You have actually invested a huge chunk of your life's cost savings in a gorgeous house. Then you saved and conserved and did it up so it matches your tastes and made it as close to your dream home as your finances would permit.

Perfect.
Happiness.
Gladly ever after?
Not Quite.

If you have actually come this far, you also realize that after you have actually done up your home, you face a huge duty to MAINTAIN it. This involves fixing what's broken and guaranteeing that preventive measures are required to see that things do not break which they continue to work efficiently.

I'm sure you have upkeep contracts to cover your refrigerator, television, water cleanser, A/c unit and so on ...

What about your home - The furniture in it?

An insurance plan will guarantee that you can claim some amount in the event of a disaster, however does that ensure you a house free from insects?

Have you ever experienced the humiliation of having a cockroach run into plain view in front of your visitors? Do you wish to experience it?

Have you ever suffered mice in your home gnawing your fruit and grain, contaminating whatever they touch?

What about Bed bugs disturbing your sleep or termites eating away at the most significant investment of your life, gradually turning it to dust?

If somebody required their method into your house, poisoned your food, injured your children and animals, and destroyed your furnishings beyond repair, would you simply sit by and believe that you should find a solution for it, however put it off for later on?

Never.

You would pick up whatever you had in your hand and do everything possible to conserve your home and residential or commercial property from this plunder.

Bugs do the very same thing in your house. They force their method. They contaminate your food. They bite your children and bugs and extremely typically send harmful illness. They gradually consume your furniture and turn all the wood in your house to dust.

How come you hesitate when it comes to hiring a pest control company?

Now you might believe that you could manage the pest control of your house by yourself. You might well have the ability to, but you do not have the know-how to match that of people who handle pest invasions on a daily basis.

- You will have to go through a procedure of trial and error in selecting the right pesticides to target particular bugs.
- Then you have to guarantee that the pesticides are kept in a manner where they do not lose effectiveness and do not fall into your children's hands.
- Next you need to determine where to spray, use or put your pesticide so it will be most effective.
- Now you must balance the best dosage to take full advantage of efficiency while minimizing toxicity to your household.
- You need to guarantee that you preserve a repaired schedule so you lead that specific pest's reproducing cycle and do not run the risk of re-infestation.

You need to discover and do all this while likewise keeping your house (there are other areas that require attention) and your job.

That's a tall order for anyone, however it's not impossible.

However, if you are like me and like to keep your mind and time totally free for other pursuits rather than being tied up with simply the house, you'll discover it much easier to work with a pest control company and enter into a contract with them to keep your home pest free.

Pest Control Companies typically service lots of clients and have a varied client profile (dining establishments, offices, residences). They therefore have a lot more competence in dealing with pests.

They understand how to determine types and figure out the pesticides that would be most efficient in treating those particular types of pests.

They know typical places in your home for particular pest habitations (mice nests, termite colonies, cockroach homes and so on). So they know where to utilize their pesticides to maximize their result.

They know what chemicals to use, just how much to use and how and where to save them.

They understand at what frequency treatments are required to remove opportunities of re-infestation.

I would select a pest control company for my home any day. I do not have the time or knowledge required to keep my home pest complimentary. I 'd rather use the time on my hands to do more fascinating things.

So how do you find the best fit? How do you identify a pest control company that will provide you full value for your cash?

When looking for a pest control company to treat your house, lookout for the following functions in your agreement:

- What pests does the treatment cover?

There is typically one plan that covers ants and roaches, a completely various treatment for termites and another one for mice/ rodents another one for insects ... you understand. Make sure that treatment you are registering for covers your problem.

- The variety of treatments provided in the contract period.

It's typically 4 treatments in one year for typical household pests like ants and cockroaches. Treatments for rodents, termites, bed bugs might differ.

- Does the company deal totally free treatments in between 2 set up treatments in case there is a recurrence of the issue?

Many companies use a center where you can have your home dealt with totally free if your problem recurs before the next scheduled treatment is due.

- Are the chemicals used safe for children and family pets?

Some companies require that children and pets ought to not be allowed into the cured location for a stated time after the treatment. Some companies claim their treatments do not need this kind of evacuation.

