Spider Facts

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• Identify - Has eight legs, two body segments and no antennae.

• Two types - Spiders are either webspinners or funnel spiders. Funnel spiders like the wolf spider stay close to the ground and are active hunters. Web spinning spiders are opportunistic and wait for prey to come. Often they build their webs near a light source where other bugs may be drawn to.

• Bites - though some spiders are capable of biting they often do this as a means of self defense. People most often get bitten by spiders in their sleep when they roll over on it.

• Beneficial - spiders eat other bugs and some people consider them a benefit. If you have spiders it’s an indication that you have other bugs for them to eat

Ant Facts

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• Identify - Ants are insects and have six legs, three body segments and elbowed antennae.

• Common Types - The most common types that people have in their home are pavement ants, odorous house ants and carpenter ants.

• Seasons - Ants are most active in the spring and summer months. If you have ants inside when the weather is cold then the ants are nesting inside. 

• Foragers - Ants will go long distances to gather food. In the spring when ants emerge from their winter dormancy they will gather any kind of food, but as the weather gets warmer they become more picky as to what they want.

Roach Facts:

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• Identify - All roaches have antennae that are longer than their body. Some are almond shaped and others are more round.

• Types - There are several species of roaches that infest homes in the United States. The most common are German, American and Oriental cockroaches.

• Infestations - Roach infestations commonly occur for a reason. German roaches are almost always linked to sanitation issues. Oriental roaches usually are associated with neighborhoods with high water tables. American roaches can indicate plumbing issues like a broken sewer line.

• Disease - Roaches can cause health issues including asthma and food poisoning. When a German roach infestation happens in a home the molts (shed skin) from the roaches can enter the air and cause blockage in people's lungs. Roaches that come in contact with food can transmit pathogens which can cause diarrhea and an upset stomach. 

Wasps Facts

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• Identify - Wasps are in the same family as ants and have six legs, three body segments, a pinched waste, and wings.

• Types - There are many different types of wasps including some that are not known to sting such as mud daubers. 

• Sting - Wasps have a different type of venom than bees and hornets. Their sting is much more painful. 

• Nests - Wasps nest in areas protected from the rain making a nest that is like an umbrella. Some places they make nests can cause problems such as under the hood of a grill or inside a table umbrella.

Subterranean termites

• Identify - Termites are about the size of ants but live inside dirt tubes they create while eating wood. They are white in color and very soft. 

• Types - In Pennsylvania we mostly have subterranean termites but as of the early 2000’s a species known as formosan termites have been found here. They are a bit smaller than subterranean termites but otherwise look exactly the same.

• Damage - Subterranean termites are known to do about four feet of damage a year to a house. The issue is that a home can have up to three different colonies eating the house at the same time.

• Swarm - Termites swarm in the spring, usually the very first warm day. Swarming is where hundreds of these ant sized insects fly to mate with other colonies. Sometimes this can occur inside a house which is a definitive sign of infestation.

Mice

• Identify - An adult mouse is about two and half inches in length with a thin tail that is about the length of their body.

• Types - In Pennsylvania we have two types of mice. The common house mouse and field mouse. A house mouse is gray and a field mouse is brown with a white belly.

• Diet - Mice love grains and seeds. People who enjoy feeding birds should consider that they are also feeding the mice and drawing them closer to home.

• Nest - When mice enter a house they like to find a secluded warm area to make their nest. Sometimes this can include near the water heater, house heater or even in the walls of the oven.