spiders
The brown recluse spider typically has a well-formed, darkly pigmented violin shape on its anterior.Recluse spiders prefer to squeeze themselves in tight spaces and are found more commonly on rough surfaces such as paper, wood, and cardboard rather than smooth surfaces such as ceramic and metal.
In nature, they are found under rocks, particularly in dry areas and under the loose bark of dead trees. Of medical concern is that they seek refuge inside shoes, under clothes left on the floor, in gardening clothes or gloves left in the garage.
Recluse spiders produce 30 to 80 eggs per sac, which is about average for an actively hunting spider. Populations in homes can reach hundreds or thousands.
Identify Brown Recluse Spiders
- Colour: brown
- Shape: dark violin-shaped mark on head and midsection
- Size: 12.5 mm
Wolf Spiders
The common name “Wolf Spider” reflects that these are hunting spiders and will chase their prey; the family name and typical genus Lycosa are from the Greek word for wolf. These spiders are often big and hairy which alarms some people, but they are primarily nuisance pests.Their color is usually dark brown, often with paler stripes or markings, or sometimes yellow with dark stripes or markings. Legs are long and spiny. The egg sac is about 1/2” in diameter and contains about 100-135 eggs per sac.
Wolf spiders actively hunt during the night and sometimes during the day. They are fast on their feet and pursue prey. Because of these habits, they are commonly seen by people. Wolf spiders often alarm people because they are big, hairy, and run fast.
Some wolf spider species build retreats consisting of either a shallow excavation under a stone, or a tube/burrow running vertically or diagonally into the ground. They leave their burrows primarily at night to hunt insect prey in the surrounding area. They can also be found in landscape timbers, firewood, under decks, in leaf litter, etc.
They may enter structures in search of prey. Although they are not inclined to be permanent residents in structures, once inside, they often stay. Inside, they tend to stay at or near floor level, especially along walls under furniture and other objects. Wolf spiders may be brought indoors with firewood.
The Wolf Spider is often confused with the Brown Recluse Spider.
Identify Wolf Spiders
- Colour: dark brown
- Shape: heavy body with a oval egg sac
- Size: 10-35 mm (body only)
Hobo Spiders
The common name, “Hobo Spider” comes from this spider’s method of very rapidly expanding its distribution by hitching rides with humans along major highways in the Pacific Northwest; it was formerly known as the aggressive house spider.Color caries from light to medium brown, with dark stripe on either side of the lighter midline stripe. They are about 1-1 3/4” in diameter. Hobo spiders have a 2-year life cycle. Mating occurs in the autumn.
The bite of these spiders typically produces a necrotic lesion like that caused by brown recluse spiders. The initial bite produces a very slight prickling sensation. Within 3 minutes or less, a small, insensitive, hard area appears which is surrounded by an expanding redden area of 2-6” in diameter. Within 15-35 minutes the area blisters. About 24 hours later the blister usually breaks, and the wound oozes serum. The cratered ulcer crusts over to from a scab. It may take several months to heal and often leaves a permanent scar.
Hobo spiders may be found in almost any habitat containing holes, cracks, or crevice which can support tunnel formation. Since they are poor climbers, they are rarely found above ground level. They frequent dark, moist areas, and are most often found in basements, window wells, and crawl spaces.
Identify Hobo Spiders
- Colour: light to medium brown, with dark stripe on either side of the lighter midline stripe
- Shape: heavy body with a oval egg sac
- Size: 1-1 3/4 inches in diameter
Common House Spiders
The common name reflects the fact that this is usually the spider most often encountered indoors. It is a nuisance pest, probably more because of its webs than the spider itself.Adults are about 3/16-5/16” with the females having a spherical abdomen and the males having an elongated abdomen. Color highly variable with carapace yellowish brown; abdomen dirty white with a few dark spots to almost black, with several dark stripes meeting at angle medially above tip of abdomen.
Female house spiders lay about 250 eggs in a silken sac which is brownish, oval to flask-shaped, and with a tough papery cover. There may be more than one sac in a web at a time; a female may produce up to 17 sacs, containing over 3,760 eggs, in her lifetime.
The house spider randomly selects its web sites and creates a tangled web. If a web does not yield prey it is abandoned, another site is selected, and a new web built. Eventually webs are constructed where air currents bring in prey. Survival is low in modern homes with low humidity and few insects, higher in garages, sheds, barns, warehouses, etc., because of more prey and generally higher humidity, and highest outdoors in protected places.
Inside structures, house spiders are most likely to be found in upper corners, under furniture, in closets, angels of window frames, basements, garages, and crawl spaces.
Identify Common House Spiders
- Colour: varies from carapace yellowish brown to almost black
- Shape: spherical abdomen (female) elongated abdomen (male)
- Size: 3/16-5/16”
Elm Seed Bugs
The Elm Seed Bug, belonging to an order of bugs called Hemiptera – or “true bugs”, is related to Boxelder Bugs and Stink Bugs, and often mistaken for both. They look very similar to a Boxelder Bug, but are much smaller in size: Adult Boxelder Bugs are about 1/2″ long, whereas adult Elm Seed bugs are only 1/4-1/3″ long. In their immature life cycle stage, Elm Seed Bugs can also be mistaken for bed bugs as they are quite red in colour.Elm Seeds Bugs feed primarily on the seeds of Elm Trees, as their name suggests, however they have been known to feed on other types of tree seeds as well (e.g. oak trees).
