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Dear Brasure’s,
The other day I was doing some reorganizing in the garage, and came across some wild looking bugs! About the size of crickets, they look somewhat like grasshoppers, and have long antennae. They don’t really do much except hop around, but they creep me out! What am I dealing with here? How can I get rid of them?
Linda
Georgetown, DE
Thanks for the email, Linda. It sounds like your garage has been invaded by camel crickets, alternately called camelback crickets, hump-backed crickets, or spider crickets. They range in color from light to dark brown, and are easily identified by their humped backs, long antennae, and long, thin legs. Anywhere from ½ to 1 ½ inches long, camel crickets are most often found in crawlspaces, basements, and garages.
Camel cricket infestations often go unnoticed, because adults have no wings and therefore do not chirp like their relatives, field and house crickets. On the plus side, they cannot bite or sting; the only danger they pose is to fabrics, which they sometimes eat when their preferred food (decaying organic matter like leaf debris) becomes scarce.
It’s no accident that they tend to inhabit the areas mentioned above. Camel crickets prefer cool, damp areas. For this reason, their presence in a crawlspace isn’t a good sign; it can be indicative of moisture and/or mold problems.
What can you do about them? While an insecticide application can be effective (our Premium Protection Plan covers crickets), the best long-term control method is moisture elimination. A wet/damp crawlspace can be dried out with the addition of a dehumidifier and/or sump pump, while any number of things could cause a moisture problem in the garage, such as a leaky refrigerator. Remove the moisture, and the problem might take care of itself.
For more information, don’t hesitate to call us at (302) 436-8140.
One side of my house is covered with what look like spiders of some kind. They have small brown bodies and long, thin gray/black legs. What are they?
You are describing harvestmen, commonly called “daddy longlegs.” They’re not spiders, though they are arachnids and have eight legs. Harvestmen are mostly nocturnal.
What are some differences between spiders and harvestmen?
Harvestmen have no silk glands, and therefore cannot spin webs. They also lack venom glands, and pose no threat whatsoever to humans.
Why are they on the side of my house? What draws them?
Harvestmen prefer moist environments, and will sometimes congregate on the side of a structure if food sources and water are nearby. They feed on small insects and plant matter. Look for ants, aphids, caterpillars, mites, small slugs, etc.
If I leave them alone, will they just eat each other?
Probably not. Sometimes, harvestmen will eat dead harvestmen, but they often form clusters near a food source, and tolerate one another, though they are not “social” creatures in the sense that ants and bees are.
Should I be worried about a harvestman infestation?
Not necessarily; as we mentioned, harvestmen have no venom glands, and pose no threat to humans. Some view them as being beneficial, as they eat other pests, but in large numbers they can become a nuisance.
How can I get rid of them?
Getting rid of harvestmen might be as easy as sweeping them away with a broom, or using a vacuum cleaner. They are also very susceptible to insecticides, more so than their spider relatives. For more information, call us at (302) 436-8140.
DDT stands for Dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane.
In 1939, Dr. Paul Muller discovered that DDT killed a number of insects (including mosquitoes), and patented it in the U.S. in 1943.
10% DDT dust was used by the U.S. Army in 1943 to kill lice.
Dr. Paul Muller was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1948 “for his discovery of the high efficiency of DDT as a contact poison against several arthropods.”
Bed bugs were almost entirely eliminated in the 1940s and 1950s due to the use of DDT.
By 1967, malaria had been eradicated from most developed nations through the use of DDT. 
People began to reconsider the benefits of DDT after Rachel Carson published Silent Spring in 1962. However, the book was essentially a work of selective reporting which misrepresented the results of experiments that involved exposing quail and pheasants to the pesticide. Among other things, Carson claimed that DDT threatened wild bird populations, and could cause cancer in humans.
During the years that DDT was in use, bald eagle populations increased. Opponents of the pesticide’s use erroneously claimed the opposite.
When Sri Lanka banned DDT use in the mid-1960s, the number of malaria cases rose from twenty-nine in 1964 to more than half a million five years later.
In 1971-72, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) held hearings on DDT. Concluded Judge Edward Sweeney, “DDT is not a carcinogenic hazard to man…DDT is not a mutagenic or teratogenic hazard to man…The use of DDT under the regulations involved here do not have a deleterious effect on freshwater fish, estuarine organisms, wild birds or other wildlife.”
In spite of Judge Sweeney’s ruling, the EPA banned the use of DDT in the U.S. in 1972.
