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Pest Library |
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Ants |
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Carpenter Ants are ubiquitous pests found throughout N
America. Camponotus pennsylvanicus, the black carpenter
ant, is the most common carpenter ant species found east of the
Rocky Mountains. Although worker ants are often seen searching
for food and water, their importance as pests is based upon
their invasion of structural wood for nesting sites. Carpenter
ants do not consume wood but excavate galleries in wooden
timbers to create nests. |
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The little black ant, as its name implies,
is very small in size and black in color. The adults may have slight
brown tones in their coloration. Although distributed throughout the
United States, it is primarily found in the eastern half of the country,
and in Southern California and the San Francisco Bay area. |
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Pavement ants are most common in urban areas
of the Atlantic states, as well as in large midwestern cities such as
Cincinnati, Cleveland and Street. Louis. You may also find pavement ants in
the San Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys, Calif. In the Washington, D.C.
area, pavement ants are probably the predominant house*infesting ant. |
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Distribution of the red imported fire ant is
primarily limited to the tier of states ranging from central Texas up
the E Coast into N Carolina. They are often introduced into new
locales, including northern states, through potted or balled shrubs and
trees imported from infested areas. This ant species not only stings
humans, but also pets, livestock and wildlife. In addition, they can
damage crops by feeding on and destroying seedlings. |
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Bees, Hornets & Wasps |
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The baldfaced “hornet” is
taxonomically a black*and*white yellow jacket. Vespid wasps, members of
the family Vespidae, are capable of stinging when threatened.
Representatives of Dolichovespula spp. can be found throughout
N America, inhabiting self*constructed paper nests usually attached
to trees, shrubs or structures. |
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There are two genera of carpenter bees in
the United States, the small carpenter bees, Ceratina spp., and
the large carpenter bees, Xylocopa spp. The latter genus is
represented by nine species which infest a wide array of plant materials
including decayed wood, hollow or pithy stem plants, and sound
structural wood. it is the damage to structural wood that earns them
their name and concerns the property owner |
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Digger bees, also known as flower*loving
bees, are distributed throughout most of N America. These robust
bees usually go unnoticed as they feed, collecting nectar and pollen
from a wide variety of flowers in meadows and gardens. When they begin
to build their numerous solitary nests in the same area, however, they
become a nuisance to property owners. |
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Polistes
wasps are most often referred to as paper wasps. However, Walter
Ebeling Ph.D., author of Urban Entomology, suggests that they be called
“umbrella wasps” for two reasons: the distinctive shape of the nest;
and the fact that other wasps, such as yellowjackets and hornets, also
construct paper nests, which invites confusion during identification. |
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Cockroaches |
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The American cockroach is frequently found
in commercial and residential accounts. This cockroach is the
predominant species inhabiting sewers, and is often found infesting
ships as well. Occasionally, this cockroach will injure indoor plants
by feeding on stems and leaves. |
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The Asian cockroach is the most recent
cockroach species introduced circa 1980*into the United States,
increasing the total number of species to 66. The Asian species is
found throughout central Florida and has the potential to spread to
other temperate regions. |
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The brown
cockroach is primarily tropical in distribution. In the United
States, this species is found mostly in the S, from Texas to
Florida, but some sightings have been made in northern states
such as Pennsylvania and Ohio.
The brown cockroach is often mistaken for the American
cockroach. Both species are similar in appearance and habits,
but upon close examination of the cerci a pair of dorsal
appendages at the posterior end of the abdomen), their
difference is evident. The adult brown cockroach has short,
blunt cerci, whereas the American cockroach cerci are long and
thin. As detailed in the drawing, the last segment of a brown
cockroach cercus is short and fat, compared to that of the
American cockroach, which is a least two times longer than it is
wide. |
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The German cockroach, which has worldwide
distribution, is by far the most important and the most common
cockroach. In addition to being a nuisance, it is associated with
outbreaks of illness, allergic reactions in many people, and
transmission of a variety of pathogenic organisms including at least one
parasitic protozoan. |
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Although more common in the southeastern
states, the Surinam cockroach is often transported to other areas of the
United States by the tropical plant industry. These occasional pests
prefer vegetative habitats such as interiorscapes of malls, homes and
hotels. In Florida and other semi*tropical states, Surinams can survive
outdoors. They frequently hide beneath stones and mulch during the day
and forage on a variety of plants at night. |
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Spiders |
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Over fifty species representing the family
Dysderidae are found in Europe; however, only one species Dysdera
crocata occurs in N America. This species, which lacks a common
name, is cosmopolitan in distribution in the United States. Many
professionals either encounter these spiders trapped on glueboards or
when submitted by clients. Occasionally, encounters with live specimens
result in human envenomizations, much like a bee sting |
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Spiders are a large
class of arthropods widely distributed throughout the world.
Representatives of this group live in habitats which cover
environmental extremes. Some species, "traveling" on wind
currents, have been collected as high as 5,000 feet in the air.
Wind*current travel is a major method of dispersal for some
species.
Spiders are
predacious, feeding on a wide variety of animals * mostly other
arthropods. However, some species feed on larger animals. The
most common problem with spiders is the general fear people have
of them, and the "bad press" of some species such as black
widows and brown recluses. |
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The 200 species
of Clubionids found in N America are commonly referred to as
the two*clawed hunting spiders. Members of the genus
Cheiracanthium are called sac spiders. Cheiracanthium
mildei L. Koch*and C. inclusum Hentz*are the two
spiders referred to as yellow sac spiders, or yellow or tan
house spiders, depending on locale.
They have been
associated with numerous cases of human arachnidism spider
bites). These spiders are suspected of being responsible for
most indoor arachnidism; in the United States, however, neither
severe trauma nor deaths have been reported. Their venom is
cytotoxic, mainly affecting tissues at the site of the bite.
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Termites |
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The eastern subterranean termite,
Reticulitermes flavipes, is the most common and widely distributed
termite in N America. This wood*destroying insect is well known for
its damage to urban dwellings and structures. Pest status is given to
termites when a colony is foraging on food sources with economic value.
However, this insect is beneficial when it infests dead wood in forests,
providing nutrients for new vegetative growth. |
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The southern drywood termite,
Incorporatedisitermes snyderi, is commonly found in the southeastern United
States, including the states of S Carolina, Georgia and Florida, and
west to southeastern Texas. Like the name implies, these
non*subterranean termites infest wood with relative low moisture content
and do not need to maintain contact with the soil. Drywood termites may
infest structural timbers and framework, millwork e.g., door and window
framing), furniture, crates and other wood products. |
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The Western subterranean termite,
Reticulitermes Hesperus, as its name implies, is found principally
in the western part of N America, from British Columbia south to
western Mexico and east to Idaho and New Mexico. |
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Ticks |
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The American dog tick attacks man and
domestic animals. It is an important vector of several disease
organisms. This hard tick Ixodidae family*is usually found outside
and transported into structures on dogs. Often called a “wood tick,”
this tick should not be confused with the brown dog tick. Their habits
differ – only the brown dog tick can lay eggs indoors. |
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The lone star tick, Amblyomma americanum,
is generally southern in distribution. Its range extends from central
Texas north through Oklahoma and Missouri, and along the E Coast as
far north as New York. Lone star ticks can feed on humans during any of
its three developmental stages: larva, nymph and adult. This species is
a vector of tularemia and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and is suspected
of being involved in the transmission of Q fever and Lyme’s disease. It
is also one of four ticks most often associated with tick paralysis, a
condition caused by a neurotoxin injected during feeding that leads to
ascending paralysis, that is, from the legs upward. If the tick is not
removed, this paralysis can result in death |
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