- What do they need you to do to optimize the effect of the chemicals?

It is essential you ask this concern. Some companies require that you do not swab your home for 24 or 2 days after it has been sprayed so the pesticides have time to work before they are wiped. You might even need to prevent washing specific areas especially if a gel has been applied. Ask your service provider these concerns so you get the most out of the treatment.

- What do their customers state?

Ask for recommendations and Consult a couple of customers whose home they have serviced to make sure that the treatment is effective which the treatment schedule is stuck to.

- What guarantee do they offer?

Particularly for termite treatment, ask what duration they guarantee that you will not have a re-infestation. No re-infestation warranties after termite treatment can range from 1 to 3 years. Nevertheless, the majority of experts will risk a warranty just after they have actually inspected your property and taken all factors like surrounding location, amount of wood, humidity etc. into factor to consider.

- Rate

Though this is a big aspect to consider, it isn't the only one. For example, a company that charges you 2000 but does not use any guarantees is not as good as a company that charges you 2250 and gives you a 1 Year guarantee. If you have little kids or pets, their safety is paramount. You will insist on a treatment that is not harmful to their health, no matter what the expense.

Depending on your circumstance at any given time, the value of these elements will vary. If you have just adults in your house and no family pets, the reality that a specific treatment is kid and family pet friendly might not impact your decision much. If you have an existing problem, the provider's expertise in that particular area will be extremely important to you.

When you ask the concerns listed in this short article, you receive a lot of essential details. Armed with this info, you are in a far better position to make sure that your pest control company gives you the most worth for your money - sufficiently ridding you of your problem and avoiding it from occurring again.

Then you can sit back and unwind. Delight in the pleasures of your pest-free, tidy house. For help on finding a local pest control company contact InsectPestControl New York.

Attack of the bronze jumping spider, Eris militaris, on box tree moth, Cydalima perspectalis. But spider beware of a thread-legged assassin bug, Emesaya brevipennis

Like many invaders from afar, the box tree moth is subject to attack by native predators in the invaded realm including the DMV. Here you see a bronze jumping spider feeding on a hapless box tree moth.

In last week’s episode, we caught up with the fast-moving box tree moth (BTM) as it spread its path of destruction to historic boxwoods in the DMV. While observing and photographing BTM at an antebellum mansion in western Maryland, I discovered an adult BTM laying motionless on a branchlet of boxwood. Upon closer inspection, I discovered a handsome bronze jumping spider nestled in the leaves consuming the soft tissues of the moribund moth. This beautiful jumping spider belongs to the family called Salticidae. The Latin root for this clever clan of spiders is saltare which means “to jump.”  These hunting spiders do not build orb webs like black and yellow garden spiders and spotted orb weavers we met in previous episodes. Instead, using exceptionally large forward-facing eyes, they react strongly to visual cues, stalk their prey, and with catlike speed pounce upon their victim and immobilize it with powerful fangs. Compound eyes and fangs are often striking iridescent shades of metallic greens and blues.

After its box tree moth snack was disturbed by a bug geek, this charming bronze jumping spider clambered onto my hand with parts of the moth still clinging to its fangs.

This act of predation against BTM was encouraging until a stealthy assassin appeared on the scene. Check out the video. Lurking near the jumping spider and its prey was a thread-legged assassin bug named Emesaya  brevipennis. This rascal might pose a threat to the beneficial jumping spider. Scarce accounts of the behavior and ecology of this assassin bug suggest that Emesaya may consume the victims of spiders or attack and eat spiders. Look out jumping spider! Thread-legged assassin bugs have also been reported to eat small flies and each other.   

Recently, I happened to catch a glimpse of a handsome bronze jumping spider feasting on the belly of a box tree moth. What I didn’t expect to see was a sneaky thread-legged assassin bug lurky nearby. You can see it at the left of the screen.  This slender assassin bug could spell trouble for our helpful spider. Scientists have reported this assassin to rob spiders of their prey or worse yet, directly attack and kill spiders. After I shooed the assassin bug away, the jumping spider glammed for the camera showing off its amazing iridescent emerald eyes. Looks like Mother Nature’s team of beneficial predators is starting to put a beatdown on this new invader to North America.  

