Pest Identification from McDonald Pest Control

Ants

 

Acrobat Ant

The acrobat gets its common name from its behavioral habit of raising its abdomen over their head and thorax. Worker ants are known to bite aggressively and give off a noxious odor when disturbed. Colonies typically nest either in stumps, old trees, under rocks or even in exposed soil and once in awhile homes becoming pests. In homes these ants will nest in woodwork and foam insulation as well as infest household foods showing a preference for sweets, meats and other foods high in protein.

Winged acrobat ants, or those ready for mating season usually appear during the fall season. When noticeable in the home, it’s a solid indication of an infestation.

Big Headed Ant

It is a very successful invasive species and is considered a danger to native ants in Florida and other places in the world including Australia. It has been nominated as one of the hundred “World’s Worst” invaders.

There are two types of worker ant, the major or soldier ant and the minor worker. The common name of bigheaded ant derives from the soldier’s disproportionately large head. This has large mandibles which may be used to crush seeds. The soldiers are about four millimeters in length, twice as long as the minor workers. The color of both types varies from yellowish-brown or reddish-brown to nearly black. The rear half of the head is smooth and glossy and the front half sculptured. The twelve-segmented antennae are curved and have club-like tips. The waist is two-segmented with the node immediately behind conspicuously swollen. There are a pair of short, upward-facing spines on the waist. The body has sparse, long hairs.

 

Pharaoh Ant

The pharaoh ant (Monomorium pharaonis) is a small (2 mm) yellow or light brown, almost transparent ant notorious for being a major indoor nuisance pest, especially in hospitals. The origin of this “tramp” ant is uncertain, although favoured alternatives include West Africa and Indonesia. The Pharaoh ant has been introduced to virtually every area of the world including Europe, the Americas, Australasia and Southeast Asia. Pharaoh ants are a tropical species but they thrive in buildings anywhere, even in temperate regions provided central heating is present.

Unlike most ants the Pharaoh ant is polygynous, meaning its colonies contain many queens (from 2 to over 200). An individual colony normally contains 1000–2500 workers but a high density of nests gives the impression of massive colonies. Colonies also lack nestmate recognition so there is no hostility between neighbouring colonies. Pharaoh ants lack the normal cycle of reproduction observed in most ants; they are able to produce sexual reproductive individuals as required. Laboratory colonies exhibit weak reproductive cycles but this cannot be assumed to be the natural condition. Colonies reproduce by “budding”, where a subset of the colony including queens, workers and brood (eggs, larvae and pupae) leave the main colony for an alternative nest site. Budding is the major factor underlying the invasion of Pharaoh ants. A single seed colony can populate a large office block, almost to the exclusion of all other insect pests, in less than six months. Elimination and control are made difficult because multiple colonies can also contract into smaller colonies and “weather the storm” of a baiting program only to rebound when baiting is withdrawn. Pharaoh ants are a major hazard in hospitals, where their small size means they can access wounds, driplines, and instrumentation, causing spread of infection and electrical interference.

Pharaoh ants have become a serious nuisance pest in hospitals, rest homes, apartment dwellings, hotels, grocery stores, food establishments and other buildings. They feed on a wide variety of foods including jellies, honey, shortening, peanut butter, corn syrup, fruit juices, baked goods, soft drinks, greases, dead insects and even shoe polish. Also, these ants gnaw holes in silk, rayon and rubber goods. In hospitals, foraging ants have been found in surgical wounds, I.V. glucose solutions, sealed packs of sterile dressing, soft drinks, water in flower displays and water pitchers. These ants are capable of mechanically transmitting diseases and contaminating sterile materials.

 

Imported Fire Ant

Fire ants are a variety of stinging ants with over 280 species worldwide. They have several common names including ginger ants and tropical fire ants (English), aka-kami-ari (Japanese), fourmis de feu (French), Feuerameisen (German), and Langgam (Filipino).

A typical fire ant colony produces large mounds in open areas, and feeds mostly on young plants, seeds, and sometimes crickets. Fire ants often attack small animals and can kill them. Unlike many other ants, which bite and then spray acid on the wound, fire ants only bite to get a grip and then sting (from the abdomen) and inject a toxic alkaloid venom called Solenopsin, a compound from the class of piperidines. For humans, this is a painful sting, it hurts, a sensation similar to what one feels when burned by fire—hence the name fire ant—and the aftereffects of the sting can be deadly to sensitive individuals. The venom is both insecticidal and antibiotic. Researchers have proposed that nurse workers will spray their brood to protect them from microorganisms.

Fire ants nest in the soil, often near moist areas, such as river banks, pond edges, watered lawns and highway edges. Usually the nest will not be visible as it will be built under objects such as timber, logs, rocks, pavers, bricks, etc. If there is no cover for nesting, dome-shaped mounds will be constructed, but this is usually only found in open spaces such as fields, parks and lawns. These mounds can reach heights of 40 cm (15.7 in).

Colonies are founded by small groups of queens or single queens. Even if only one queen survives, within a month or so the colony can expand to thousands of individuals. Some colonies may be polygynous (having multiple queens per nest).

 

Ghost Ant

They are recognised by their dark head and pale or translucent legs and gaster (abdomen). This colouring makes this tiny ant (¹⁄₁₆ of an inch, 1.5 mm) seem even smaller.

The ghost ant’s diet consists mainly of sweets but they will also feed on grease and occasionally living or dead insects. They exhibit a high need for moisture, and although colonies are usually established outside, they can readily “set up camp” inside domestic houses during dry conditions.

This is a widespread tropical species, found throughout the world. Its native range is unknown.

The ghost ant is thought to be so named because the legs and abdomen of the insect look transparent, with only the head and thorax being dark brown in colour.

Observed in infested buildings with the naked eye they are quite difficult to distinguish from pharaoh ants, being virtually of the same size.

Like a lot of small insects a positive identification can only be made once is a specimen is looked at through a microscope.