Elm Seed Bugs are classified as a nuisance pest, as they do not cause damage to trees or structures, and do not pose a health threat to humans. Calling Elm Seed Bugs a nuisance may be putting it lightly, however, as the sheer number of Elm Seed Bugs that can gather in one place (such as in someone’s home) can be offputting at best and alarming at worst.
Elm Seed Bugs mate during the spring and lay their eggs on Elm Trees. The immature Elm Seed Bugs – called nymphs – feed on the seeds from spring, into early summer, and grow into adults. Elm Seed Bugs will overwinter as adults, staying in a dormant state through the cold, winter months.
Elm Seed Bugs are most noticeable in the springtime when they emerge from overwintering; as well as in the peak of summer, and again in the fall. During the hottest months, Elm Seeds Bugs will attempt to escape the heat by entering homes and other structures; and they will enter structures once again in the fall as they search for overwintering sites.
Unlike the Boxelder Bug, Elm Seed Bugs produce an unpleasant, pungent odour when disturbed or crushed – so resist the urge to do so!
Identify Elm Seed Bugs
- Colour: Dark chocolate brown with reddish highlights
- Identifying Feature: Dark, backward-pointing triangle on a rusty-red rectangular mark
- Shape: Wings are folded over in an x-pattern
- Size: 6.5-8.5 mm
Spider Beetles
Spider beetles are small oval or cylindrical beetles that often resemble small spiders. Although they are not common pests, they can be important pests in homes, warehouses, grain mills and museums.
When found in structures, larvae may infest dried vegetable or animal substances such as flour, wool, hair, and feathers, as well as textile fabrics and old wood. Larvae infesting stored food or grain may tunnel into wood surrounding such foods to form pupal chambers, causing damage to some kitchen cabinets. They seem to be particularly attracted to old or out of condition products such as pet food.
Infestations may be found in floor cracks and expansion joints. These beetles are scavengers, attracted to moisture and excrement and are found in the nests of animals. Adult beetles have been known to be active at freezing temperatures.
As with any stored product pest, the location of the infestation is extremely important, which may be difficult to accomplish with spider beetles as they wander about only at night and feed on such a variety of materials. Most spider beetles avoid light and are hard to locate, hiding deep inside cracks or inside packages. They are often located by the webbing that the larvae make or by cast skins. Control begins with a thorough cleaning, including removing bird and rat nests and inspecting stored food containers and cupboards. Old packages of pet food should be discarded.
Identify Spider Beetles
- Colour: Brown
- Shape: Oval or cylindrical
- Size: Small beetles; 2-5 mm
Carpet Beetles
Mature larva is reddish-brown, clothed with numerous black or brown hairs, and about 2.5 to 3.5 mm in length. Adults are small, oval beetles about 3 mm in length and blackish in colour with coloured scales down the middle of the back.
Besides carpets, as the name suggests, larvae carpet beetles attack woollen and other animal products that are left undisturbed, such as feathers, leather, furs, hairbrushes, silks, and pressed plants. Adults feed on pollen and nectar.
Often, carpet beetles fly into the home through cracks and crevices and are easily unnoticed by humans. Adults and larvae may be seen crawling on surfaces and carpeting, and can chew holes in infested items.
Identify Carpet Beetles
- Colour: Reddish brown with black hair
- Shape: Small and oval
- Size: 2.5 to 3.5 mm
Box Elder Beetles/Bugs
Boxelder bugs are black with thin red lines in adults, full red in its young.
The prime host of these insects are the boxelder tree, although they also feed on maples, almond fruits, and apples, strawberries, prunes, pears and other fruit.
Adults leave their overwintering sites between March and April, where mating and egg-laying takes place. Adults often become gregarious and assemble on the south sides of trees, rocks, and buildings to warm themselves in the sun. After large masses of bugs accumulate, they tend to fly to nearby buildings or other protected sites where they hibernate for the winter, usually within the walls, if a structure is involved. Adults are capable of flying up to two miles from their original congregation site.
During the winter months, individuals or small parties of boxelder bugs foray inside houses and fly into windows, bathtubs and sinks and congregate on the floor. Normally this occurs on the south and west side of the house, during sunny weather.
Identify Box Elder Beetles/Bugs
- Colour: Black with red lines along thorax
- Shape: Wings are flat and red
- Size: 11-14 mm
Pantry Beetles
Pantry beetles refer to a large group of beetles that infest stored products in both residential and commercial settings. These infestations result from either infested grains or infested processed products that are introduced into the home, storage facility or processing plant. Infestations of pantry beetles can occur at any point throughout the year.
Stored product beetles come in a wide variety, with a vast range of feeding habits and behaviours between species.
Controlling populations of pantry beetles and other stored product pests is of high importance, as these insects destroy and contaminate the products they feed on.