Many people believe that DDT was banned because it causes cancer, but this has never actually been proven. In fact, numerous experiments have found that human subjects exposed to heavy doses of DDT (in one case, on a daily basis for two years) suffer no ill effects.
DDT is still used in the Third World (particularly in Africa) to combat malaria.
Now that incidences of bed bug infestations are on the rise, some scientists argue that the problem, which is growing worse every year, is a result of our departure from DDT use more than three decades ago.
Dear Brasure’s,
I have been finding large, fuzzy, red ants in my yard. They’re almost an inch long! What kind of ants are these? Should I be concerned?
Jim
Ocean View
Thank you for the email, Jim. It sounds like you’ve been running across what are commonly called “red velvet ants.” Their name is a bit deceptive, because they are not truly ants at all, but rather wingless female wasps of the Mutillidae family.
Red velvet ants are about 3/4 inch long, covered with dense red/orange hair, and are solitary (not social) wasps. Because they do not share a common nest, they can be more difficult to control than other species. Adults feed on nectar, and tend to be most active during the cooler hours of the day. Mutillidae are most common in regions with sandy soil, but are nonetheless a fairly uncommon sight.
The males of this family are not wingless, though they look similar. This difference between the sexes of a species is known as sexual dimorphism. Another difference worth noting is that males cannot sting, but females pack an extremely painful sting; so painful, in fact, that in some parts of the U.S. red velvet ants are called “cow killers,” though that’s a bit of an exaggeration.
It’s not surprising that you have been encountering them at this time of year. Red velvet ants are generally active between July and September. 2010 has been a dry year, and many lawns are dry and thin, exposing the sandy soil underneath.
Aside from their sting, red velvet ants pose no threat to humans or our homes. They do not infest structures (because they are solitary), and do not destroy wood. They are difficult to control with pesticides, but can be controlled somewhat by planting thick grass.
The large wasps build what look like oversized ant hills in mid-summer, sometimes taking over lawns, and both annoy and concern homeowners. What are they? Do they sting? How can one be rid of them?
What are they?
They are cicada killer wasps. On Delmarva, you might encounter, specifically, Eastern Cicada Killers, sometimes called “sand hornets,” though they are not truly hornets. They are 2/3 to 2 inches long, and look somewhat like yellowjackets or hornets. Cicada killers hunt cicadas and use them as food for their young. Adults feed on flower nectar and plant sap.
Do they sting?
Females can sting, but males cannot. Males are extremely territorial, and frighten people at times, but pose no danger. Females generally use their stingers to paralyze cicadas, but will sting a human if stepped on or grabbed.
Why do they build those hills?
Cicada killers burrow in sandy soil with sparse vegetation; an end-of-July dry lawn on sandy Delmarva is ideal. They are solitary wasps (as opposed to social wasps); individuals dig their own burrows and rarely share, so that a lawn with thin grass might suddenly be home to a hundred hills of sand, each with a finger-sized hole at its peak.
How can I get rid of them?
This problem, which is more of a nuisance than a threat, usually takes care of itself. The cicada killers will disappear in 2-3 weeks. However, insecticides like Ficam, Sevin, and many others can be used to control this pest. For more information, call us at (302) 436-8140.
What are silverfish?
Silverfish (or Lepisma saccharina) are silvery-colored insects, usually an inch long or less, which move with a fish-like motion and occasionally infest structures. They should not be confused with centipedes, which look somewhat similar.
I’ve heard of a similar insect called a “fishmoth.”
They are one and the same; just as the insect is nicknamed “silverfish,” it is also called a fishmoth, carpet shark, or paramite, depending on locality. “Silverfish” is by far the most common name, and the most descriptive.
Where should I expect to find them in my home?
Hopefully you won’t find them anywhere, but silverfish usually infest attics, and might be found in rooms upstairs (assuming the home has more than one story), particularly bathrooms, which serve as a water source. The average attic provides plenty of food sources. However, silverfish can also be found in garages, closets, and similar storage spaces.
What do silverfish eat?
Anything that contains polysaccharides, such as starches and dextrin. Carpet, paper, book bindings, glue, photos, and tapestries are excellent food sources for silverfish, which is why they are so often found in attics. Surprisingly, a silverfish can live for a year or so without eating!
What time of year are silverfish infestations most common?
A silverfish infestation can occur at any time of the year, but they are especially common during the spring and summer on Delmarva, as silverfish prefer a relative humidity of 75% to 95%.
Do silverfish transmit disease?
No, but they can contaminate food.