The worker ants form trails like pharaoh ants, taking food back to the nest, and also like pharaoh ants, the queens are communal, so that there can be several queens in a colony, and several thousand workers. New colonies can be formed when a queen and some workers migrate away.

 

Argentine Ant

The Argentine ant (Linepithema humile, formerly Iridomyrmex humilis) is a dark ant native to northern Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and southern Brazil. It is an invasive species that has been established in many Mediterranean climate areas, inadvertently introduced by humans to many places, including South Africa, New Zealand, Japan, Easter Island, Australia, Hawaii, Europe, and the United States.

They have been extraordinarily successful, in part, because different nests of the introduced Argentine ants seldom attack or compete with each other, unlike most other species of ant. In their introduced range, their genetic makeup is so uniform that individuals from one nest can mingle in a neighboring nest without being attacked. Thus, in most of their introduced range they form “supercolonies”. “Some ants have an extraordinary social organization, called unicoloniality, whereby individuals mix freely among physically separated nests. This type of social organization is not only a key attribute responsible for the ecological domination of these ants, but also an evolutionary paradox and a potential problem for kin selection theory because relatedness between nest mates is effectively zero.” In contrast, native populations are more genetically diverse, genetically differentiated (among colonies and across space), and form colonies that are much smaller than the supercolonies that dominate the introduced range. Argentine ants in their native South America also co-exist with many other species of ants, and do not attain the high population densities that characterize introduced populations.

 

 Crazy Ant

Crazy ant (Anoplolepis gracilipes) is a species of ant, introduced accidentally to northern Australia and Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean, and is a pest in both locations. They are colloquially called “crazy” because of their erratic movements when disturbed, and are one of the largest invasive ants species in the world.

Along with the red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta), the big-headed ant (Pheidole megacephala), the little fire ant (Wasmannia auropunctata), and the Argentine ant (Linepithema humile), the crazy ant is one of the five species of tramp ants, known for invasive behavior and devastating ecological effects. Also known as the long-legged or Maldive ant, it has also been listed among the 100 most devastating invaders of the world. It has invaded ecosystems from Hawaii to Seychelles, and formed supercolonies on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.

 

Florida Carpenter Ant

Carpenter ants are large (¼–1 in) ants indigenous to many parts of the world. They prefer dead, damp wood in which to build nests. Sometimes carpenter ants will hollow out sections of trees. The most likely species to be infesting a house in the United States is the Black carpenter ant, Camponotus pennsylvanicus. However, there are over a thousand other species in the genus Camponotus.

Carpenter ants can damage wood used in the construction of buildings. They can leave a sawdust like material behind that provides clues to nesting location.

In at least nine Southeast Asian species of the Cylindricus complex, such as Camponotus saundersi, workers feature greatly enlarged mandibular glands. They can release their contents suicidally by rupturing the intersegmental membrane of the gaster, resulting in a spray of toxic substance from the head, which gave these species the common name “exploding ants”.

Its defensive behaviors include self-destruction by autothysis. Two over-sized, poison-filled mandibular glands run the entire length of the ant’s body. When combat takes a turn for the worse, the ant violently contracts its abdominal muscles to rupture its body and spray poison or glue in all directions. The ant has an enormously enlarged mandibular (abdomen) gland, many times the size of a normal ant, which produces the glue. The glue bursts out and entangles and immobilizes all nearby victims. The termite, Globitermes sulphureus has a similar defensive mechanism.

 

White Footed Ant

Was first described from Indonesia in 1861, the white footed ant neither bites nor causes structural damage. Yet it is considered a nuisance due to their explosive population growth. Although not native to North America, the insects were accidentally imported into Florida where they were first collected and identified in 1986.

The White Footed Ant is a medium small (2.5-3 mm long), black to brownish-black ant with yellowish-white feet and a one-segmented waist. It has five abdominal segments, 12-segmented antennae, few erect hairs, and no sting.

Cockroaches

American Cockroach

The American cockroach (Periplaneta americana), also known as the Palmetto Bug or Waterbug, particularly in the southern United States, is the largest species of common cockroach, and often considered a pest. It is native to the Southern United States, and common in tropical climates. Human activity has extended the insect’s range of habitation. Specimens have been observed in eastern North American cities as far north as New York City, Toronto, and Montreal, though its intolerance to cold restricts it to human habitations.[citation needed] Global shipping has transplanted the insects to world ports including Tenerife (Spain), Southern Spain, Greece, Taiwan, and Cape Town and Durban, South Africa.

The insect is believed to have originated in Africa, but had become established in the southern U.S. by the time that it was given its name.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Brownbanded Cockroach

The brown-banded cockroach, Supella longipalpa, is a small species of cockroach, measuring about 5/8 in (10 to 14;mm) long. It is tan to light brown. It has two light-colored bands across the wings and abdomen, they may sometimes appear to be broken or irregular but are quite noticeable. The bands may be partly obscured by the wings. The male has wings that cover the abdomen, while the female has wings that do not cover the abdomen completely. The male appears more slender than the female, the female appears wider.

The brown-banded cockroach has a fairly wide distribution, being found in the northeastern, southern, and midwest regions of the United States quite commonly. They are one of the most recent alien cockroaches to form breeding colonies in Britain and Ireland. They need less moisture than the German cockroach so they tend to be more broadly distributed in the home, such as in living rooms and bedrooms. They can often be found in homes and apartments, but are less common in restaurants. They tend not to be found in the daytime, since they avoid light.

