Seasonal Offers
Winter
Although
most customers see a reduction in pest activity during winter, it does
not mean the problem is gone!
Rodents:
Rodent activity in our homes significantly increases. The comensel
rodents (house mouse, roof rat and Norway rat) are driven to seek warmer
shelter with food and water sources. Our homes provide all of these
needs.
Pests:
Numerous pests we see during the rest of the year "over
winter" to hibernate or pupate in our attics, crawl spaces, wall
voids, under exterior siding, etc. Many of these pests (cluster flies,
ladybugs, boxleder bugs, stink bugs, yellow jackets, etc.) are finding a
safe and warm place in winter so they can start all over again in
spring.
Holiday Activities: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's,
etc.
Our own cultural activities contribute to pest infestations in our homes
during the winter months. The winter clothes we bring out of storage in
the attics, boxes, backs of closets, etc. may bring out clothes moths,
silverfish, roaches, etc. Holiday materials bought at the store or
brought out of storage may have been waiting for a year to be used.
Christmas trees may have bark beetles, aphids, mites, etc. Also, other
decorations you adorn the home with may have infestations. The plants,
you bring in from outside to protect from harsh weather often bring
hitchhikers that are not wanted. The wood for your fireplace may carry
beetles, termites, ants, roaches, centipedes, scorpions, earwigs, etc.
as unwanted guests.
Spring is the time of year we think of renewed life, flowers, rain
showers, and warmer days, this is also the time of year our activity
springs to new beginnings. Almost all pest activity significantly
increases.
Termites:
Although termites are active 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a
year, they are most evident during the spring swarm. This is when the
winged reproductives (Alates) emerge in large numbers to reproduce and
start new colonies. These silent destroyers, cause more damage and
destruction to our homes and property each year than do all of the fires
and storms combined annually.
Pests:
This is the time of year when all of your "over-wintering"
pests emerge from their hiding places to reproduce. Carpenter ants start
swarming (another wood destroying insect). Also, the fire ants, wasps,
pill bugs, millipedes, earwigs, mites, spiders, scorpions, silverfish,
roaches, etc. become more active and populations significantly
increase.
Summer
Pests:
All of the new beginnings from spring have come to full bloom in the
summer for pest activity. The maximum activity puts more pressure on our
homes as the insects are seeking more favorable living conditions for
food, moisture, lower temperatures, harborage, etc. All of these can be
quickly found in our homes.
Stinging Insects:
The predators of the insect world (spiders, centipedes, etc.)
follow their prey into our homes during this increased activity. They
enter through cracks, crevices, damaged areas around our doors, windows,
eaves, weep holes, plumbing penetrations, electrical/utility
connections, etc. They are not seeking us, but interaction between
people and these "stinging" insects is inevitable when we
share the same living space.
Fall
Biting and Stinging Pests:
As cooler weather becomes more routine and many insects species have
reached their annual population zenith, we see significant surges of
activity from fleas, ticks, crickets, ants, spiders, etc. This is the
time of year where numerous instances of yellow jackets and hornets are
sited around homes. Any observed entrance and exit locations should not
be sealed as this will trap them in the wall. They will bore holes
through interior walls to escape and enter your home.
Rodent and Nuisance Pests:
The cool weather initiates rodent activity around the home and announces
the pre-cursor for the over-wintering insects to begin looking for that
winter resting location. The falling leaves and decaying vegetation materials
accumulate around and provide food and harborage for pill bugs,
millipedes, earwigs, etc. These nuisance pests then become invasive and
show up inside your home in significant numbers.
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