Is this act of predation good news for the dastardly BTM? You bet, but this is not entirely surprising. As we have seen, indigenous natural enemies, predators, parasitoids, and pathogens often rise-up to help put beatdowns on invaders like brown marmorated stink bugs and spotted lanternflies when these invaders arrive in the US. In a previous episode we traced the invasive history of BTM, first of Europe and now of North America. Recent studies of the BTM in invaded European countries including France and Romania found their native predators, including spiders, beetles, true bugs (Hemiptera), and birds, waging war on BTM. Several species of parasitic flies and wasps also attack and kill BTM eggs and caterpillars. Pathogens also take their toll on BTM in Europe and Asia with many bacteria and fungi infecting and killing BTM.  Let’s hope that Mother Nature quickly summons her team of beneficial predators, parasitoids, and parasites to help hold BTM at bay.   

Jumping spiders have enormous eyes and fangs that are often iridescent colors of green or blue like the fangs of this handsome bold jumping spider.

  Acknowledgements

These interesting articles were used to prepare this episode of Bug of the Week: “Observations on the Life History and Behavior of the Thread-Legged Bug Emesaya brevipennis (Say), (Hemiptera: Ploiariidae) L.” by Harley P. Brown and David W. Lollis, “Research for native parasites and predators of the box tree moth Cydalima perspectalis , in natural boxwood forest in France” by Emeline Morel, Mathilde Capelli, Marinede Bodard, Etty Colombel, Thomas Michel, and  Elisabeth Tabone, and “Zoophagous entomofauna and entomopathogenic agents reported on Cydalima perspectalis (Walker, 1859) in north-eastern of Romania” by Ionuţ B. Hulujan, Teodora Florian, Vasile C. Florian, and Ion Oltean.

Catching up with a fast-moving pest in the DMV and Eastern United States: Box tree moth, Cydalima perspectalis

At the time of this post, adult box tree moths are on the wing in the DMV depositing eggs on leaves of boxwoods.

In August last year, we reported the discovery of a new invasive pest called the box tree moth (BTM) in Fort Frederick, Maryland, just across the Potomac River from West Virginia. From this first detection in Washington County last year, BTM has now been found in six counties: Washington, Caroline, Cecil, Kent, and Queen Anne's Counties. In addition to these six counties, three additional counties, Frederick, Garrett, and Allegany have been placed under quarantine orders by the State of Maryland. This pattern is mirrored by the rapid spread of BTM in the Eastern United States. The first US detection of box tree moth was in New York in 2021, and it has now spread to Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and New Jersey.

Counties in Maryland under quarantine for box tree moth. Retrieved from Maryland Department of Agriculture September 25, 2026.

Let’s revisit the episode from August 2025 to learn more about this killer of boxwoods.

“From the time of our earliest European colonists, boxwoods have been important components of ornamental landscapes. Boxwoods grace iconic landscapes in the DMV including George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon, the “Box Walk” at  Dumbarton Oaks,  the National Boxwood Collection at the United States National Arboretum, as well as hundreds of public and private gardens and landscapes in our region. However, boxwoods are one of the most problem-prone plants in our landscapes. Already beset by exotic pests including leafminers, spider mites, and pathogens such as boxwood blight, boxwoods in the DMV and throughout our country now face a new, lethal non-native invader, the box tree moth. Like many of our new invaders, box tree moth is native to Asia and is found in China, Japan, and Korea. Probably due to the movement of ornamental plants, it entered Europe and was first discovered in Germany in 2007. It now occupies more than 30 Eurasian countries. It jumped across the Atlantic to Canada, where it was detected in 2018, and arrived in the United States with shipments of nursery plants from Canada in 2020 and 2021. Prior to July 2025 it spread to Delaware, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and New York. Yes, the DMV was surrounded and sure enough, it was detected in Clarke and Loudoun Counties in Virginia and three locations in Washington County in Maryland during the latter half of July and early August.