The brown-banded cockroach eats a wide variety of items. Cockroaches are usually scavengers, and thus can eat a wide array of items, often almost anything organic, including decaying matter. It has been known to cause problems in hospitals by emerging at night to feed on bodily fluids, thereby risking cross-infection.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

German Cockroach

The German cockroach, Croton bug or Steam fly (Blattella germanica) is a small species of cockroach, measuring about 1.3 cm (0.51 in) to 1.6 cm (0.63 in) long. It can be tan through brown to almost black, and has two dark parallel streaks running from the head to the base of the wings. Although it has wings, it is unable to sustain flight. The German cockroach is one of the most common and prominent household cockroaches in the world, and can be found throughout many human settlements. These insects are particularly fond of inhabiting restaurants, food processing facilities, hotels, and nursing homes. In colder climates, they are found only near human habitats, since they are not very tolerant to cold. However German cockroaches have been found as far north as Alert, Nunavut. The German cockroach is originally from Asia and very common in Russia, not in Germany. It is very closely related to the Asian cockroach, and to the casual observer they appear nearly identical and may be mistaken for the other. This cockroach can be seen in the day occasionally, especially if there is a large population or if they have been disturbed. However, sightings are most commonly reported in the evening hours as they are most active at night.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Oriental Cockroach

The oriental cockroach (also known as: waterbug and Blatta orientalis) is a large species of cockroach, measuring about 1 in (2.5 cm) in length at maturity. It is dark brown to black in color and has a glossy body. The female Oriental cockroach has a somewhat different appearance to the male, appearing to be wingless at casual glance but has two very short and useless wings just below its head. It has a wider body than the male. The male has long wings, which cover a majority of its body and are brown in colour, and has a more narrow body. The odd male is capable of very short flights, ranging about 2 to 3 meters. The female oriental cockroach looks somewhat similar to the Florida woods cockroach, and may be mistaken for it.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fabric Pests

Carpet Beetle

Dermestidae are a family of Coleoptera that are commonly referred to as skin beetles. Other common names include larder beetle, hide or leather beetles, carpet beetles, and khapra beetles. There are approximately 500 to 700 species worldwide. They can range in size from 1–12 mm. Key characteristics for adults are round oval shaped bodies covered in scales or setae. The (usually) clubbed antennae fit into deep grooves. The hind femora also fit into recesses of the coxa. Larvae are scarabaeiform and also have setae.

Dermestids have a variety of habits; most genera are scavengers that feed on dry animal or plant material such as skin or pollen, animal hair, feathers, dead insects and natural fibers. Members of Dermestes are found in animal carcasses, while others may be found in mammal, bird, bee, or wasp nests. Thaumaglossa only lives in the egg cases of mantids, while Trogoderma species are pests of grain.

These beetles are significant in forensic entomology. Some species are known to be associated with decaying carcasses which help with criminal investigations. Also some species are pests (urban entomology) and can cause millions of dollars in damage to natural fibers in homes and to major businesses.

They are used in taxidermy and natural history museums to clean animal skeletons. Some dermestid species, commonly called “bow bugs,” infest violin cases, feeding on the bow hair.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Clothes Moth

The Clothing Moth (Tineola bisselliella) is a species of moths from the Tineidae moth family. The caterpillar (larva) of this moth is recognized as a serious pest. It can derive nourishment not only from clothing – in particular wool – and also, like most moth caterpillars, from many other sources.

The Development Cycle of the Clothing Moth. Eggs hatch into larvae, which then begin to feed. Once they get their fill, they pupate and undergo metamorphosis to emerge as adults. Adults do not eat: male adults look for females and adult females look for places to lay eggs. Once their job is done, they die. Contrary to what most people believe, adult clothing moths do not eat or cause any damage to clothing or fabric. It is the larvae which are solely responsible for this, spending their entire time eating and foraging for food.

Both adults and larvae prefer low light conditions. Whereas most other moths are drawn to light, clothing moths seem to prefer dim or dark areas. If larvae find themselves in a well-lit room, they will try to relocate under furniture or carpet edges. Hand made rugs are a favorite because it is easy for them to crawl underneath and do their damage from below. They will also crawl under moldings at the edges of rooms in search of darkened areas which hold good food.

The most common clothing moth is the Webbing Clothes Moth. It prefers moist conditions, although low humidity will merely slow development. Webbing Clothes Moths are small moths whose adults grow to between 1 and 2 cm. Their eggs are tiny, most being under 1 mm long and barely visible. A female will lay several hundred during her lifetime; egg placement is carefully chosen in locations where they will have the best chance for survival. The eggs are attached with a glue-like substance and can be quite difficult to remove. After the egg hatches, the larva will immediately look for food. Larvae can obtain their required food in less than two months, but if conditions are not favorable they will feed on and off for a long time. Whether it takes two months or two years, each larva will eventually spin a cocoon in which it will change into an adult. Larvae stay in these cocoons for between one and two months and then emerge as adults ready to mate and to lay eggs.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Flies

American Horse Fly

Insects in the order Diptera, family Tabanidae, are commonly called horse flies, and sometimes also forest flies or deer flies. The former, however, can also refer to Hippoboscidae, and the latter refers specifically to the horse-fly genus Chrysops. Often considered pests for the bites that many inflict, they are among the world’s largest true flies. They are known to be extremely noisy during flight. They are also important pollinators of flowers, especially in South Africa. Tabanids occur worldwide, being absent only at extreme northern and southern latitudes. Flies of this type are among those known sometimes as gadflies, zimbs or clegs. In Australia, they are known as “march flies”; elsewhere this term refers to the unrelated dipteran family Bibionidae.

There are approximately 3,000 species of horse flies known worldwide, 350 of which are found in North America. At least three subfamilies are recognized:

• Chrysopsinae
• Pangoniinae
• Tabaninae
• the genus Zophina is of uncertain placement, though it has been classified among the Pangoniinae

Two well-known types are the common horse flies, genus Tabanus Linnaeus, 1758 and the deer flies, genus Chrysops Meigen, 1802 also known as banded horse flies because of their coloring. Both these genera give their names to subfamilies. The “Blue Tail Fly” in the eponymous song was probably a tabanid common to the southeastern United States.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Black Fly

A black fly (sometimes called a buffalo gnat, turkey gnat, or white socks) is any member of the family Simuliidae of the Culicomorpha infraorder. They are related to the Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, and Thaumaleidae. There are over 1,800 known species of black flies (of which 11 are extinct). Most species belong to the immense genus Simulium. Most black flies gain nourishment by feeding on the blood of other animals, although the males feed mainly on nectar. They are usually small, black or gray, with short legs, and antennae. They are a common nuisance for humans, and many U.S. states have programs to suppress the black fly population. They spread several diseases, including river blindness in Africa (Simulium damnosum and S. neavei) and the Americas (Simulium callidum and S. metallicum in Central America, S. ochraceum in Central and South America).

