As the seasons change and the weather gets colder, it’s normal to see more insects indoors as they try to find shelter. One of the most common pests in the Kentuckiana region is the stink bug, Halyomorpha halys. Recognizable by its gray-brown color and “shield-shaped” body, it is annoying and also emits a foul odor.
Stink bugs are experts at finding cracks in windows, doors, and walls. If you seek warmth, you may find them in direct sunlight, on the side of a building, or in particularly warm spots throughout your home. However, they can also spend the winter hiding in spaces between walls or ventilation ducts. They will re-emerge in the spring, trying to find a way back to the outside.
Stink bugs are found almost everywhere in the United States, even though they arrived relatively recently. Originally from Japan and China, they actually emerged in the US in the mid to late 90s, and have been on the rise here ever since. There are over fifteen species of stink bugs, the most common in the US being the brown marbled stink bug. In the spring, they lay 20 to 100 large white or yellow to red eggs on the undersides of leaves.
Once hatched, stink bug larvae grow over the summer (40 to 60 days), feeding on produce and plants. They are a pest to farmers, causing tremendous damage to cash crops in some circumstances. They are polyphagous, which means they feed on many crops, including fruit trees, nuts, vegetables, and others.
According to the annual review of entomology, published in 2010, stink bugs caused losses of 37 million to fruit tree growers in the mid-Atlantic region. They can cause stunted growth, irregularities, and even kill small plants and saplings. On fruits, their feeding often creates an odd notch. Given the damaging potential that an infestation represents, these pests should be dealt with as soon as possible. Follow along below for some helpful ideas on how you can prevent these common pests.
- Maintain Your Yard: Keep your yard and the area around your home in good repair. Trim back weeds and maintain undergrowth to avoid creating an ideal habitat for these pests.
- Secure Your Home – Spend some time sealing your home and eliminate potential ways pests and critters can enter. Use high-quality window screens, weatherstripping, and silicone/caulk to secure your home and protect it from outside pests. This can be particularly beneficial and important for drafty older homes.
- Limit access to ripe fruit: Stink bugs are attracted to ripe fruit like bananas, so if you’re trying to reduce the chance of an infestation, it’s a good idea to limit the amount of ripe fruit you have in your kitchen.
- Contact a Pest Control Expert: Killing bed bugs yourself is never a good idea, due to the foul odor they release.
If you are experiencing any type of insect infestation or are practicing a rigorous prevention effort, consulting with a licensed and experienced pest control company is recommended. While stink bugs are not known to cause physical harm to humans, they can certainly pose a very real threat to area plants and crops. A proven pest control strategy can eliminate these pests and many others from your property and keep them away indefinitely.
