Stink Bug Control: Protect Your Home from Stink Bugs
Appearance
What Do Stink Bugs Look Like?
- Size: Stink bugs are easily recognizable due to their oval shape that is reminiscent of a shield. The average length of the insect is 5/8 of an inch, and they are typically as wide as they are long. Adults have two pairs of wings that appear to have the texture of leather closer to the head, while the posterior part of the wings appear membranous.
- Body: Most species have an identifying triangular plate nestled between their forewings known as the scutellum and antennae that are banded with color. The head, pronotum, and wings of stink bugs often feature colorful and noticeable markings, and the body of the insect may look green to brown in color.
- Characteristics: Stink bugs have beaks held between their legs suitable for piercing and sucking. They get their name from the scent glands located on the underside of the thorax and on the surface of the abdomen.
Read more about what stink bugs look like.
View more images of stink bugs.
What Are Stink Bugs?
Stink bugs, although largely harmless, nonetheless come with a major drawback – namely the obnoxious odor that they emit when they sense danger or are crushed. While they do not bite, sting or cause damage to your home, the smell brought by these invaders can be very difficult to eliminate…so vacuum carefully!
Origin
Native to Asia and introduced near Allentown, PA in the mid-nineties, brown marmorated stink bugs are a growing problem throughout Western’s area of operation.
They are especially prevalent as fall turns to winter, and your home offers the warm, cozy environment they seek.
Where Do Stink Bugs Hide?
First they hide within your insulated walls. They then creep inside as the temperature sinks, lingering on walls, in curtains or near sources of light.
Stink Bug Control Program Details
The best form of stink bug reduction is prevention. Western’s Stink Bug Control program consists of two phases that root out these persistent invaders and prevent them from returning.
- Initial Visit: Western’s residential inspectors conduct a thorough inspection of both the interior and exterior of your home, looking for any cracks or gaps where Stink Bugs could enter. All findings are documented on a sketch by the residential inspector. They also inspect plants and shrubs around the outside of your home where Stink Bugs may be feeding.
- Second Visit: Western’s service technicians apply pest control materials around windows, doors, walls and the chimney, where Stink Bugs congregate in order to get rid of them.Our service technicians will clean up bugs that get into the house, removing live and dead bugs.
- Third Visit: (Two- three weeks after the second visit)Our service technicians will re-apply pest control materials to the exterior door frames and window frames, pipe perforations and other potential sites including tree trunks. If bugs are found in clusters, your technician will remove them with a portable vacuum or other mechanical methods before re-application of pest control materials.
Food
What Do Stink Bugs Eat?
Stink bugs feed on a number of different plants and crops. The insects are major agricultural pests that consume:
- Apples
- Pears
- Peaches
- Field corn
- Soybeans
- Tomatoes
- Lima beans
- Green peppers
The stink bug will also feed on a host of ornamental plants and larger trees, such as:
- Maple
- Birch
- Dogwood
Biology
Lifespan
Brown marmorated stink bugs usually only produce a single generation each year, but warmer springs and summers may permit up to three generations of offspring.
Eggs
Adults emerge from overwintering in April or May to mate and lay eggs. Shaped like barrels, the eggs appear white or pale green and are deposited on the underside of the leaves of a host plant.
Nymphs
After hatching, stink bug nymphs go through five instars that cause the developing insects to molt and grow with each one. Each instar takes about a week to complete.
Adults
Adult stink bugs achieve sexual maturity around two weeks after the final molt.
Detection
- Sight: Look for stink bugs around lights, crawling on walls or ceilings, or clinging to draperies or other window treatments.
- Entry: Often found near potential entry points, such as chimneys, cracks in the wall or foundation, torn screens, window frames, and gaps around utility pipes or cables.
- Warmth: Commonly attracted to the sunny exterior walls of homes and other structures.
Signs of Infestation
- Sounds & Smells: Actually seeing the insects or smelling the foul odor they produce when disturbed are the most prevalent signs of a stink bug infestation.
- Attraction: As common home invaders, stink bugs may seem to continuously appear. By releasing an aggregation pheromone which attracts other stink bugs to the area, the brown marmorated stink bug remains a persistent pest.
Do They Cause Damage?
Although stink bugs will hide in your insulated walls when they first begin to overwinter – the process by which pests seek winter shelter from the cold – they do not cause structural damage.
However, stink bugs are incredibly persistent. Once inside, they linger well into spring. Worse yet, they emit a chemical aggregation hormone which alerts nearby stink bugs that they’ve found safe harbor from the cold. That means your small indoor population can quickly increase.
Prevention Tips
To help prevent the insects from continuously invading, caulk and seal cracks around:
- Windows
- Doors
- Siding
- Utility pipes
- Electrical outlets
- Chimneys
Sealing all points of entry that stink bugs can access, as well as replacing any damaged screens on doors and windows is the best way to keep the pests out.
Learn more about Western’s comprehensive Home Pest Control Plans.
Call for service: (877) 250-3857