Pest ID
There are an estimated 10 million different species of insects in the world, but the pests that concern our area aren’t quite that overwhelming. Below you will find some of the most common pests found in Spartanburg, SC.
Ants
Roaches
Termites
Rodents
Wildlife
Crawl Space
Spiders
Ectoparasites
Flying Insects
Ants
- Black Carpenter Ant (Camponotus pennsylvanicus) is the most significant carpenter ant species found in this region. They are both a nuisance and structurally damaging pest. They construct their nests inside of the wood that they hollow out. Unlike termites, they don’t actually consume the wood, but deposit it outside the nest leaving sawdust like piles. They are know to forage up to 100 yards away from their nest looking for food.
- Pavement Ant (Tetramorium caespitum) is another common ant pest in all of North America. These ants are medium sized and often have a red to brown color. As the name suggests, they are commonly found along pavement cracks and rocks, building their nests under these secure areas. These ants also have aggressive feeding habits and will sting if provoked. They often feed in homes and nearby structures where human contact is most likely.
- Little Black Ant (Monomorium minimum) may be the most common ant found inside a home. Because of their small size and vast numbers, many consider this ant the hardest ant to control. They feed on a wide range of food items from sugars to proteins.
- Acrobat Ant (family Crematogaster) is a family of ants found worldwide. These ants often come in contact with humans because of their desire to nest in places off the ground. They commonly build colonies in wood structures and trees, then venture to the ground to look for food sources like crumbs, sugary items, and other insects.
Roaches
- German Cockroach (Ballettella germanica) is the most troublesome cockroach species in North America. This species actively seeks harborage in household areas such as bathrooms and kitchens. The water, food sources, and shelter of kitchen cabinets are ideal for survival and an infestation can outbreak in a matter of weeks.
- American Cockroach (Periplaneta americana) is the largest cockroach species in this area. While they are very common, they do not usually seek to kitchen areas like german roaches. Instead, these often live in attics, crawlspaces, or wander into your home through cracks and crevices.
- Oriental Cockroach (Blatta orientalis) are quite similar to the american cockroach. They prefer moist places such as crawl spaces, basements, and wooden decks. Perimeter treatments of the outside of the home help control all three of these pest species.
Termites
- Eastern Subterranean Termite (Reticulitermes flavipes) is the most common and economically devistating species in North America. These termites live underground and forage along the surface soil area looking for cellulose (wood) materials to eat.
- Termite swarmers are the reproductive caste of the colony. Usually once a year in the spring, the colony will release this group to seek out new places to start a colony. Termite swarmers inside a home are tell tale signs of an infestation.
- Termite tunnels are created by termites to protect themselves as they search for food. These tunnels are made from a mixture of the termite’s saliva, droppings, and soil. They can be found inside the home or on the outside of the home, but are most commonly found in the crawl space.
- Formosan termites (Coptotermes formosanus) is an invasive species of termite originating from southeast China. They are similar to the native termite species but are larger and consume wood at a faster rate. So far, they have only been found as far north as Tennessee but may be found in Kentucky soon.
Rodents
- House Mouse (Mus musculus) is the most common and invasive rodent species in North America. Often in the winter time, these animals enter crawl spaces and attics to seek food and warmth. They can squeeze through an opening the size of a dime.
- The Norway Rat (Rattus norvegicus) is the largest commensal rodent species. Found worldwide, many consider this species one of the most successful and adaptable. They are often found in barns, storage sheds, crawl spaces, and similar areas, creating vast tunnel systems underground.
- Roof Rat (Rattus rattus) is the other common rat species to effect our area. As the name implies, these rats often gravitate towards roofs and trees. As excellent climbers, roof rats will not hesitate to take advantage of the tree hanging over your house and make nests in attics.
Wildlife
- The Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) is one of the most known and popular backyard friends. While they complete many ecological processes for the environment, they can make their nests in the most inconvenient places. Roofs, attics and eaves of buildings are all fare game for the squirrel. There are many expulsion and prevention methods to help solve these problems.
- North American Opossum (Didelphis virginiana) or commonly called possum is the only marsupial species found in the US. This nocturnal species often becomes a pest when on its quests for food. They search through urban environments looking for garbage, pet food, and many other human scraps. Often trapping, relocation, and preventative measures will keep this animal at bay.
- Raccoon (Procyon lotor) is a common omnivorous mammal found throughout the country. As a pest to humans, they have many of the same habits as an opossum, scavenging for food around peoples homes. Raccoons are much more intelligent animals than many people give it credit for and this may make it difficult to control and trap.
- Striped Skunk (Mephitis mephitis) is known for its ability to spray a foul liquid to defend itself. As a pest species, they often take shelter in barns , sheds, crawl spaces, or dig burrows on property close to humans. This can cause problems when humans and skunks come in close contact because of their instinct to spray.
- Snakes: There are many snake species in this region and all of them play an important role in the environment. Four species found in this area are poisonous to humans. These are the Rattlesnake, Cottonmouth, Copperhead, and Coral Snake. Always use caution when coming in contact with snakes because it is often hard to identify if the species is dangerous.
Crawl Space
- There are a number of powderpost beetle species (family Bostrichidae) that may infest a home. Their ability to create tunnels in wood structure remains their greatest concern for homeowners. Usually in crawl spaces, they bore holes into the wood, then place their larvae in the hole, then the larvae will eat the wood and develop for up to two years.
