There are quite a few pests that roam throughout the country and Pennsylvania has its fair share; from insects to arachnids and rodents, pests are no stranger to the locals. Generally, when pests invade homes they are looking for food, water, and a place to escape the current climate conditions. Because pests are often creepy, causing involuntary yelps and gasps to escape our lips, or pose a health risk by spreading diseases, viruses, germs, bacteria and produce allergy symptoms and asthma attacks, along with their destructive ways, we have a tendency to respond when we see them inside our homes or businesses. Where some of these characteristics apply to the pests singularly or a combination of them, in any case, their presence needs to be dealt with. With so many pests to concern yourself with, we at Stewart Termite & Pest Control would like to briefly discuss stink bugs.
How Do You Identify a Stink Bug?
Originating from Asia and arriving in Pennsylvania in 1996, the brown marmorated stink bugs are an invasive pest that have since spread throughout the country. These insects, much like some species of beetles, ants, and other such bugs, are so named because of the pungent odor they release when they are disturbed or crushed. Stink bugs have triangular or shield-shaped bodies that are a mottled grayish-brown color. Stink bugs are about ¾” long and feature antennae and 6 legs. They have reached out to California, Oregon, Washington, New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona, but are heavily populated in the eastern half of the United States.
What Attracts Stink Bugs in the Fall?
As nymphs, stink bugs will consume leaves, stems, and fruit and once they reach adulthood, the adult stink bugs will typically stick to just eating fruit. In late fall, stink bugs will search for overwintering areas for shelter from the cold winter weather; come the early spring, they will reemerge and become the most active. While they are seeking for the optimal overwintering sites, stink bug adults will frequently wonder into homes and other structures. During the warm months, stink bugs will typically congregate en masse on the sides of buildings.
Are Stink Bugs Harmful?
Stink bugs are not known to bite people, but are a real nuisance to those with fruit trees or gardens as well as the homes they refuge in during the winter. The biggest threat stink bugs pose, as they continue to spread throughout the country, is the destruction on crops, negatively impacting the agricultural industry.
How Can Stink Bugs Be Controlled?
Fortunately there are ways to keep stink bugs out of your home. Start by sealing cracks around the doors, windows, underneath the wood fascia, behind chimneys, utility pipes, siding, and other such openings with a high-quality silicone or silicone-latex caulk to avoid having stink bugs overrun your home this winter. Additionally, install mesh screens over chimney tops and ventilation areas. Once you have done your part, contact a professional to perform preventative treatment in the fall before these bugs begin to congregate.
Stink Bug Pest Control
To avoid stink bugs in your home or business this fall and winter, call in the experts of Stewart Termite & Pest Control and let our trained and experienced professionals apply treatment to your home, contact us today to schedule your appointment.