Eggs are laid in running water, and the larvae attach themselves to rocks. Breeding success is highly sensitive to water pollution. The larvae use tiny hooks at the end of the abdomen to hold on to the substrate, using silk hold-fasts and threads to move or hold their place. They have fold-able fans surrounding their mouths. The fans expand when feeding, catching passing debris (small organic particles, algae, and bacteria). The larva scrapes the fan’s catch into its mouth every few seconds. Black flies depend on habitats to bring food to them. They will pupate under water and then emerge in a bubble of air as flying adults. They are often preyed upon by trout during emergence.

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Blow Fly

Blow-flies (commonly known as carrion flies, bluebottles, greenbottles or cluster flies) are insects in the Order Diptera, family Calliphoridae. The family is known to be non-monophyletic, but much remains disputed regarding proper treatment of the constituent units, some of which are occasionally accorded family status (e.g., Bengaliidae, Helicoboscidae, Polleniidae, Rhiniidae).

The name blow-fly comes from an older English term for meat that had eggs laid on it, which was said to be fly blown. The first known association of the term “blow” with flies appears in the plays of William Shakespeare: Love’s Labour’s Lost, The Tempest, and Antony and Cleopatra.

Most species of blowflies studied thus far are anautogenous; a female requires a substantial amount of protein to develop mature eggs within her ovaries (about 800 µg per pair of ovaries in Phormia regina). The current theory is that females visit carrion both for protein and egg laying, but this remains to be proven. Blow-fly eggs, usually yellowish or white in color, are approximately 1.5 mm x 0.4 mm, and, when laid, look like rice balls. While the female blow-fly typically lays 150-200 eggs per batch, she is usually iteroparous, laying around 2,000 eggs during the course of her life. The sex ratio of blowfly eggs is usually 50:50, but one interesting exception is currently documented in the literature. Females from two species of the genus Chrysomya (C. rufifacies and C. albiceps) are either arrhenogenic (laying only male offspring) or thelygenic (laying only female offspring).

Hatching from an egg to the first larval stage takes about 8 hours to one day. Larvae have three stages of development (called instars); each stage is separated by a molting event.The instars are separable by examining the posterior spiracles, or openings to the breathing system. The larvae use proteolytic enzymes in their excreta (as well as mechanical grinding by mouth hooks) to break down proteins on the livestock or corpse they are feeding on. Blowflies are poikilothermic, which is to say that the rate at which they grow and develop is highly dependent on temperature and species. Under room temperature (about 30 degrees Celsius) the black blowfly Phormia regina can go from egg to pupa in 150-266 hours (6 to 11 days). When the third stage is complete the pupa will leave the corpse and burrow into the ground, emerging as an adult 7 to 14 days later.

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Cluster Fly

The cluster flies are the genus Pollenia in the blowfly family Calliphoridae. Unlike more familiar blowflies such as the bluebottle genus Phormia, they do not present a health hazard because they do not lay eggs in human food. They are strictly parasitic on earthworms; the females lay their eggs near earthworm burrows, and the larvae then infest the worms. However, the flies are a nuisance because when the adults emerge in the late summer or autumn they enter houses to hibernate, often in large numbers; they are difficult to eradicate because they favour inaccessible spaces such as roof and wall cavities. They are often seen on windows of little-used rooms. They are also sometimes known as attic flies.

The typical cluster fly Pollenia rudis is about 7 mm long and can be recognised by distinct lines or stripes behind the head, short golden-coloured hairs on the thorax, and irregular light and dark gray areas on the abdomen. Cluster flies are typically slow moving.

Cluster flies have a widespread distribution. Six species are found in Britain and thirty one in Europe. Pollenia species are also and numerous in Australia and New Zealand (over 30 spp); they are a common pest in North America. P. rudis has spread widely in association with humans.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

House Fly

The housefly (also house fly, house-fly or common housefly), Musca domestica, is the most common of all flies found in homes, and indeed one of the most widely distributed insects, found all over the world; it is often considered a pest that can carry serious diseases.

Even though the order of flies (Diptera) is much older, true houseflies are believed to have evolved in the beginning of the Cenozoic era, some 65 million years ago.[6] House flies feed on liquid or semi-liquid substances beside solid material which has been softened by saliva or vomit. Because of their high intake of food, they deposit feces constantly, one of the factors that makes the insect a dangerous carrier of pathogens. Although they are domestic flies, usually confined to the human habitations, they can fly for several miles from the breeding place. They are active only in daytime and rest at night e.g. at the corners of rooms, ceiling hangings, etc.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Occasional Invaders

Beetle

Beetles are the group of insects with the largest number of known species. They are classified in the order Coleoptera, which contains more described species than in any other order in the animal kingdom, constituting about 25% of all known life-forms. 40% of all described insect species are beetles (about 350,000 species), and new species are frequently discovered. Estimates put the total number of species, described and undescribed, at between 5 and 8 million.[citation needed] The largest family also belongs to this order—the weevils, or snout beetles, Curculionidae.

Beetles can be found in almost all habitats, but are not known to occur in the sea or in the polar regions. They interact with their ecosystems in several ways. They often feed on plants and fungi, break down animal and plant debris, and eat other invertebrates. Some species are prey of various animals including birds and mammals. Certain species are agricultural pests, such as the Colorado potato beetle Leptinotarsa decemlineata, the boll weevil Anthonomus grandis, the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, and the mungbean or cowpea beetle Callosobruchus maculatus, while other species of beetles are important controls of agricultural pests. For example, beetles in the family Coccinellidae (“ladybirds” or “ladybugs”) consume aphids, scale insects, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects that damage crops.

