InsectsCategories
Problematic Carpenter Ants
During home inspections, one of several things we look out for is the existence of wood-boring insects. While many of these pests are beneficial in converting deadwood into the soil, having them in your home can be dangerous as they compromise a house’s structural integrity. The prevalence of wood-boring insects is heavily dependent on the…
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Fleas and Flea Treatments
A flea infestation can be a real occasion of misery for your household. Besides causing serious irritation to your pets, they can spread into carpet and other upholstered areas and may begin feeding on the resident humans for their blood feasts. Historically, fleas have also been transmitters of major diseases, most notably the Black Plague…
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Tick Bites and Prevention
You may have already seen articles this year stating that the tick population here in Michigan has already increased beyond “average” levels. Experts seem to agree: there are far more ticks than usual this year, and there are a number of reasons for that. But first, what is a tick, and should you be concerned…
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Identifying a Honey Bee
“Help! I’ve got honey bees in my house!” As summer approaches, we start to get a lot more calls for “bees.” I put “bees” in quotation marks because often “bee” is a catch-all phrase people will use to refer to any and all stinging insects. Yellow jackets, carpenter bees, honey bees, bald faced hornets, mud…
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The Insect Freeze-Tolerance Mechanism
With harsh winter upon us, people are desperate for a silver lining. If we must suffer through the polar vortex with its absurd amounts of snow and subzero temperatures, perhaps at least it could mean a reduced insect population in the summer? Will this frigid winter kill off more than the average amounts of insect…
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