Did you know the designation of an insect being a bug, or better referred to as a true bug, is like the difference between a fly and a beetle. As we know, there are hundreds of thousands of different kinds of beetles. The same can be said about true bugs. 
Can you name a few species of bugs? No, the lady bug is not one. They are actually a beetle. Lady Bug is a common name. Aphids are a true bug. Box Elder Bugs as well. Then there is the now infamous bed bug. Perhaps the worse of all? Knowing what makes an insect a bug may not be important to you. It is important for who you hire to control or preferably eliminate these pest from your home or yard. 

All true bugs lack a chewing mouth part. They instead have adapted to a tube like mouth part so they can enjoy a liquid diet. Whoa wait a minute! Are we still talking about true bugs? If so? Does that mean mosquitoes are true bugs as well? No, they are a type of a fly. More on that later. The bed bug and box elder bug are perhaps the two most likely critters you will encounter this year. Unless you are a farmer or gardener, the aphid is not important to you. 

Box Elder Bugs have been waking up from their winter slumber over the last few weeks. As the sun makes it move ro the north, the surfaces of structures warm faster. Even when the outside temps are lower. Box Elder Bugs feed off of the sap of, you guessed it, the box elder tree. Which is in the maple family.  Calls in Pleasant Prairie, Somers, Bristol and Salem have already picked up. Until late April, most interior box elder bug activity is coming from your own home. They have been hiding under your siding and in your walls and attic all winter long. Each time it warms up, they move a bit. Trying to find the outdoors. Their dark coloration warms them in the afternoon sun. They have a "natural antifreeze" because of the plant sap they feed off of. Allowing them to survive at great numbers all winter long. Some may live for two full seasons.  This makes performing a spring and late summer application very helpful in reducing interior numbers over the long haul. 

Now, what about the bed bug? Are they really such a big deal in Kenosha and Racine? How about in Bristol or Salem where there aren't as many apartment buildings? Unfortunately bed bugs do not care where you live. Even though rentals are a higher risk, single family homes have become the fastest growing sector of bed bug activity. As the economy improves, so does our traveling. Bed bugs have been found in all communities of southeastern Wisconsin. Including Lake Geneva. Not just the city of Lake Geneva. Even some of the large estates have been hit. Twin Lakes and Wilmot have produced some of the worse bed bug problems I have seen in 33 years. The champion though, is still the first bed bug problem I had ever seen was in Lake Geneva, way back in 1986 when I worked for Orkin. An elderly wealthy widow who was being fleeced by her lawyer who was "managing" her estate.  That is another story for another time. 

Bed bugs are on the move. Their numbers are NOT dropping in southeast Wisconsin. Both Kenosha and Racine are seeing their numbers sky rocket. For those who travel a lot or work in high risk industries? May want to inquire about our proactive bed bug services. This is an affordable maintenance service where we inspect and pretreat the most likely spots bed bugs would first settle. All while using a natural low toxicity product. 

The next time you hear "Good night, don't let the bed bug bite" Know this, they are real. Also know that no one does a better job in treating for and more importantly, preventing bed bugs from taking over in your home. 

Customs officials at Washington metropolitan region airports discovered the world's "most destructive pest," the Khapra beetle, in passenger luggage on two recent occasions, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced Thursday.
The Department of Homeland Security's agriculture specialists at Baltimore Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport found two live adult Khapra beetles, one dead immature larva, and several cast skins in two pounds of insect-infested cow peas during a standard inspection Feb. 23, which are prohibited from being brought into the country. www.washingtonexaminer.com/most-destructive-pest-found-in-passengers-luggage-at-dc-area-airports-customs-officials/article/2651126