"Occasional" Invaders are usually looking for some food and water

What is an “occasional invader” that my pest management professional mentioned on his last visit? 

Occasional invaders are insects that spend the majority of their life outdoors often within close proximity to a house living in mulch, plants, trees or tree stumps, but, on occasion invade a dwelling.  These invaders may come inside as they are foraging for food and water.  Also because an insect’s metabolism slows down considerably during the winter, they may also be seeking shelter to escape the extreme temperatures.  They do not complete their lifecycle indoors. 

A short list of this group of occasional invaders includes several species of cockroaches, crickets, spiders, ants, box-elder, centipedes, millipedes, earwigs, mites, scorpions, pill-bugs, daddy-longlegs, slugs, snails, sow-bugs, springtails, weevils, and ground beetles.  While these pests may be a nuisance and should be removed for that reason, they rarely do damage or harm.

Your pest management professional may use a combination of external chemical treatments and internal non-chemical traps to control these pests.  In addition, moving mulch further from your home’s foundation and trimming plants near your foundation may be recommended along with sealing possible entry points. 

When my technician treated my home, I noticed him looking all around my home and also using a number of different chemicals.  Why?

Unlike the occasional invaders just discussed, there are three categories of primary targets that can harm people or damage structures.  The industry refers to these as primary targets and they include insects, non-insect arthropods or spiders, and rodents.  Because they originate outside but can complete their life cycle indoors, with you, the control techniques our industry uses are pest specific to the target pest.  To control cockroaches, for example, gel-based bait is often used.  Rats and mice may be trapped with glue boards, traditional mouse traps, or with baited food blocks.  Just as the products used vary, the placement of the products varies too depending on the stage of the pest’s lifecycle.  Your technician is also looking for the resource site – where egg laying and juvenile development may occur.  This is normally outside, in your mulch.  He will also locate the interception site or the location where the pest and your home meet. 

What type of lighting is less attractive to insects?

Sodium vapor lighting is preferred to mercury vapor lighting since it is less attractive.  Also colored light bulbs (red or yellow, for example) are often used for the same reason.  A mercury vapor light on the garage may attract many flying insects to your property.  These insects may also attract other pests, like spiders, who feed on these insects.  Use care in locating outside lighting to keep insects away from your home. 

I remind my son that his task is to pick up pet waste from our three dogs in our back yard.  He says the waste is biodegradable and even fertilizes the yard.  Is this correct?

From a pest control standpoint, fecal material from outdoor pets and from mammal pests (raccoons, squirrels, or opossums) can serve as either a harborage or breeding site or even food for some pests.  The yard should be cleaned at least weekly and the waste disposed to prevent an uncontrolled pest population.  To add additional chores, firewood and lumber stacked outside should also be moved from the yard and stored off the ground and away from the home, preferably in a clean, dry location.  Minimize excess quantities of these wood products which are attractive to termites.  Dog houses should also be washed and sanitized periodically to discourage pests like fleas and ticks.

Lee Tubbs, EnviroGuard Pest Control