Identify Pantry Beetles
- Colour: reddish-brown to brown and black
- Shape: curved body
- Size: 2-5 mm
Confused Flour Beetles
Adults are small, flattened, reddish brown beetles about 3.5 mm in length. Key identifying characteristic is that the antenna enlarges into a club consisting of four segments.
Confused flour beetles feed off grain dust found in flour mills, but also infest cereal products and pet foods and are commonly found in grocery stores and food warehouses. These beetles are carried into homes in infested cereals, flour, and pet foods and can then spread to other foods in the cupboard. Unable to feed on undamaged grain, they act as a secondary feeder to other insects such as rice weevils.
They are capable of breeding throughout the year where buildings are warmed, but only adults are found inside unheated buildings. Eggs are whitish or colourless and are covered by a sticky material which particles of flour adhere to, making them very difficult to spot.
Identify Confused Flour Beetles
- Colour: Reddish brown
- Shape: Long with small heads
- Size: 3.5 mm
Powderpost Beetles
They are commonly known as the Powderpost Beetles because their larvae produce a very fine, powder-like dust that they lightly pack behind them as they bore into the wood. Depending on the species, adults are about 1/32-1/4” long with their bodies being elongated, narrow, and flattened, almost parallel-sided. Colour is reddish brown to black.
Powderpost beetles rarely infest wood older than five years old. They only attack sapwood of hardwoods with large pores; for example, oak, hickory, ash, walnut, pecan, and many tropical hardwoods including bamboo. They re-infest seasoned wood until it disintegrates. Adult activity is greatest in late winter or early spring. They are inactive during the day, concealing themselves in cracks and holes in wood, but become active at night.
Most powderpost beetle’s infestations are present in wood before purchase, therefore prevention and control should begin at the lumber mill and where wood products are stored and manufactured.
Identify Powderpost Beetles
- Colour: Reddish brown to black
- Shape: elongated, narrow, and flattened, almost parallel-sided
- Size: 1/32-1/4”
Fleas
Fleas are one of the more important groups of insect pests because they not only cause discomfort by biting, but they can transmit several diseases such as plague and murine typhus. Cat and dog fleas are the most common domestic flea. They are found throughout the world.
Adults are about 1/8” long. Color is brownish black to black, but reddish black when full of blood. Females lay 4-8 eggs after each blood meal, laying some 400-500 during their lifetime. The eggs are smooth and not glued/stick to the hairs or body but are deposited on or between hairs, or in the nest or bedding material. Hence eggs deposited on the animal either fall or are shaken off, and are frequently found in cracks and crevices where pets sleep or frequent. Fleas are typically found where animals sleep or frequent, including along their usual avenue of travel, because this is where eggs and adult fecal blood accumulate. Most larvae will be found in similar places but especially in areas with high moisture which is necessary to their survival.
It is not necessary to have pets in the building in order to have fleas present. Since fleas can jump 6” vertically, they can easily hitch a ride on shoes, trousers, etc. Many vacationers who may have been unaware of the few adult fleas present, are often greeted and severely attacked upon their return. This can occur even if the building has been vacant of animals and people for as long as 6 months or so. This situation can occur because of the potentially long pupal period, adults can live for months without food, and because fleas have not been removed via normal vacuuming.
Identify Fleas
- Colour: Brownish black but reddish black when full of blood
- Shape: Oval shaped bottom with small heads
- Size: 1/8″ long
German Cockroaches
The German cockroach is one of the most common subspecies of the cockroaches. Unlike other subspecies, these cockroaches rarely glide or “fly”. Despite their name, these cockroaches are found all around the world, and not just in Germany. Having cockroaches around can be unnerving and annoying, but the detection of German cockroaches has also been implicated in outbreaks of illness and the transmission of various of pathogenic organisms.
German cockroaches are similar to humans in their preferred hangouts, seeking out warm (21⁰ C) and humid climates that have easy access to food and water. This preference typically leads these pests to kitchens, bathrooms, and areas where people eat and drink often, such as dens.
75% of their time is spent hiding in cracks or crevices located near a preferred hangout. German cockroaches will rarely migrate from building to building and are typically introduced into living spaces via paper products, grocery bags, cardboard boxes, and second-hand appliances, such as refrigerators, microwaves and televisions.
They feed on almost anything with nutritive value including all kinds of human and pet foods. They will even feast on odd items you might leave lying around your home including soap, glue, and toothpaste.
Identify German Cockroaches
- Colour: light brown to tan except for 2 dark, almost parallel longitudinal stripes on their prenatal shield. Females tend to be darker than males
- Shape: body thin and slender, posterior abdomen is tapered, terminal segments of abdomen visible on males and covered by wings on females
- Size: 5/8″ inches long
Millipedes
Both millipedes and centipedes are known for their vast number of small legs that line the outside of their bodies. You may hear these arthropods go by the nickname of “thousand or hundred-leggers” but typically they have far fewer legs than that.
Millipedes have high moisture needs, like pill bugs and sow bugs. They are always searching out damp areas and love to hide in and around trash piles, grass clippings, flowerbeds and leaf litter. You may find them in your home in areas such as your basement, however, they won’t stick around long if your house does not offer enough food and moisture. When it comes to food, millipedes are scavengers and enjoy decaying organic matter, usually of the plant variety, although they will feast on dead insects as well.