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Earwig

Earwig is the common name given to the insect order Dermaptera, characterized by membranous wings folded underneath short forewings, hence the literal translation of the order being “skin wings”. The abdomen extends beyond the wings, and frequently ends in a pair of forceps-like structures called cerci. The order is relatively small among Insecta, with about 1,800 recorded species in 12 families. Earwigs are found in the Americas and Europe. There is no evidence that they transmit disease to humans or other animals.

Most earwigs found in Europe and North America are of the species Forficula auricularia, the European or common earwig, which is distributed throughout the cooler parts of the northern hemisphere. This species feeds on other arthropods, plants, ripe fruit, and garbage. Plants that they feed on typically include clover, dahlias,zinnias, butterfly bush, hollyhock, lettuce, cauliflower, strawberry,sunflowers, celery, peaches, plums, grapes, potatoes, roses, seedling beans and beets, and tender grass shoots and roots; they have also been known to eat corn silk, damaging the corn.[13][14][15] Typically they are a nuisance because of their diet, but normally do not present serious hazards to crops. Some tropical species are brightly colored. Occasionally earwigs are confused with cockroaches because of their cerci and their long antennae.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Japanese Beetle

The beetle species Popillia japonica is commonly known as the Japanese beetle. It is about 1.5 cm (0.6 inches) long and 1 cm (0.4 inches) wide, with iridescent copper-colored elytra and green thorax and head. It is not very destructive in Japan, where it is controlled by natural enemies, but in America it is a serious pest of about 200 species of plants, including rose bushes, grapes, hops, canna, crape myrtles, and other plants.

It is a clumsy flier, dropping several centimeters when it hits a wall. Japanese beetle traps therefore consist of a pair of crossed walls with a bag underneath, and are baited with floral scent, pheromone, or both. However, studies done at the University of Kentucky suggest that traps attract more beetles than they actually trap, thus causing more damage than may have occurred were the trap not used.

These insects damage plants by skeletonizing the foliage, that is, consuming only the leaf material between the veins.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ladybug

Coccinellidae is a family of beetles, known variously as ladybirds (UK, Ireland, Australia, South Africa), ladybugs (North America) or lady beetles (preferred by some scientists). Lesser-used names include ladyclock, lady cow, and lady fly.

They are small insects, ranging from 1 mm to 10 mm (0.04 to 0.4 inches), and are commonly yellow, orange, or scarlet with small black spots on their wing covers, with black legs, head and antennae. A very large number of species are mostly or entirely black, grey, or brown and may be difficult for non-entomologists to recognize as coccinellids (and, conversely, there are many small beetles that are easily mistaken as such, like tortoise beetles).

Coccinellids are found worldwide, with over 5,000 species described, more than 450 native to North America alone.

A few species are pests in North America and Europe, but they are generally considered useful insects as many species feed on aphids or scale insects, which are pests in gardens, agricultural fields, orchards, and similar places. The Mall of America, for instance, releases thousands of ladybugs into its indoor park as a natural means of pest control for its gardens.

A common myth is that the number of spots on its back indicates its age. This myth is not true.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Silverfish

Lepisma saccharina (commonly called the fishmoth, urban silverfish, silverfish, or carpet shark) is a small, wingless insect typically measuring from a half to one inch (12–25 mm). Its common name derives from the animal’s silvery light grey and blue colour, combined with the fish-like appearance of its movements, while the scientific name indicates the silverfish’s diet of carbohydrates such as sugar or starches. It belongs to the basal insect order Thysanura.

The reproduction of silverfish is preceded by a ritual involving three phases, which may last over half an hour. In the first phase, the male and female stand face to face, their trembling antennae touching, then repeatedly back off and return to this position. In the second phase the male runs away and the female chases him. In the third phase the male and female stand side by side and head-to-tail, with the male vibrating his tail against the female. Finally the male lays a spermatophore, a sperm capsule covered in gossamer, which the female takes into her body via her ovipositor to fertilize the eggs she will lay later on.

Young silverfish are white in color.

All of the above information came from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rodents

Black Rat

The Black Rat (Rattus rattus) (alt. Ship Rat, Roof Rat, House Rat, Alexandrine Rat, Old English Rat) is a common long-tailed rodent of the genus Rattus (rats) in the subfamily Murinae (murine rodents). The species originated in tropical Asia and spread through the Near East in Roman times before reaching Europe by the 6th century and spreading with Europeans across the world. Today it is again largely confined to warmer areas, having been supplanted by the Brown Rat (Rattus norvegicus) in cooler regions.

Despite its name, it exhibits several colour forms. It is usually black to light brown in colour with a lighter underside. A typical rat will be 15–20 cm (5.9–7.9 in) long with a further 20 cm (7.9 in) of tail. It is nocturnal and omnivorous, with a preference for grains and fruit. Compared to the Brown Rat, it is a poor swimmer, but more agile and a better climber, tending even to flee upwards. In a suitable environment it will breed throughout the year, with a female producing three to six litters of up to ten young. Females may regulate their production of offspring during times when food is scarce, throwing as few as only one litter a year. R. rattus lives for about 2–3 years. Social groups of up to sixty can be formed.

Black Rats (or their ectoparasites) are able to carry a number of pathogens, of which bubonic plague (via the rat flea), typhus, Weil’s disease, toxoplasmosis and trichinosis are the most well known. In the 1920s in England, several colour variations were bred and shown alongside domesticated brown rats. This included an unusual green tinted variety. Today however, very few people keep Black Rats as pets. Most pet rats (or fancy rats) are domesticated brown rats.

In New Zealand, Black Rats have an internationally unusual distribution and importance, in that they are utterly pervasive through native forests, scrublands, and urban parklands. This is typical only of oceanic islands that lack native mammals, especially other rodents. Throughout most of the world, Black Rats are found only in disturbed habitats near people, mainly near the coast. Black Rat are the most frequent predator of small forest birds, seeds, invertebrates, and perhaps lizards in New Zealand forests, and are key ecosystem changers. Controlling their abundance on usefully large areas of the New Zealand mainland is a crucial current challenge for conservation managers.