On a recent visit to an antebellum mansion, ancient boxwoods were under attack by box tree moths. Adult moths like this one had recently emerged from ghostlike pupae hidden in the foliage. During summer and early autumn adults lay several batches of translucent eggs in ranks of 5 to 20. Eggs hatch and tiny caterpillars remove patches of tissue from the surface of leaves. Caterpillars that are not yet fully developed will form refuges called hibernacula, in which they survive the winter. In spring, caterpillars resume their carnage defoliating leaves, webbing leaves together, and littering foliage with excrement called frass. Left untreated they can destroy large hedges in a matter of months. Video by M. J. Raupp and Laura Nixon

What’s the worry? If undetected, an infested boxwood can support a rapidly expanding population of leaf-eating caterpillars capable of completely defoliating large boxwoods. In addition, they create large silken webs littered with frass that accumulates on plants and surfaces below.

Accumulations of frass on boxwood leaves and the ground beneath the plants is a sign that your boxwood may be infested with box tree moth caterpillars.

Left unchecked, box tree moths can destroy a mature boxwood hedge in a matter of months. Image credit: Jeff Semler, UME

How is this possible? Adult boxwood tree moths lay multiple clutches of 5 to 20 eggs. Larvae that hatch from the eggs are voracious herbivores that first remove green leaf tissue as youngsters and later consume entire leaves. And if this was not bad enough, after leaves are consumed, they feed on woody tissues, thereby girdling stems and branches, and hastening boxwood death. One generation of this carnage is bad enough, but box tree moth will have many generations in the DMV. In other locations, as many as 4 or 5  generations may occur annually depending on temperature regimes.

Eggs of box tree moth are pale yellow, translucent, and deposited in ranks of five to twenty on boxwood leaves.

What should you look for? Discoloration, a change in the color of leaves from vibrant green to dull brown or gray, and defoliation, the loss of parts or entire leaves, are often the first and most easily recognizable clues that your boxwoods may be infested with box tree moth. Since no native moth or butterfly has caterpillars that readily eat leaves of boxwoods, the presence of large numbers of strikingly colored black, green, and yellow striped caterpillars with black heads is a dead giveaway for the presence of box tree moths. However, several other arthropod pests and diseases can cause discoloration, defoliation, and dieback on boxwoods. Fortunately, Joe Boggs of The Ohio State University has compiled a wonderful pictorial guide to diagnosing boxwood pests and diseases including symptoms and signs of box tree moth.

Newly hatched caterpillars of box tree moth create tiny white patches on boxwood leaves as they remove leaf tissues.

The final annual generation of adult box tree moths emerged from ethereal pupae hidden in the foliage of boxwood leaves in late summer here in the DMV.

What should you do if you find box tree moth in Maryland? The Maryland Department of Agriculture is presently engaged in a program to limit the spread of box tree moth. If you suspect you have this pest, the Department of Agriculture recommends the following:

·         If you suspect your boxwoods may be infested with the box tree moth, please contact via email the Plant Protection and Weed Management program at ppwm.mda@maryland.gov. Please attach a picture in your email.

·         Allow Maryland or Federal agricultural officials to inspect your boxwood plants and place detection traps.

·         Any infested material should be doubled bagged in plastic bags and placed in the trash.

·         Nursery owners should monitor their boxwoods and implement safeguards to limit pest risk. All licensed nurseries should report BTM detections to the Maryland Dept of Agriculture Nursery Inspection Program or reach out to their nursery inspector.

Moving forward, what might the future hold for the box tree moth and us? Unfortunately, like emerald ash borers, brown marmorated stink bugs, spotted lanternflies and many other non-native pests of our landscape plants, the box tree moth is likely here to stay. However, Mother Nature in cooperation with humans often has a solution for these invaders. Indigenous natural enemies, predators, parasitoids, and pathogens often rally and put a beat-down on these non-native pests. Clever scientists search and discover natural enemies from afar and after exhaustive evaluation release them to reduce populations of invaders here in the US. Researchers develop chemicals to detect, attract, trap, and kill non-native pests. Even today several insecticides are available to kill caterpillars. Some of these contain active ingredients like Bacillus thuringiensis, a.k.a. BT, and spinosad which are dynamite for controlling caterpillars but safe enough to be used in organic food production. If you want to learn more about insecticides that can be used to manage box tree moth caterpillars, click on this link. With diligence, ingenuity, good science, and help from Mother Nature, we will find ways to manage this new noxious invader.”  