Identify Millipedes
- Colour: Usually a hue of black or brown, but can take on red, orange patterns when mottling.
- Shape: Adults tend to be cylindrical and wormlike but come slightly flattened and will feature 30-90 pairs of legs.
- Size: 1/16 – 4 ½” long
Centipedes
Both millipedes and centipedes are known for their vast number of small legs that line the outside of their bodies. You may hear these arthropods go by the nickname of “thousand or hundred-leggers” but typically they have far fewer legs than that.
Centipedes do not scavenge like their millipede friends and actively hunt down their food sources. Flies, spiders and beetles are among centipedes favourite snacks, so the presence of other pests can increase the number of centipedes around a property. Some species can inflict a painful bite to humans, however, this is not a lethal attack. Alike millipedes, centipedes gravitate towards moist areas such as rotting logs, trash, and piles of grass and leaves. They can be found anywhere in a home, although their favourite high outs are usually the basement, washroom, kitchen or potted plants. With ideal conditions, centipedes can live up to 5-6 years of age.
Identify Centipedes
- Colour: Usually a dirty yellow to dark brown colour, sometimes accented with darker stripes or markings
- Shape: Elongated, flattened, and wormlike
- Size: 1/8 – 6” long
Pill Bugs/Sow Bugs
Pill bugs are technically crustaceans, closely related to shrimp and crayfish, that have adapted to live on land. They are known for their ability to roll into a ball when in danger, using their armour-like outer shell to thwart predators.
Pill and sow bugs are most active at night and seek out damp locations, living around organic garbage and rotting wood. For the most part, pillbugs will die quickly if they enter a home unless they have ample amounts of moisture and food.
Sow and Pill bugs prefer to munch on rotting vegetation and will jump for joy if you keep a composting bin on your property.
Identify Pill Bugs/Sow Bugs
- Colour: usually dark grey to a dusty white colour. Maybe be a solid colour, or have a natural, “rock” pattern
- Shape: rounded bodies, covered in segmented, armour-like plating with 7 pairs of legs and 2 pairs of antennae
- Size: 1/4 to 1/2 ” long
Earwigs
Earwigs gain their odd name from an old European superstition which hinted that these insects would enter the ears of sleeping people and bore into the brain. Don’t worry too much, there is little to no evidence of this actually happening.
Earwigs are nocturnal and typically hide during the day in locations that are moist and away from light shady places such as under a rotting log. They can cause significant damage to cultivated plants, vegetables, flowers, fruits, ornamental shrubs, and trees, and have even been recorded feeding on honey in beehives.
Earwigs are extremely good climbers and can easily enter a home by climbing a wall or tree. The damp and dark habitat created underneath old shingles and wood siding is very attractive to earwigs although they tend to not be very picky with their hiding spots when there is food around. Oftentimes they can invade a home by the hundreds or thousands and become a real problem for homeowners quickly.
The forcep-like cerci are used as both offensive and defensive weapons and are sometimes used to capture prey but typically cannot harm humans.
Identify Earwigs
- Colour: Varies from pale brown with dark markings to uniformly reddish brown to black, but with paler legs
- Shape: Body elongated, flattened in form. Unique forcep-like paired appendages
- Size: 1/4 – 1” long
Silverfish/Firebrats
The name “Silverfish” is used as a common reference for species of this group that are typically covered by silvery scales. These critters are also known as firebrats and bristletails, depending on what climate they live in. The species that are found in high temperature climates typically gain the name firebrat.
All species prefer to hide during the day in small cracks or holes. They can be found almost anywhere in a home including your living room, bedroom, bathroom, basement and attic. Silverfish feast on both carbohydrates and proteins and even resort to cannibalism. They are not picky and will go after many of your household items such as paper, linen, cotton, carpeting, and dried foods. Silverfish are known to roam around a home until they find a suitable food source, which they will live close to until that source has depleted. Silverfish can survive for weeks on end without food or water, so starving them will never be a viable solution.
Silverfish have been known to infest entire structures such as offices, stores, and libraries. Once inside a structure, they can cause widespread damage to valuable possessions and can breed inside wall voids, under the subflooring and in attics.
Identify Silverfish/Firebrats
- Colour: Silver to gunmetal, often scaley or tarnished in appearance
- Shape: Stout body covered in silvery scales, usually identifiable by 3 unique “tails” coming off their rear
- Size: 1/2 – 3/4” long
Granary Weevils
Granary Weevils have been a massive pest for centuries and are present worldwide in cooler climates.
Weevils typically seek out grains for their food source and bore into the grains themselves to lay eggs. Granary weevils has wings, however through evolution, they have become small and useless, so they are typically confined to stored grain and are often transported by human movement of resources.
In their larval stage, the weevil usually requires a whole grain kernel for development. Granary weevils attack all kinds of grains and grain products, wreaking havoc on farmers across the country. When in danger, weevils forget their are insects momentarily and draw their legs into the air, playing dead like a possum.
