After being cooped up for the winter months, most of us are eager to get back outside. We want to go wherever we want, stay out longer, and resume our regular lives. But while we’re looking forward to living it up outside, the insects and other pests you forgot about over the winter are ready to make themselves at home – in your home. This final stretch of winter is the time to think about what your can do to prepare your property for the pests the warm weather will bring. Here’s what you need to know about some of the most common spring and summer pests.
Termites
One of the first pests to return, come spring is the termite. As decomposers, termites break down and reduce fallen trees into fertile soil. The down side is that they can’t differentiate between the wood in fallen trees and the wood in your home. When that happens, they can do serious structural damage, which can persist for years before discovered.
Masters Pest Control offers a termite extermination program that protects your home with low environmental impact. Contact us, for a free quote.
Carpenter Ants
Contrary to their names, carpenter ants don’t work with wood; they destroy it. Like termites, carpenter ants can go undetected for years and live in colonies. Unlike termites, they don’t actually eat wood. Instead, they chew and tunnel, creating “galleries” to use for nesting. They prefer moist wood, meaning that, as if water damage weren’t bad enough, it can subsequently attract ants. Carpenter ants are also explorers, sending scouts 200-300 feet from the nest in search of food like sweets, meats, grease, and fat, and then building satellite colonies where food is found.
The technicians at Masters Pest Control are highly knowledgeable of ant extermination and control, and can give valuable insights into the potency of materials used and the importance of repeat applications. Click here to learn more about carpenter ants and their behaviors.
Ticks
Not all ticks carry disease, but deer ticks can carry Lyme, and the first warms days of early spring can be enough to cause their population to rebound. Ticks thrive in high grass, shrubs, and moist places like leaf piles. Therefore, keeping up with yard work won’t only keep your property looking neat; it will make your yard less conducive to ticks, as well. Ensure grass gets mowed regularly and that leaves are raked and put in bins.
Ticks make their way to your property by hitching a ride on hosts such as rodents and deer. Move woodpiles, which attract mice, away from the home, and when planting shrubs, favor those that do not attract deer.
Masters Pest Control offers a green tick control program that greatly reduces exposure to tick-bourn pathogens. Click here and contact us today, to schedule a free tick audit, in which we’ll inspect your property and give insight into tick bite prevention.
Yellow Jackets
Yellow jackets are one of the last warm weather pests to arrive, and they build their hives underground and within walls. Their colonies can grow to over 4,000 workers at peak, and unlike other species of bees, yellow jackets do not lose their stingers after using them, meaning each bee can sting multiple times. What’s worse is that the initial sting from a yellow jacket releases a chemical that signals the rest of the hive to swarm. Yellow jackets also scavenge for sugary food like fruit and are attracted to garbage cans and outdoor activities like picnics and cookouts. They are also easily agitated by noise and commotion from such gatherings.
Because of their aggressive nature, yellow jacket extermination should only be handled by trained professionals. Click here to get a free quote and learn why you should leave it to the Masters.