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Deer Mouse

Peromyscus maniculatus is a rodent native to North America. It is most commonly called the Deer Mouse, although that name is common to most species of Peromyscus and is fairly widespread across the continent, with the major exception being the southeast United States and the far north.

Like other Peromyscus species, it is a carrier of emerging diseases such as hantaviruses and lyme disease. It is closely related to Peromyscus leucopus, the White-footed Mouse.

Deer mice are nocturnal creatures who spend the day time in areas such as trees or burrows where they have nests made of plant material. The individual litters of deer mice are contained by the female mother in an individual home range. The deer mice do not mingle in groups with their litters. During the development stages, the mice within one litter interact much more than mice of two different litters. Although deer mice live in individual home ranges, these ranges do tend to overlap. When overlapping occurs, it is more likely to be with opposite sexes rather than with the same sex. Deer mice that live within overlapping home ranges tend to recongnize one another and interact a lot.

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House Mouse

The House Mouse (Mus musculus) is one of the most numerous species of the genus Mus commonly termed a mouse. It is a small mammal and a rodent.

Laboratory mice belong to strains of House Mice and are some of the most important model organisms in biology and medicine; they are by far the most commonly used genetically altered laboratory mammal.

House mice have an adult body length (nose to base of tail) of 7.5–10 cm (3.0–3.9 in) and a tail length of 5–10 cm (2.0–3.9 in); the weight is typically 10–25 g (0.35–0.88 oz). They vary from white to grey, light brown to black, with short hair and a light belly. The ears and tail have little hair. The hind feet are short compared to Apodemus mice, only 15–19 mm (0.59–0.75 in) long; the normal gait is a run with a stride of about 4.5 cm (1.8 in), though they can jump up to 45 cm (18 in). The droppings are blackish, about 3 mm (0.12 in) long, and have a strong musty smell. The voice is a high-pitched squeak.

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Meadow Vole

The Meadow Vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus), sometimes called the Field Mouse or Meadow Mouse, is a small North American vole found across Canada, Alaska and the northern United States. Its range extends further south along the Atlantic coast. One subspecies, the Florida Salt Marsh Vole (M. p. dukecampbelli), is found in Florida, and is classified as endangered. It is also found in Chihuahua, Mexico.

The Meadow Vole is active year-round, usually at night. It also digs underground burrows where it stores food for the winter and females give birth to their young. Although these animals tend to live close together, they are aggressive towards one other. This is particularly evident in males during the breeding season. It can cause damage to fruit trees, garden plants and commercial grain crops.

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Spiders

American House Spider

The common house spider, sometimes called the American house spider, is an extremely common spider in North America and South America, as its name suggests. They build their tangled web in secluded locations, which can also house eggs contained in one or more spherical sacs. Their behavior on webs is quiet and efficient.

They are generally dull in appearance, with patterns consisting of brown shades for coloration, often giving a vague spotted appearance that is particularly noticeable on the legs. Their average body size is a quarter-inch (9 mm) long, but they can be an inch (2.5 cm) or more across with legs outspread. These traits combined allow the spiders to blend into the background and escape notice.

Like some other species of the family Theridiidae, P. tepidariorum shares a body shape and size that makes it similar to widow spiders, which have venom that is classified as potentially dangerous.

A male and female often share the same web for longer periods, and several females often build their webs in close proximity. However, several females will fight each other on an encounter. This species can live for more after a year after reaching maturity. Each egg sac contains from 100 to more than 400 eggs, with a single female producing up to 17 egg sacs. The hatchlings remain in the mother’s web for several days.

The assassin spider Mimetus puritanus (Mimetidae), and various jumping spiders such as Phidippus variegatus or Metacyrba undata prey on this species. The assassin bug Stenolemus lanipes (Emesinae) feeds apparently exclusively on spiderlings of this species.

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Black Widow

Latrodectus hesperus, the Western black widow spider or Western widow, is a highly venomous spider species found in western regions of the United States of America. The female’s body is 14–16 millimeters in length and is black, often with an hourglass shaped red mark on the lower abdomen. The male of the species is around half this size and generally a tan color with lighter striping on the abdomen. The population was previously described as a subspecies of Latrodectus mactans and it is closely related to the northern species Latrodectus variolus. The species, as with others of the genus, build irregular webs, the strands of which are very strong down below.

The female’s consumption of the male after courtship, a cannabilistic and suicidal behaviour observed in Latrodectus hasseltii (Australia’s redback), is rare in this species. Male Western widows may breed several times during its relatively shorter lifespan.

The ultimate strength and other physical properties of Latrodectus hesperus silk were found to be similar to the properties of silk from orb weaving spiders that had been tested in other studies. The ultimate strength for the three kinds of silk measured in the Blackledge study was about 1000 Mpa. The ultimate strength reported in a previous study for Nephila edulis was 1290 Mpa +/- 160 s.d.

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Brown Recluse Spider

The brown recluse spider or violin spider, Loxosceles reclusa, is a well-known member of the family Sicariidae (formerly placed in a family “Loxoscelidae”).

It is usually between 6–20 mm (¼ in and ¼ in), but may grow larger. It is brown and sometimes an almost deep yellow color and usually has markings on the dorsal side of its cephalothorax, with a black line coming from it that looks like a violin with the neck of the violin pointing to the rear of the spider, resulting in the nicknames fiddleback spider, brown fiddler or violin spider.

Since the violin pattern is not diagnostic, and other spiders may have similar marking (i.e. cellar spiders and pirate spiders), for purposes of identification it is far more important to examine the eyes. Differing from most spiders, which have eight eyes, recluse spiders have six eyes arranged in pairs (dyads) with one median pair and two lateral pairs. Only a few other spiders have 3 pairs of eyes arranged this way (e.g., scytodids), and recluses can be distinguished from these as recluse abdomens have no coloration pattern nor do their legs, which also lack spines.

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Daddy Long Legs

The Pholcidae are a spider family in the suborder Araneomorphae.