Identify Granary Weevils
- Colour: Usually shining reddish brown but sometimes nearly black. Larvae are legless, white in colour with a tan coloured head
- Shape: Typically small, changing to the size of the grain in their environment. Adults are distinguishable by their long snouts.
- Size: 1/8 – 1/4” long
Phorid Flies
The common name of Humpbacked comes from their humpbacked profile when viewed from the side which is due to the small head and prominent pronotum, while that of scuttle fly refers to their habit of running about in an active erratic manner, and that of coffin fly because they commonly breed in human corpses.
Phorids are mainly nuisance pests but there are cases of larval infestation of wounds, intestines, and eyes of humans. Adults are 1/64-1/4” long; with a characteristic humpbacked appearance in lateral view. Phorid flies are usually black, brown, or yellowish.
Adults can often be found at flowers or on larval food materials which consist of moist decaying organic matter. Larvae breed in a wide variety of moist decaying organic matter which includes dung, vertebrate and invertebrate carrion, fungi, and decaying plant matter. Some are parasitic on a wide variety of invertebrates including many insects and other arthropods. In structures, breeding materials can include moist organic film lining drain pipes, the moist residue in the bottom of trash receptacles, the moist material found in the cracks of and under kitchen equipment, in elevator pits, in garbage disposals, in rotting vegetables and meats, dirty moist mop heads, faulty septic systems, etc. In offices, overwatered plants are often the source
Drain Flies
These flies get the common name of moth fly from their fuzzy appearance, their bodies and wings being very hairy. The drain/filter/sewage fly common names are from places or situations that represent typical breeding and developmental sites. Although usually thought of as nuisance pests, there have been cases where inhalation of their body caused bronchial asthma.
Adult drain flies are about 1/16-3/16” long and appear delicate and fuzzy. Their colours are usually pale yellowish to brownish grey to blackish, depending on the species. Adult females lay their 30-100 eggs in irregular masses on the surface of the gelatinous film which covers filter stones of sewage treatment plants or which lines the water-free portions of drain pipes.
Because of their small size, moth flies are able to penetrate ordinary screens. Moth flies are weak fliers, so indoors they are usually seen crawling on walls or other surfaces. When they do fly, it is only for short distances of a few feet and their flight is in characteristic short, jerky lines. During the day, they typically rest on vertical surfaces near drain openings indoors and in shaded areas outside. Their greatest activity is in the evening when they can be seen flying or hovering above draining openings indoors or sewage filter beds, etc. outside.
Fruit Flies
The common name of small fruit fly comes from their small size and fondness for some species of fruits as egg laying and development sites. The name vinegar fly comes from the fact that they develop on the briny or vinegarlike liquids at the top of imperfectly sealed canned fruits and vegetables. Small fruit flies are nuisance pests but may act as disease vectors.
Adults are about 1/8” long, including wings. Colours range from dull, tan to brownish yellow or brownish black. Adult females lay their eggs near the surface of fermenting fruits and vegetables, near the cover crack of imperfectly sealed containers of such materials, or in decaying organic matter.
Small fruit flies are attracted primarily to fresh fruits and vegetables and those fermenting because of yeast, and to decaying organic matter; some species are attracted to human and animal excrement. Because of their small size, many species are able to penetrate ordinary screens.
House Flies
These flies receive the common name of “house” from being the most common fly found in and around homes. It is not only a nuisance pest but of greater concern is its potential as a carrier of disease organisms, having been found to harbour over 100 different pathogenic organisms.
Adults are 1/8-1/4” long, with female usually being larger than male. Their colour is usually dull grey and their faces usually have 2 velvety stripes. Their eggs are laid in moist materials and hatch in about 8-20 hours. House flies are general feeders, being attracted to a wide variety of substances from excrement to human foods.
Because of their sponging mouthparts, they can feed only on liquids. However, through regurgitation, they are able to liquefy many desirable solid foods. Also, a house fly excretes and regurgitates whenever it comes to rest. This habit coupled with its many body hairs and bristles and the sticky pads at the base of the claws on each leg make house flies well adapted for transporting disease organisms. House flies have been shown to harbour over 100 different kinds of disease-causing pathogens, many of which are associated with filth.
Although house flies have been shown to migrate up to 20 miles, most stay within 1-2 miles of their release point if sufficient food is available. Females seek almost any warm, moist material with sufficient food for larval development for egg-laying purposes. House flies are attracted to buildings by air current and odours.
Horse Flies
These flies probably received the common name of deer flies and horse flies because they are notorious pests of deer and horses respectfully and of other mammals. They are pests primarily in suburban and rural areas where both their breeding sites of in or near bodies of water and mammal hosts are more abundant. Some species are vectors of disease organisms to humans and other mammals, but in the U.S. most vectored diseases involve livestock.
Adults are medium to large in size, about ¼-1 1/8” long, without bristles and most stout-bodied. Their colour ranges from black to pale yellow, usually with stripes on the abdomen, often with bright green or purple eyes. Deer flies are typically smaller while Horse flies are larger. Eggs are laid in masses of 100- 1000 eggs covered with a jellylike material on leaves, rocks, or debris overhanging water or on moist areas; deer flies often lay single layer masses, horse flies lay 3-4 layer masses. In general, the larvae of horse flies are carnivorous and cannibalistic, feeding on insect larvae, snails, earthworms, etc. whereas larvae of deer flies feed on decaying organic matter.
