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Showing posts from 2013

New Roach Baits Can Eliminate Tough Infestations

cockroach Until fairly recently the control of the large and stubborn cockroach infestations that can plague apartment buildings, food handling facilities and commercial buildings depended on the so-called " spray and pray " method. In other words you spray as much insecticide as possible and pray that it works . Most of the time this method in fact fails but it sure makes a lot of money for pesticide manufacturers! It fails for several reasons but the main reason is that cockroaches can detect and learn to avoid pesticide residues . New Research on Roach Baits Researchers have recently figured out that if you combine a highly attractive food with a small amount of slow-acting insecticide the results are much better. Roaches find the bait, eat it and thereby contaminate themselves with the insecticide. Because the insecticide is slow to take effect the roaches have time to get back to the harborage (a safe area, such as inside a wall, where cockroaches congregat

Brownish-Green Mites Invade Homes - Oh, My!

clover mite ~ size of period (.) Have you ever found masses of brownish-green mites that seem to be invading your home ? You may have found large numbers around a window or on a counter top. If you crush the mites they leave a greenish stain. If you look closely, you might have seen long front legs like the mite in the photo (left). These long legs are often mistaken for antennae . You probably found clover mites . Clover mites are actually a type of spider mite that feeds on plants and they occasionally enter homes from plants growing along the foundation of your home, entering through open windows or cracks. Most spider mites rarely if ever leave their host plants but clover mites are a little different. For reasons that are not entirely clear these mites will start a sort of " mass migration ", often in the spring, that can end with large numbers of mites on your interior walls and counters. Rest assured the mites are completely harmless except for the po

Big, Brown Bugs Invade Homes

brown marmorated stink bug During the last few weeks I've gotten numerous questions through my 'Bugs site about "large, brown bugs" in homes. Several people have sent images like the one to the left. They describe the bug as about 3/4" long, brown in color, and they sometimes mention the white or brown alternating marks around the back-end. The questions are almost always - what is it, is it dangerous, and how do I get rid of it? This big, brown bug is the brown marmorated stink bug , a relatively new nuisance pest in parts of the US. It is an introduced pest (not native to the US) and is rapidly spreading to new parts of the country. My guess is that in a relatively short time most areas of the country will be home to this new insect. The bugs are completely harmless but have the annoying habit of congregating on and entering homes in the fall. Their objective is to find a warm place to spend the winter and will leave in the spring to resume their n