Some species, especially Pholcus phalangioides, are commonly called granddaddy long-legs spider, daddy long-legs spider, daddy long-legger, cellar spider, vibrating spider, or house spider. Confusion often arises because the name “daddy long-legs” is also applied to two distantly related arthropod groups: the harvestmen (which are arachnids but not spiders), and crane flies (which are insects).

Pholcids are fragile spiders, the body being 2–10 mm in length with legs which may be up to 50 mm long. Pholcus and Smeringopus have cylindrical abdomens and the eyes are arranged in two lateral groups of three and two smaller median contiguous eyes. Eight and six eyes both occur in this family. Spermophora has a small globose abdomen and its eyes are arranged in two groups of three and no median eyes. Pholcids are gray to brown with banding or chevron markings. The shape of the Pholcus and Smeringopus’s body resembles that of a peanut shell.

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Yellow Sac Spider

Cheiracanthium is a genus of spiders in the Miturgidae family. Certain species are commonly called “yellow sac spider”. They are usually pale in colour, and have an abdomen that can range from yellow to beige. Both sexes range in size from 5 to 10 mm.

The venom is necrotic and can cause a small lesion in humans. Because of the necrotic nature of the wound, MRSA infection is a danger and victims are advised to seek medical treatment. Painful bites may be incurred from such species as C. punctorium in Europe, C. mildei in Europe and North America, C. inclusum in the Americas, C. lawrencei in South Africa and C. japonicum in Japan.

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Stinging/Biting Pests

Africanized Honey Bee

Africanized honey bees (AHB), known colloquially as “killer bees” or Africanized bees, are hybrids of the African honey bee, Apis mellifera scutellata (not A. m. adansonii see Collet et al., 2006), with various European honey bees such as the Italian bee A. m. ligustica and A. m. iberiensis. These bees are relatively aggressive compared to the European subspecies. Small swarms of AHBs are capable of taking over European honey bee hives by invading the hive and establishing their own queen after killing the European queen.

In areas of suitable temperate climate, the survival traits of africanized queens and colonies outperform western honey bee colonies. This competitive edge leads to the dominance of African traits. In Brazil, the africanized hybrids are known as Assassin Bees, for their habit of taking over an existing hive of European bees; this habit is most evident when the hive being attacked has a weakened queen, so not all hives are equally vulnerable, and overall rates of hive usurpation can reach 20%.

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Bumble Bee

A bumblebee (or bumble bee) is any member of the bee genus Bombus, in the family Apidae. There are over 250 known species, existing primarily in the Northern Hemisphere.

Bumblebees are social insects that are characterized by black and yellow body hairs, often in bands. However, some species have orange or red on their bodies, or may be entirely black. Another obvious (but not unique) characteristic is the soft nature of the hair (long, branched setae), called pile, that covers their entire body, making them appear and feel fuzzy. They are best distinguished from similarly large, fuzzy bees by the form of the female hind leg, which is modified to form a corbicula; a shiny concave surface that is bare, but surrounded by a fringe of hairs used to transport pollen (in similar bees, the hind leg is completely hairy, and pollen grains are wedged into the hairs for transport).

Like their relatives the honey bees, bumblebees feed on nectar and gather pollen to feed their young.

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Honey Bee

Honey bees (or honeybees) are a subset of bees, primarily distinguished by the production and storage of honey and the construction of perennial, colonial nests out of wax. Honey bees are the only extant members of the tribe Apini, all in the genus Apis. Currently, there are only seven recognized species of honey bee with a total of 44 subspecies (Engel, 1999) though historically, anywhere from six to eleven species have been recognized. Honey bees represent only a small fraction of the approximately 20,000 known species of bees. Some other types of related bees produce and store honey, but only members of the genus Apis are true honey bees.

Honey bees as a group appear to have their center of origin in South and Southeast Asia (including the Philippines), as all but one of the extant species are native to that region, notably the most plesiomorphic living species (Apis florea and A. andreniformis). The first Apis bees appear in the fossil record at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary, in European deposits. The origin of these prehistoric honey bees does not necessarily indicate that Europe is where the genus originated, only that it occurred there at that time. There are few known fossil deposits in the suspected region of honey bee origin, and fewer still have been thoroughly studied. There is only one fossil species documented from the New World, Apis nearctica, known from a single 14-million-year old specimen from Nevada.

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Scorpion

Scorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. There are about 2,000 species of scorpions, found widely distributed south of about 49° N, except New Zealand and Antarctica. The northernmost part of the world where scorpions live in the wild is Sheerness on the Isle of Sheppey in the UK, where a small colony of Euscorpius flavicaudis has been resident since the 1860s. The word scorpion derives from Greek – skorpios.

Scorpions have quite variable lifespans and the actual lifespan of most species is not known. The age range appears to be approximately 4–25 years (25 years being the maximum reported life span in the species Hadrurus arizonensis). Lifespan of Hadogenes species in the wild is estimated at 25–30 years.

Scorpions prefer to live in areas where the temperatures range from 20 °C to 37 °C (68 °F to 99 °F), but may survive from freezing temperatures to the desert heat.[8][9] Scorpions of the genus Scorpiops living in high Asian mountains, bothriurid scorpions from Patagonia and small Euscorpius scorpions from middle Europe can all survive winter temperatures of about -25 °C. In Repetek (Turkmenistan) there live seven species of scorpions (of which Pectinibuthus birulai is endemic) in temperatures which vary from 49,9 °C to -31 °C.

They are nocturnal and fossorial, finding shelter during the day in the relative cool of underground holes or undersides of rocks and coming out at night to hunt and feed. Scorpions exhibit photophobic behavior, primarily to evade detection by their predators such as birds, centipedes, lizards, mice, possums, and rats.

Scorpions are opportunistic predators of small arthropods and insects. They use their chelae (pincers) to catch the prey initially. Depending on the toxicity of their venom and size of their claws, they will then either crush the prey or inject it with neurotoxic venom. This will kill or paralyze the prey so the scorpion can eat it. Scorpions have a relatively unique style of eating using chelicerae, small claw-like structures that protrude from the mouth that are unique to the Chelicerata among arthropods. The chelicerae, which are very sharp, are used to pull small amounts of food off the prey item for digestion. Scorpions can only digest food in a liquid form; any solid matter (fur, exoskeleton, etc) is disposed of by the scorpion.