Most tanabid flies are woodland or forest dwellers. Most species feed during full daylight and are most evident on windless, hot, sunny days. In general, larvae of horse flies develop in wet soil close to bodies of water and the larvae of deer flies develop in wet mud often in semi-submerged situations. Adults are strong fliers and capable of flying over 50 km. However, they generally do not disperse widely, usually less than 3 km. Moving and dark objects are most often attacked. They often rest on paths and roads, especially in wooded areas.
Cluster Flies
The common name reflects this groups’ habit of forming compact clusters of overwintering individuals, typically in wall voids or attics. They are widely distributed in Europe, Canada, and throughout the United States.
Adults are about 3/8” long and robust. Their colouring is usually dark grey and non-metallic. Adults overwinter in sheltered places, emerging in the spring to mate. Eggs are laid in soil cracks and hatch in about 3 days. As days shorten and the weather cools, cluster flies often enter structures to overwinter, sometimes travelling more than a mile to do so. They usually occupy attics and/or between-wall voids in the walls which receive the most sunlight, usually the south and possibly east or west walls. Typically, they use the same structure year after year. Cluster flies can usually be found at windows crawling on the panes or frames, or around lamps or lights. They are sluggish in their movements in comparison to house flies. They usually give off a buckwheat honey odour and leave a greasy spot when crushed.
Bottle Flies
The common name of blow fly refers to the fly’s deposition of eggs and comes from antiquity with references dating back into the 16th century. The common name of bottle probably comes from “bot” which is an old term for maggot, thus bottle would mean a little maggot. These flies are more than just a nuisance, they are of medical importance because of their mechanical transmission of disease organisms and ability to cause myiasis (infestation of tissues/cavities) in humans and animals.
Adults are about 1/8-5/8” long, about house fly size or slightly larger. Their colours are partly or wholly metallic blue, green, or dull brassy and sometimes black. Blow fly’s disease carrying possibilities are often overlooked. Because many species feed on filth such as human excrement and sewage and/or develop in the carcasses of infected animals, these flies may easily infect food humans eat.
Most species develop in meat or animal carcasses, but if these are not available they will use animal excrement, decaying vegetation, and/or garbage. Dead rodents, birds, and other small animals can be the source of flies within structures while dog excrement and garbage are common outdoor sources.
Honey Bees
Honey bees get their common name from the sweet yellowish to brownish fluid they make from the nectar of flowers and use as food. Honey bees not only provide honey and wax but as pollinators are of far greater importance. The honey bee is the most important insect in agriculture due to its role as a pollinator. More than 130 agriculture crops are pollinated by honey bees in the United States, and honey bees are involved in about 80% of the foods consumed by Americans.
The honey bee is a social insect living in large colonies ranging from 20,000 to 80,000. It is the only social bee or wasp having a true perennial colony surviving many years.
Honey bees are not aggressive and do not search for something to attack. Instead, they are defensive and will attack only whatever seems to threaten the colony. Bees in a swarm are very docile and not likely to sting because they harbor no food or young and therefore, have nothing to defend. Likewise, honey bees encountered away from the hive are unlikely to sting unless provoked. However, if the hive entrance is approached, the guard bees can become very aggressive; do not approach hives without proper protection.
Weather can affect the temperament of bees, and on windy, cloudy days when they are unable to forage for nectar, pollen, etc., they can become more aggressive and attack without provocation. There are three types of individuals in a honey bee colony: the queen (a fertile female), worker (sterile female), and drone (male). Drones are relatively large and buzz, menacingly, but lack a sting and are harmless. The workers build and repair the hive, forage for nectar and pollen, produce wax and honey, feed the young, and protect the hive.
Identify Honey Bees
- Colour: Yellow and black, or dark brown
- Shape: Segmented, Oval
- Size: 11 to 15 mm in length
- Region: North America
Paper Wasps
Paper wasps are 0.75 to 1.25 inch’s long and can vary in color from a darker variation (mostly brown and black) to a lighter variation (brown, red, orange, and yellow). There are 22 species of paper wasps found in North America. They gather cellulose fibers from dead wood and plant stems, mix the fibers with saliva, and use this mix to construct water-resistant nests that are made of gray or brown paper mache-like material. Paper wasps are also sometimes called umbrella wasps, due to the distinctive design of their nests.
Nests consist of a single comb with no paper envelope enclosing it. Nests are built under the eaves and porticos of homes, under decks, among the louvers of gable vents and attic rafters, behind shutters, inside coach lamps, in horizontal pipes, in hollow components of playground equipment, and under the protective foliage and branches of trees and shrubs. Nests are usually small and typically have 150-250 cells.
Paper wasps are semi-social, existing in small colonies but without a worker caste.
Identify Paper Wasps
- Colour: Vary from darker (mostly brown and black) to lighter (brown, red,
- Size: 0.75″-1.25″ in
- Region: Throughout the U.S. and Canada (including Kelowna, Vernon and Penticton!)