In fall, caterpillars not yet fully developed form refuges in leaves called hibernacula to survive winter’s chill. Image credit: Laura Nixon

Acknowledgements

We thank Jeff Semler and Paula Shrewsbury for providing images and Laura Nixon for deep insights into box tree moth here in the DMV. “The fast invasion of Europe by the box tree moth: an additional example coupling multiple introduction events, bridgehead effects and admixture events” by Audrey Bras, Eric Lombaert, Marc Kenis, Hongmei Li, Alexis Bernard, Jérôme Rousselet, Alain Roques, and Marie‑Anne Auger‑Rozenberg was used as a reference for this episode. The inspiration for this episode came from Phyllis and Rod, who allowed us to photograph their boxwoods and caterpillars. Please visit Box Tree Moth by Madeline Potter, UMD Extension, to learn more about this pest and to find additional sources of information.

The emperor’s surprising fondness for sweet and salty delights: Hackberry emperor, Asterocampa celtis

On the sooty mold-blackened trunk of a Tree of Heaven, an emperor butterfly sips sugary honeydew excreted by a band of sap-feeding spotted lanternflies.

As the name implies, the frisky hackberry emperor butterfly is a North American native whose larvae feed on wonderful native hardwood trees called hackberries. On a recent foray to visit invasive Tree of Heaven and dastardly spotted lanternflies, I was entertained by lovely hackberry butterflies who shared their secrets for collecting vital nutrients from two unlikely sources.  These two nutrients are sugar and salt.

Hackberry leaves are the source of food for larvae of the hackberry butterfly. Tree lore has it that hackberry is a corruption of hagberry, a name given by European colonists to the American Celtis tree due to the resemblance of the hackberry fruit to the fruit of the European cherry tree, Prunus padus.

Let’s think about sugar for a moment. Seems we just can’t live without it. Here’s why. The raw material for cellular respiration and the production of energy for both animals and plants is the sugar molecule, glucose. In addition to sugar, another element vital to life in both butterflies and humans is sodium. This key element is needed for physiological processes ranging from the contraction of muscles and firing of nerves to maintaining the fluid balance of body tissues. Our friends, the butterflies, obtain sugar from the nectar of plants they pollinate. While carbohydrates abound in nectar, it turns out that nectar is notoriously low in other essential nutrients, one of which is sodium. One consequence of consuming a diet rich in nectar is the need to find supplemental sources of sodium to make up for the relative lack of sodium in the nectar of plants. To solve this sodium shortage, butterflies have evolved clever strategies to acquire salt. One of these behaviors is known as puddling. Puddling butterflies place their proboscis on a substrate like wet soil or mud and imbibe sodium rich fluid found on substrate’s moist surface. We met several species of butterflies puddling in a previous episode.

As they feed on plant sap, spotted lanternflies excrete copious amounts of a sugary waste product called honeydew. In their quest for sugar, butterflies like this pretty hackberry emperor take advantage of the sweet bounty provided by the lanternfly. But butterflies cannot live by sugar alone. Sodium is a key element needed by animals for a variety of life processes. This weather-worn emperor tasted my salt-laden hat before it moved to my shirt. Watch as its proboscis moves across my sweat-soaked shirt to lap up sodium and other vital nutrients. Pretty cool on a hot day that an invasive species and sweaty human can team up to help feed a native butterfly.  

When I arrived at the Tree of Heaven, I learned that floral nectar was not the only source of sugar used by the busy emperor butterfly. Festooning the bark of the Tree of Heaven were scores of diabolical spotted lanternflies. The bark of the trees was slippery wet with vast amounts of sugary waste product called honeydew, excreted by the lanternflies as they fed on plant sap. In addition to attracting vast numbers of stinging insects including wasps, hornets, and honey bees, emperor butterflies find lanternfly honeydew to be an excellent source of sugar.  To my surprise I saw several emperors lapping up the sweet honeydew, taking full advantage of the sugary bounty. 

