Ants: You will most often encounter the wingless workers trailing to a food source. These pests range in length from 1-6 mm. Do not use your own pesticides on ants. This can cause a colony to divide into many colonies, making the problem worse. Ants require professional attention.
Bed bug: Bed bugs are becoming a large problem in hotels and in homes. These insects feed on people while they sleep. These bugs are wingless, flat, and oval-shaped. They are brownish-red in color and 4-5 mm long.
If these insects are not eradicated immediately when discovered they can become a huge problem. If you see bed bugs in your hotel rooms or in your home, immediately contact us. Bed bugs require professional attention.
Bees and wasps: These are beneficial insects in the wild because they prey on pest insects and pollinate plants. They are flying insects 12-35 mm long often with yellow and black markings. Bees appear fuzzy while wasps are not.
These insects can sting and many people have bee and wasp allergies, but they can simply be avoided unless they are building a nest close to human activity.
Cockroaches: Cockroaches are oval-shaped insects with long antennae. They come out at night and often are seen in the kitchen or bathroom. These insects have wings but cannot fly well. The American and German cockroaches are the most common cockroach pests on campus.
American cockroaches: The large reddish-brown adults are up to 4 cm long. Each has a light-colored ring on its body behind its head. These pests can come into your apartment through openings to the outdoors and also from the sewers
German cockroaches: This pest is lighter in color and smaller than the American cockroach, about 1.5 cm long as an adult. It has two black stripes on its body behind its head.
Cockroaches can be sprayed with soap and water and wiped up.
Earwigs: These brown insects are between 5-16 mm in length and have “pinchers” at the end of their abdomens. Earwigs are most often found outside in mulch, but can occasionally invade your home.
If you see earwigs in your home, you can spray them with soap and water and wipe them up.
Flies: As adults, these pests have two wings and are able to fly.Immature flies are called maggots and need rotting organic matter to live. The most common indoor fly pests include house flies and fruit flies.
House flies: Adults are grey with black stripes. They are up to 7 mm long. Their larvae (maggots) are white and 3-5 mm long.
Fruit flies: These insects are very small, yellowish-brown flies with red eyes. They are less than 4 mm long. These flies are most often seen on and around fruit, dirty dishes, and garbage cans.
Large numbers of house flies and fruit flies often are seen in apartments with rotting food on the counters, on dirty dishes, or in the garbage. Cleaning spilled food or beverages, taking out the trash regularly, cleaning the dishes, and storing all fruit in the refrigerator will help prevent fly infestations. Flies can be sprayed with soap and water and wiped up. Fly swatters also work well to kill house flies.
Silverfish: Silverfish are grey, carrot-shaped insects. They are 12-19 mm in length and have long antennae and three long bristle-like tails.
They can be found throughout an apartment but prefer areas with high moisture. They feed on fabric and paper.
The easiest way to eliminate silverfish is to reduce moisture in your apartment and remove any food source. Do not let water pool on the bathroom floors, clean up the water behind sinks, and run the air conditioner to reduce the humidity. Store paper and any fabric in airtight plastic containers. When you see silverfish, they can be wiped up after being sprayed with soap and water.
Stored product pests: There are many different types of stored product pests. The most common on campus include moths and weevils. These pests are brought home from the grocery stores in contaminated food, often in dried beans and corn, grains, or rice. One species of weevil, the sweet potato weevil, infests sweet potatoes.
Moths: Moth caterpillars range in length from the 7 mm grain moth up to the larger 12 mm Indianmeal moth. These cream-colored caterpillars can be mistaken for maggots. Maggots will not be found in dry foods. The caterpillars become yellowish-brown flying adults, which are 2.5 cm in length.
Weevils: Stored product weevils are small beetles with long snouts. These insects are smaller than the moths, being 2-4 mm in length. They are brown or black in color. This insect drills holes in beans and corn to insert its eggs.
Check any beans, grains, and rice for insects at the store before you purchase them. Infested sweet potatoes will have many holes in it. Do not purchase food if you notice any insects in the packages or on produce.
Fleas, Ticks, & Mites: We offer services for flea and ticks, and mites as well. If you are moving out of a property and your landlord would like you to have the home treated for flea and ticks this is very common and is called a move out service. We also offer a live-in residential service for flea and ticks!
For live-in residents & move out services, please call today for a free estimate!