What measures can I take to prevent an infestation, or to treat an existing one?
Because silverfish prefer moist areas, a dehumidifier can be helpful in drying out areas of the home affected by high humidity, such as the attic.
What does a Brasure’s silverfish treatment involve?
We use a combination bait/insecticide treatment of the attic and adjacent rooms, which has proven to be highly effective. Silverfish are one of the pests covered by our Premium Protection Plan. For more information, call (302) 436-8140.
Which name is correct: Preying Mantis or Praying Mantis?
Praying Mantis, actually. This nickname is derived from the mantis’s prayer-like stance. Technically, there are many species of mantis, and the praying mantis is only one of these species, but the nickname is commonly used for all species of mantis, particularly in the U.S.
What are some of the common characteristics of mantids?
Most mantids are about three inches long, and range in color from light green to brown. When hunting, the front legs are held up as though the mantid is praying; in reality it is prepared to catch its prey and eat it alive. Female mantids lay a large number of eggs, which survive the winter months in a hard shell; in the spring, mantid nymphs emerge and begin eating everything in sight, including each other.
My father was a practical man, but he warned me never to kill a praying mantis. Was this advice based on superstition?
Perhaps; from time to time, customers will ask us to spare praying mantids if possible, and occasionally this request seems to be based on a religious superstitution. However, on a practical level, mantids feed on other insects, and for this reason are sometimes used as a form of “biological pest control.” They are not considered pests.
I think I’ve been bitten by a praying mantis. Will I be okay?
Yes. Mantids can bite, but are not venomous.
Do mantids feed only on other insects?
No; essentially, a mantis will eat anything it can catch, including small lizards, frogs, and rodents. The mantis lies in wait and lashes out suddenly when the prey is within range. Mantids are also cannibalistic, and will readily feed on one another.
This photo of insects on the underside of a squash plant leaf were sent to Brasure’s Pest Control, Inc., by Scott in Berlin. Note the eggs on the right. What are they?
Appropriately enough, they are called squash bugs (pictured are squash bug nymphs). Squash bugs use their piercing-sucking mouth parts to feed on the sap of plants such as squash, pumpkin, and gourds. They generally begin to appear in late May and early June, and lay bronze-colored eggs in clusters of twelve to twenty, which hatch in about ten days.
Squash bugs are considered pests because their feeding can cause leaves to wilt, and can also result in yield loss. Sometimes, young plants die. Furthermore, squash bugs act as a vector for a bacterial disease known as Yellow Vine Decline, which affects melons and pumpkins.
To control squash bugs in a small garden, do your best to collect the individual bugs and crush the egg masses. If more than a few plants are infested (or in the case of a large garden and/or field of plants), an insecticide application will probably be necessary. Carbaryl, a general use pesticide (meaning it can be purchased by anyone, not just licensed exterminators), is very popular for home gardens—some might know it by the brand name Sevin—and has been proven to be effective in treating squash bug infestations.
Fleas are tiny insects (only 1/16 to 1/8 inch long) which feed on the blood of mammals. They most often infest homes in which pets are present, but will feed on humans, too. There are several different species, including the cat flea, dog flea, human flea, and Northern rat flea, ranging in color from a light reddish-brown to a dark brown, but their behavior is so similar that it is unnecessary to focus on the differences between species for pest control purposes.
Can fleas fly?
You might be surprised to learn that they cannot. Fleas are wingless. However, they can jump up to seven inches vertically, and thirteen inches horizontally, which gives the impression that they are flying.
How long can fleas survive without a meal? Can we solve our infestation by going away on vacation?
Probably not. Adult fleas can survive for several months without a meal, if necessary.
How can I tell if I’ve been bitten by fleas?
Flea bites usually cause pale red, raised itching spots, and often appear in clusters or lines. Bites should be treated with an anti-itch cream.
Are fleas dangerous to humans and/or pets?
They’re more of a nuisance, usually, but can cause a number of problems. Some people are allergic to flea saliva, and develop painful rashes when bitten. As well, like other blood-feeding insects, fleas can act as vectors for diseases.
How can I eliminate the infestation in my home?
Over the years, a number of pesticide manufacturers have developed foggers or “bombs,” which, once set off, kill all of the fleas in the structure. Most are non-residual, meaning that no chemical residue is left behind, and vary in their effectiveness.
Brasure’s Pest Control, Inc. uses Precor 2000 for flea treatments, which combines an insect growth regulator with a residual insecticide for long-lasting control. For more information, call our office at (302) 436-8140.
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