- There are many types of fungus and mold that can be found in a crawl space, and all stem from the same cause, too much moisture. These organisms slowly break down the wood’s strength while also releasing potentially hazardous spores that can seep into the living areas.
- Camel Crickets (family Rhaphidophoridae) are a very unique family of crickets that love moist dark places like a crawl space. While they create no safety concerns for homeowners, hundreds of them can invest a crawl space or basement, where they inevitability wander into living areas. A insecticide treatment of the area will usually take care of the problem.
- Earwigs (Forficula aricularia) is a very common household pest in North America and around the world. This insect species creates havoc for homeowners and businesses because of its exceptional characteristics. Its relatively small size and flattened body, along with its diverse feeding habits, means the earwig is always finding ways to invade buildings. They love dark and damp places such as a crawl space and use these areas to seek shelter.
Spiders
- Brown Recluse (Loxosceles reclusa) is a common spider found in this area but holds great significance because of its necrotic venom. While a bite from a brown recluse is not fatal, medical attention is often required and each individual may handle it differently. These spiders hide in dark and undisturbed places during the day and hunt for food at night. Human contact with these spiders often occur when humans move boxes or other isolated items in areas such as closets, garages, and attics.
- Black Widow (Latrodectus mactans) is the other significant poisonous spider found in this region. Its bite is similar to the brown recluse, in that it only bites if it feels threatened and are often not fatal. Each individual will react different to the neurotoxin so always exercise caution. While black widows can be found inside the home, they often prefer outdoor and cluttered areas such as sheds, piles of debris, and garages.
- Cellar Spider (family Pholcidae) is the common name given for this prevalent family of spiders. As the name suggests, these spiders prefer dark and secluded areas such as cellars, crawlspaces, and attics. They are also commonly found inside homes along the corners of floors and ceilings.
- Wolf Spider (family Lycosidae) is known for its large size commonly reaching an inch in length. These spiders prey on many insect species and humans should consider them allies in the fight against pests. They commonly wonder into homes though and can cause quite the fright.
Ectoparasites
- Cat Flea (Ctenocephalides felis) is the most common flea species to effect humans. As with all flea species, they feed on the blood of humans and use the proteins to help produce their eggs. All stages of a fleas life cycle (egg, larva, pupa, and adult) live on their host, but adults have the ability to jump and search for new hosts. They often find refuge in carpets therefore whole houses may need to be treated to get rid of a flea infestation.
- Head Louce (Pediculus humanus capitis) and Body Louce (Pediculus humanus humanus) are the two louce species to effect humans. The body louce is much more critical than the head louce because the former can carry dangerous diseases such as epidemic typhus and trench fever where the latter cannot. Both head louce and body louse can only live in human hair and cannot be treated by a pest control professional.
- Bed Bug (Cimex lectularius) is the most important ectoparasite worldwide. As the name suggests, these insects live in or around places humans sleep. Feeding on human blood, they come out of hiding at night to attach themselves while we sleep and spend the day time tucked away in hard to reach crevices. The bed bug bite, while can be itchy, painful, and cause allergic reactions, is not known to be a vector of diseases. Treatment of bed bugs is usually quite a complex process because of their reclusive habits, hardy nature, and ability to go a year without food.
- American Dog Tick (Dermacentor variabilis) is the most common tick species found in this area but many tick species attack humans. These small insects will wait in tall grass and shrubbery for a host to walk by and attach itself and begin to feed. While they can simply be removed from humans with a pair of tweezers, sometimes ticks are vectors for diseases like Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
Flying Insects
- Asian Tiger Mosquito (Aedes albopictus) and Floodwater Mosquito (Aedes vexans) are two common mosquito species found in this area and both aggressively attack humans. Mosquitoes use the blood from humans to help with egg development, therefore, only females bite humans. Mosquitoes may also carry a number of diseases through the transfer of blood. A combination of preventative measures and insecticide application are necessary to control mosquitoes.
- Eastern Yellow Jacket (Vespula maculifrons) is a common wasp species known for its black and yellow coloring. This species builds its nest underground and will aggressively defend it. Their stings are quite painful and multiple stings may warrant medical attention.
- Red Paper Wasp (Polistes carolina) is one of the most numerous wasps found in this area. They commonly build the famous wasp nests on the eaves of houses. While they aren’t aggressive, they will sting if provoked or someone gets too close to their nest. It is important to keep the nests off your home because they can increase in numbers very quickly.
- Yellow Paper Wasp (Polistes versicolor) is the other paper wasp species found in this area. It has very similar habits to the red paper wasp. Both feed on insects, nectar, and tree sap. They are often confused for hornets or yellow jackets but can be differentiated by their smaller size and relatively docile habits.
- Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa virginica) is a type of bee known for its size and harborage in wooden structures. This bee builds tunnels in wood to lay its eggs, often reaching several inches into the wood. While their tunnels don’t necessarily effect the structural integrity of the wood, they can cause long term moisture damage. When they find a piece of wood they like they can often cause quite the annoyance, but almost never sting.
- Honey Bee (Genus Apis) is a genus of bee known from their ability to produce a sweet food from flower nectar. Honey bees in many areas are considered a crucial species to the environment. They become pests to humans when they build their nests in trees near houses or even inside the eaves and attics.