Bald Faced Hornets
The bald-faced hornet, also known as the white-faced hornet, is a large black wasp with white markings. They range in size from 5/8-3/4+” long. This species is widespread and found in most of the contiguous United States, Alaska, and Canada.
Bald-faced hornets are social insects which live in aerial nests. Their nests are grey, inverted pear-shaped paper nests and they build their nests above ground among the leafy branches of trees, shrubs, and under eaves of buildings. They can exceed two feet in length by summer’s end.
They scavenge in trash receptacles and forage on food and beverages consumed outdoors. They also consume ripe fruit in gardens, farms, and vineyards. In the autumn, the combination of cooler temperatures and reduced food stimulates newly emerged reproductive wasps to seek warm shelter and they are then likely to invade human structures. Colonies of these wasps are most obvious in the late summer and fall when colony numbers have peaked.
Bald-faced hornets are beneficial insects by helping to control many pest insect species. However, if the nest is located close to the ground and near an occupied structure or recreational area, then control is warranted.
Identify Bald Faced Hornets
- Colour: white and black
- Size: range from 13 to 20mm in length
Yellow Jackets
Yellow jackets receive their common name from their typical black and yellow colour pattern. Adult workers are about 3/8” to 5/8” long depending on the species. They have a distinct pair of longitudinal “stripes” on the thorax and can be easily identified by their black and yellow markings.
Yellow jackets are social insects and live in nests or colonies. Found throughout Canada, they construct both above-ground and underground nests. Their nests can be red to tan-brown and very brittle; or have a yellowish, tan, or brownish tint and fragile. Some nests are located underground, while others can be found in attics, wall voids in houses, abandoned cars, and even inside boat hulls.
Yellow Jackets scavenge for food, becoming a nuisance at outdoor activities and damaging commercial products. Some species have been known to fly almost 910 m from their nests in search of food.
Identify Yellow Jackets
- Colour: their face and head has a combination of black and yellow colors, while their body has a yellow and black banded pattern on it
- Size: about 12 mm
Field Mice
Field mice rarely venture into inhabited buildings but in winter months, they will enter sheds and other backyard structures where fruit and vegetables are stored.
Their colour varies with sandy/orange-brown fur on the head and back and yellowish fur on the flanks and white on the belly.
They eat a high proportion of the seed crop of trees such as oak, beech, ash, lime, hawthorn and sycamore. Small snails and insects are particularly important sources of food in late spring and early summer when seeds are less available. They also eat apples and will attack newly planted legume seeds.
House Mice
House mice are the most commonly encountered and economically important of the commensal rodents. House mice are not only a nuisance, damage/destroy materials by gnawing, and eat and contaminate stored food, they are also of human health importance as disease carriers or vectors.
Adults with head and body length are about 2.5-3/75” long, tail length 2.75-4” long. Fur is smooth, color is usually dusty gray above and light gray or cream below but fur color varies considerably from area to area or location to location.
The house mouse is a prolific breeder. Mice have keen senses except for sight because they cannot see clearly beyond 6” and are color blind. They are excellent climbers and can run up most roughened walls. Mice can swim but prefer not to do so.
The most common way for mice to transmit disease organisms is by contaminating food with their droppings and/or urine. Mice will eat many kinds of food but seeds and insects are the preferred.
Their preferred nesting sites are dark, secluded places where there is abundant nesting material nearby and little chance of disturbance. Nesting materials include paper products, cotton, packing materials, wall/attic insulation, fabrics, etc. In rural and suburban areas, house mice live outdoors in wooded areas, fields, croplands, yards, etc., where they build their nest in vegetative debris, natural cavities, burrows. Around structures, they follow warm air currents and food odors coming out through door thresholds, utility line entrances, etc. into a suitable site.
Deer Mice
Deer mice are structural pests in rural, summer/vacation, outbuilding, and shed-type structures, as well as suburban homes located in or near wooded areas. They are of medical concern because they are the primary carriers of hantavirus which causes hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS). The deer mouse is found throughout North America.
Adults with head and body length are about 2 3/4-4”, tail length is about 2-5” long. They are bicoloured, pale greyish buff to deep reddish brown above and white below. The tail is always sharply bicoloured and is longer than half the length of the head and body combined.
Deer mice are nocturnal. Their runways are poorly defined and they often use the runways of other small mammals. They are excellent climbers and can utilize the upper areas of buildings, etc. Outside, they nest in old fence posts, tree hollows/cavities, log piles, abandoned bird/squirrel nests and animal burrows, beneath decks, or dig small burrows. Inside, they nest in storage boxes, stuffed furniture, cabinet drawers, wall voids, on sill plates, in structural corners, and tight places in basements and attics.
Deer mice feed on insects, seeds, nuts, berries, small fruits, a subterranean fungus, and other small animals such as centipedes, snails, slugs, dead mice, and young birds. Food is stored for the winter in hollow logs and other protected places. Deer mice are rarely a problem in urban or residential areas unless homes border on wooded areas, such as parks.
Roof Rats
The Roof rat is the smaller of the 2 commensal rats and the more common rat in the subtropical and tropical regions of the world. It not only damages/destroys materials by gnawing, eats and contaminates stored food, but it is also if human health importance as a vector or carrier of diseases.
