Most Abundant, Resilient Winter Pests in Utah
Fall and Winter months bring some relief from many bothersome bugs – but colder temperatures send some pests searching for food and warmer shelter indoors. The following are brief descriptions of some of the most common resilient winter pests and how Beeline Pest Control helps keep you safe all winter long!
Bed Bugs
For decades, the saying, “Sleep tight, don’t let the bed bugs bite”, was a somewhat meaningless lights-out phrase for kids in the United States. However, within the last few years, bed bugs have reappeared, especially during the winter months where everyone tends to stay indoors and unknowingly transport the small pests from location to location .
Bed bugs are wingless, rust-colored insects about the size of an apple seed, clear (or bright red, if they have just recently fed), and hardly noticeable to the naked eye.
They do not fly or have nests like other insects, however, they do move rapidly and gather together in groups in whichever hiding places they have the ability to discover.
Bed bugs are blood-feeding pests that choose to feed upon the blood of human beings. If they can not find a human host, bed bugs will take advantage of animals like little rodents and family pets.
Bed bugs remain near their host when they exist– so bedrooms, couches, and other sleeping locations are the most common areas to discover them. In bigger invasions, bed bugs can move through an entire home and get into mostly any surface area.
Bed bugs are most active when we sleep. They crawl onto exposed skin, inject a moderate anesthetic and suck up a percentage of blood. The majority of people never feel the real bite, however, will see the telltale welts, bumps and red blotches on the skin the next morning.
Bed bugs feed for about 5 to 10 minutes during the night, while the host sleeps, generally in the predawn hours. After feeding, they crawl to a safe crevice where they’ll stay for a number of days while absorbing the meal
Bed bugs are among the hardest insects to eliminate. A juvenile bed bug can live for months without feeding while a grownup can live over a year without feeding allowing them to live comfortable throughout the winter months. They are resistant to many chemicals and just getting rid of plagued furnishings and bed parts will not treat the circumstance. Bed bug problems during the winter months are not something to be ignored. Call Beeline Pest Control services anytime there is an invasion present.
Cockroaches
A wood-burning stove or fireplace can bring a great deal of warmth and comfort into a home during the long cold season. However, the firewood that is brought in to fuel the fire can also bring with it the nasty cockroach. During the winter months, cockroaches may also take advantage of damaged or missing screens on doors and chimneys to access the home. Once inside, they can easily contaminate unattended food and water sources.
These pests are among the most challenging structural insects to eliminate mostly because of their capacity to hide. During the past several years, scientists have uncovered their ongoing ability to evolve, allowing them to resist most commonly used insecticide sprays and baits.
Of the practically 4,000 cockroach types discovered worldwide, about 4 of them are found to thrive throughout Utah. Part of what makes them so hard to control is their resiliency. They can adapt quickly to their environment – easily transitioning from summer to winter.
Cockroaches are unwanted pests, mainly due to their unclean routines. Many cockroaches survive the winter months by hiding in walls, cracks, crevices, behind cabinets or appliances and reproduce in these warm, locations. At night they find food and water from kitchens or bathrooms, and spread the diseases they carry on their body, as they walk across utensils, plates, cups, counter tops, and so on. Some proteins produced by cockroaches are a significant source of human breathing allergens.
With winter approaching cockroaches may be looking for shelter inside of your warm home, contact Beeline Pest Control to make sure they don’t find it.
Mice and Rats
The return of winter season indicates you’ll be investing more time in your house, yet you are not the only one seeking shelter from the cold. As temperature levels drop, mice and rats head inside to look for food, and they may choose YOUR home as their brand-new residence.
” There isn’t a home in this world that does not have mice,” claim pest control exterminators “Everybody has at least a couple of mice moving in and out, or living there.”
Mice and Rats are a common winter nuisance and only need a space the size of a dime to enter a home. The typical house mouse is usually brown or gray and can grow up to a couple of inches in length. Aside from physically seeing the rodents in your house, the majority of people only realize they have a problem after observing droppings, proof of nesting, munch marks on doors and furnishings, or damage to packaged foods and dry goods.
One of the main reasons mice move into homes during winter months is due to the abundance of food. They love grains, so you’re most likely to see tears, rips and bite marks on bags of rice and cereal. Mice have the tendency to spread food around as they consume, making their invasion very apparent.
Mice and rats also leave dark brown or black droppings along their strolling path, often around food sources and nesting locations. The droppings are a granular shape and can vary from 1/4 of an inch to 3/8 of an inch. You can evaluate the degree of your problem by the quantity of droppings you discover.
The worst hazard mice and rats bring to human beings, is contact with illness and germs through rodent droppings and bites. Direct exposure to droppings can spread major diseases such as hantavirus, salmonella, and leptospirosis. Rodent bites can transfer rat-bite fever or infection.
Their ongoing gnawing can trigger substantial damage to your house. Mice have been found to chew on things like wires, PVC piping, furnishings, bricks, and anything made from wood. Sometimes, rodents have begun home fires from chewing through electrical wires.
For significant invasions, or if rodents just make you squeamish, contact Beeline Pest Control and create an elimination strategy that fulfills your particular requirements.
Fortunately, with help from Beeline Pest Control, you can reclaim your house.
Termites
Unfortunately, most Utah termites are not eliminated by our freezing winter weather. Although they do slow down a bit in the cold months, these damaging pests continue their march of destruction, aided by the heat in the buildings they occupy.
Below Ground and Drywood Termites that have discovered shelter and food within your home’s structure will not be impacted by cold outside temperature levels.
Discovering termites in the winter season inside your house is unsettling. Unfortunately, termite damage can go undetected up until these pests have consumed their way through your walls.
Subtle indications of their existence may consist of small holes in drywall or mud tunnels utilized to travel from the ground to your home.
In the basement, attic, crawl area or anywhere you can see exposed wood, try to find indications of destruction along the grain, including holes or places that appear to have been gnawed.
On the ceiling, beware of any bubbling or little spots of staining that look like water damage. In some cases, you may notice a small, brownish tube hanging from the ceiling. These drop tubes are a sure indication of an active termite colony feasting on your home ‘s support structures.
Although you’re not likely to see lots of them out and about this time of year, it’s useful to know exactly what a termite looks like, given that they can sometimes be confused with flying ants.
Termites have straight antennae, a segmented body with a thick waist, tan or black coloring and matched sets of wings. Flying ants have a narrow waist, bent antennae and longer wings in front than in back.
In states like Utah where termites are relatively active and prevalent, it is vital to contact Beeline Pest Control to maintain a reliable termite prevention and control program.
Trained termite inspectors from Beeline Pest Control can check your house and recognize active or formerly active nests at any time of the year. Contact our termite specialist if you see any indications of a problem.
Find out more at beelinepestcontrol.com or call today (801) 544-9200!