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Yellow Jacket

Yellow jacket or yellow-jacket is the common name in North America for predatory wasps of the genera Vespula and Dolichovespula. Members of these genera are known simply as “wasps” in other English-speaking countries. Most of these are black-and-yellow; some are black-and-white (such as the bald-faced hornet, Dolichovespula maculata), while others may have the abdomen background color red instead of black. They can be identified by their distinctive markings, small size (similar to a honey bee), their occurrence only in colonies, and a characteristic, rapid, side to side flight pattern prior to landing. All females are capable of stinging which can cause pain to the person that has been stung. Yellowjackets are important predators of pest insects.

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Termites

Arid Land Subterranean

Rhinotermitidae is a family of termites (Isoptera). They feed on wood and can cause extensive damage to buildings or other wooden structures. About 345 species are recognized, among these are severe pests like Coptotermes formosanus and Reticulitermes flavipes.

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Dampwood Termite

Dampwood termites (Termopsidae) constitute a small and rather primitive family of termites (Isoptera). They contain a mere 4-5 extant genera with 13-20 living species, but can be divided into several subfamilies. They may be a nuisance but compared to e.g. the drywood termites (Kalotermitidae) usually do not cause extensive damage to buildings or other man-made structures. As their name implies, they like to eat wood that is not dried out, perhaps even rotting, and consequently of little use to humans.

The termites as a group were traditionally placed in the Exopterygota, but such an indiscriminate treatment makes that group a paraphyletic grade of basal neopterans. Thus, the termites and their closest relatives like the cockroaches relatives are nowadays separated in a clade called Dictyoptera. The dampwood termites are sometimes included with the harvester termites (Hodotermitidae) but this is not followed by the majority of authors and indeed the two families seem to represent distinct lineages which both merely retain some similar plesiomorphies and are generally among the more basal Isoptera.

Unsurprisingly, two of the subfamilies usually placed in the Termopsidae are monotypic. The other one contains 3 living genera. However, Stolotermes is somewhat aberrant and its placement in the Termopsidae is in need of scrutiny; current understanding suggests that it might be better considered considerably closer to the most advanced termites such as Rhinotermitidae and Termitidae; perhaps it would better be placed with these, perhaps it even deserves to be treated as a family on its own like Serritermes.

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Drywood Termite

The termites are a group of eusocial insects usually classified at the taxonomic rank of order Isoptera (but see also taxonomy below). Along with ants and some bees and wasps which are all placed in the separate order Hymenoptera, termites divide labour among gender lines, produce overlapping generations and take care of young collectively. Termites mostly feed on dead plant material, generally in the form of wood, leaf litter, soil, or animal dung, and about 10% of the estimated 4,000 species (about 2,600 taxonomically known) are economically significant as pests that can cause serious structural damage to buildings, crops or plantation forests. Termites are major detritivores, particularly in the subtropical and tropical regions, and their recycling of wood and other plant matter is of considerable ecological importance.

As eusocial insects, termites live in colonies that, at maturity, number from several hundred to several million individuals. Colonies use a decentralised, self-organised systems of activity guided by swarm intelligence to exploit food sources and environments that could not be available to any single insect acting alone. A typical colony contains nymphs (semi-mature young), workers, soldiers, and reproductive individuals of both genders, sometimes containing several egg-laying queens.

Termites are sometimes called “white ants”, though they are not closely related to true ants.

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Subterranean

Subterranean termites live in underground colonies or in moist secluded areas aboveground that can contain up to 2 million members. They build distinctive “mud tubes” to gain access to food sources and to protect themselves from open air. Termite colonies are organized into castes depending on tasks — workers, soldiers and reproductives. The characteristics of a subterranean termite are dependent on the termite’s role in the colony. Cream-colored Worker subterranean termites are 1/8 to 3/8′s of an inch in length. Soldier subterranean termites are of a similar body length, but are distinguished by their powerful mandibles. Solider termites have cream-colored bodies and brown heads. Reproductive subterranean termites are approximately one inch long.

Subterranean termites live underground and build tunnels, referred to as mud tubes, to reach food sources. Like other termite species, they feed on products containing cellulose. Subterranean termites swarm in the spring — groups of reproductive termites go off to start new colonies.

Subterranean termites need contact with the soil to survive and live underground. They can build tunnels through cracks in concrete.

Subterranean termites are by far the most destructive species. They can collapse a building entirely, meaning possible financial ruin for a homeowner. The hard, saw-toothed jaws of termites work like shears and are able to bite off extremely small fragments of wood, one piece at a time.

Bed Bugs

Cimicidae (or sometimes bedbugs) are small parasitic insects. The most common type is Cimex lectularius. The term usually refers to species that prefer to feed on human blood. All insects in this family live by feeding exclusively on the blood of warm-blooded animals. A number of health effects may occur due to bed bugs, including skin rashes, psychological effects, and allergic symptoms. Diagnosis involves both finding bed bugs and the occurrence of compatible symptoms. Treatment is otherwise symptomatic.

In the developed world, bed bugs were largely eradicated as pests in the early 1940s, but have increased in prevalence since about 1995. Because infestation of human habitats has been on the increase, bed bug bites and related conditions have been on the rise as well. The exact causes of this resurgence remain unclear; it is variously ascribed to greater foreign travel, more frequent exchange of second-hand furnishings among homes, a greater focus on control of other pests resulting in neglect of bed bug countermeasures, and increasing resistance to pesticides.

Bed bugs have been known as human parasites for thousands of years. The name “bed bug” is derived from the insect’s preferred habitat of houses and especially beds or other areas where people sleep. Bed bugs, though not strictly nocturnal, are mainly active at night and are capable of feeding unnoticed on their hosts. They have however been known by a variety of names, including wall louse, mahogany flat, crimson rambler, heavy dragoon, chinche and redcoat.