Insect Facts

Are ants wreaking havoc in your home? Find out how to get rid of ants (and carpenter ants) and how to prevent troublesome ant infestations in the first place.

Troubled by bed bugs? You're not alone! Should you use treatments or sprays? Find out what causes bed bugs and learn how to get rid of bed bugs fast.

When cockroaches show up in your house, you might wonder if you should use treatments or sprays. Find out where cockroaches live and how to get rid of them.

What's that unusual chirping noise? Are there crickets in your house? Find out what attracts these noisy insects and learn how to get rid of crickets.

Earwigs are one of the least attractive insects that live around, and sometimes inside, homes. The most common species is about 3/4 inch long, appears reddish-brown in color, and has prominent pincers, called cerci, which protrude from the abdomen. They also have long antennae on their head.

Fleas are wingless insects with mouthparts adapted for piercing skin and sucking the blood of their hosts. Why should I worry about fleas? Manydogs and cats are allergic to their saliva, and a single flea bite cancause severe itching or even hives. Fleas also carry the Diplylidium caninum tapeworm and other diseases, including the plague virus.

Most flies can develop from egg to larvae (maggots), to pupae, and finally, to adults in as little as one week; however, development typically takes three weeks. House fly adults typically live about two and a half weeks during the summer, but they can survive up to three months at lower temperatures. Some even winter indoors.

The merciless mosquito thrives in warm, humid conditions and lives and breeds in standing water. Any pool of water that has been stagnant for three days is a prime habitat for this dangerous parasite. Female mosquitoes can lay up to 300 eggs at one time, and their offspring usually stay within 300 feet of where they hatched. This means that most mosquitoes you see in your yard were actually born in your neighborhood!

Silverfish,while not harmful to people or their pets, can create havoc in pantriesand on bookshelves. They hide in crevices between surfaces by day, andby night they scuttle to nearby food sources to dine. Attracted bycarbohydrates (starches) and protein, silverfish are most famous formunching on book paper and glue, wallpaper, and carpets.

Almost all spiders are venomous, although they rarely transmit communicable diseases to humans. Most spiders have mouthparts too small to penetrate our pet’s skin and are therefore harmless to them. But three groups of North American spiders can harm our pets: widows, recluses, and tarantulas.

Ticks generally drop off your pet when they’re full of blood, but it can take several days for this to happen. During this time, they can transmit several diseases to pets (and their humans!), including Lyme disease, ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and babesiosis.

The wasp measures up to an inch long, and depending on the species, is reddish-brown to dark brown in color. Some species have yellow markings on the head. They possess a narrow waist between the thorax and abdomen, and their dark wings fold along the body at rest.