Adults with a combined head and body length about 6-8” long with the tail length being 7-10” long. Fur is soft, smooth with colour usually being brown with black intermixed, to grey to black above with underside white, grey, or black.
Roof rats are primarily nocturnal in habit and colonies contain some members that are very cautious. Roof rats prefer to nest in the upper parts of structures, but may be found under buildings as well as occasionally in basements and sewers. Outdoors, they prefer to nest in higher places such as in trees but may occasionally be found in burrows in or under vegetation around the structure.
Although they will eat practically anything, roof rats prefer naturally-occurring seeds, nuts, fruits, and berries when in season. If available, they feed on slugs, snails and insects.
Sewer/Norway Rats
The Norway rat is the largest of the commensal rodents and the most common commensal rat in the temperate regions of the world. It not only damages/destroys materials by gnawing, eats and contaminates stored food, but it is also of human health importance as a vector or carrier of diseases.
Adults’ head and body length are about 7-9.5” long, tail length being 6-8” long. Fur is coarse, shaggy, brown with scattered black hairs, with underside grey to yellowish white.
They are good runners, climbers, swimmers, and jumpers. Rats are primarily nocturnal in habit and they are cautious. Although they constantly explore their surroundings, they shy away from new objects and changes. Outdoors, Norway rats prefer to nest in burrows in the soil along railroad embankments, stream/river banks, piles of rubbish, under concrete slabs, etc. Indoors, Norway rats usually nest in basements and the lower portions of buildings in piles of debris or merchandise as long as it is not disturbed. Although they prefer the lower levels of buildings, on occasion they may be found in attics, on roofs, and in other high places.
Norway rats prefer meat, fish, and cereal, although they will eat almost anything as they are opportunistic feeders. They will gnaw through almost anything to obtain food and/or water, even plastic or lead pipes.
Squirrels
The common name reflects that these squirrels are found only in areas where there are trees because trees are where they build their nests, avoid most predators, and often harvest food. Tree squirrels frequently enter attics and become pests, and outdoors they can cause considerable damage to electrical and telephone cables; they are of minor medical concern.
Depending on the species, adult’s height is about 6-15” and tail length 4-14”. Their colour can be white, greyish, yellowish, reddish, or brownish above with belly pale or dark. There are 3 main species of tree squirrels that most often enter structures and cause problems. They enter primarily attics and garages for shelter, to store food, and/or nest, activities which can result in damage to the structure and/or its content.
They are often abundant in any kind of forest, hardwood, coniferous, or mixed, and are common around buildings. They are active year-round, especially in the morning and evening, but are occasionally out after dark. They feed on a great variety of seeds, nuts, berries, bird eggs and young, and fungi. They usually nest in tree cavities or branch nests of leaves, twigs, and bark, but also nest in fallen trees and ground cavities.
Raccoons
Raccoons are easily frightened away from a trash can or garden by humans, raccoons can be fierce fighters when cornered; in such instances, they have been known to inflict fatal wounds on even relatively large dogs. Therefore, care should be taken when attempting to control these common vertebrate pests.
Raccoon, like skunks and armadillos, ca be destructive to lawns and other grounds landscaped in cultured turf grass due to a propensity for “grubbing” behavior, as they dig for scarab beetle larvae on which to feed.
Raccoons often gain access to attics, basements, and crawlspaces by forcing open loose or broken vent covers, louvres, windows, and carpentry. Female raccoons readily invade attics or uncapped chimney flues and occupy the smoke shelf above the damper door to birth and wean their litters of pups. Since raccoons often are infested with ticks and various fleas, including cat fleas, human occupants and their animals are readily infested secondarily by the introduction of these ectoparasites via fireplace hearths and attic entrances.
Raccoon feces accumulate in the above-mentioned areas, thereby giving rise to odour and secondary pest problems, as well as serving as a potential source of raccoon roundworm infection. Raccoons have been implicated in several other infectious diseases transmissible to humans including leptospirosis, Chagas’ disease, tularemia, and, most notably, rabies.
Packrats
Gophers
Gophers are easily identified by their long, hard front teeth, tiny ears, small eyes and short tails. They are about 5” to 10” tall. Gophers are vegetarians only eating roots, trees, shrubs, grass and plants.
Gophers are known for building complex underground tunnel systems. They use their front legs and long teeth to push dirt out of their tunnels onto the grass above. They like to be alone and only one gopher will be found in a tunnel system. Gophers can be responsible for ruining lawns, killing trees and destroying gardens, but they can also be an important part of the local ecosystem. They increase soil fertility by mixing plant material and fecal wastes into the soil. They can also speed up the formation of new soil by bringing materials to the surface and they also serve as food for a variety of animals including owls, coyotes, weasels, and snakes.
Groundhogs
SPIDERS
SPIDERS
BEETLES
BEETLES
OTHER CRAWLING PESTS
OTHER CRAWLING PESTS
FLIES
FLIES
BEES & WASPS
BEES & WASPS
RODENTS
RODENTS
GROUND ANIMALS
GROUND ANIMALS
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