An emperor with a wing likely tattered by a bird strike enjoys a salty treat from my sweat-soaked hat. Image credit: Paula Shrewsbury, UMD

As I quit the tropical heat and humidity of the forest and emerged into blazing sunshine, my colleague noticed one tattered emperor feeding on my sweat-drenched hat. Later, it imbibed salty liquid from my soggy shirt. During this encounter, the salt-seeking emperor displayed a complete lack of apprehension while I shoveled soil and picked rocks from the garden. The drive for salt appears to be strong and capable of overcoming the fear of proximity to a large, potentially dangerous animal. Butterfly experts have discovered that the quest for salt is sometimes stronger in male butterflies rather than females. It turns out that during copulation, in addition to transferring sperm, a male butterfly may donate a large dose of sodium to his mate, obviating the need for her to seek additional sources of sodium. What a guy! And on a humid, hot, late summer day in the DMV, having sweet and salty treats sounds like a pretty good idea.  

Acknowledgements

Bug of the Week thanks Dr. Shrewsbury for photographing the emperor butterfly on my head. The fact-filled article “Nutrient acquisition across a dietary shift: fruit feeding butterflies crave amino acids, nectivores seek salt” by Alison Ravenscraft and Carol L. Boggs was consulted in preparation for this story.

A season of evil returns as brown marmorated stink bugs, Halyomorpha halys, invade homes

Stink bugs lining up on my doorframe just waiting for the chance to enter.

Early in spring, we visited brown marmorated stink bugs on their annual exodus from their winter refuge in a home. That was the stink bug tide going out. Now it’s time for the tide to come in.  Last week in what has become an annual ritual, brown marmorated stink bugs (BMSB) began collecting on my window screens, invading my home through any opening, and buzzing around the bedroom before lights out. The passing of the autumnal equinox and shortening of daylength mark the beginning of the stink bug’s quest for overwintering refuge and proclaims the start of the home invasion season, a stinky annual tradition throughout much of the country now.

With the arrival of autumn, so begins the home invasion with stink bugs. They stormed my home, climbing walls, finding gaps in screens and siding. They scaled my door frames, ran across my table, partied on my windowsills, and probed my walls. The final insult was to lay claim to my coffee cup before my first sip of dark roast.

First discovered near Allentown, PA, in the late 1990s, BMSB now occupies 47 states and four Canadian provinces in North America. Why are stink bugs on the move now? For the past several months, stink bugs have been fattening up on corn, soybeans, garden vegetables, and fruit. But soon this cornucopia of earthly delights will disappear for BMSB and other herbivorous insects. In temperate locations like Maryland, winter halts the growth of deciduous trees and shrubs and withers herbaceous plants. Food for plant and fruit-eating stink bugs all but disappears. With the arrival of cold weather, stink bug movement slows to a crawl and their development grinds to a halt. Prior to this inimical season, stink bugs seek refuge to chill-out where they will be protected from harsh winter weather and dangerous predators.

Stink bugs preparing to overwinter release aggregation pheromones. This assembly call directs stink bugs to potential hibernal refuge, including vents to the attic of homes.

Why do stink bugs enter homes and man-made structures? Some folks incorrectly believe home invasions provide warm winter refuge for stink bugs. Bear in mind that millions of years ago when these creatures evolved, there were no mansions or man-made structures to invade. Until recently, the natural winter redoubts of these stinkers were largely unknown. However, a clever study revealed large, freshly deceased but still standing trees are a prime winter hideout for stink bugs in natural settings. The loose bark of these trees affords a fine location for stink bugs to crawl underneath and escape the ravages of winter. Rocky ridge tops provide many dead trees and abundant places for stink bugs to chill-out. Here they can reduce their metabolism and await the return of spring that brings warmer temperatures and abundant food as plants flower, fruit, and grow.

For many viewers of Bug of the Week, stink bugs on rocky ridge tops seems like a remote problem. However, the nuisance potential of BMSB is almost without equal. To a stink bug, a home provides a wonderful assortment of overwintering opportunities beneath siding, behind shutters, and in attics. The pending invasion some homeowners face is no trivial matter. In 2011, a homeowner in western Maryland captured more than 26,000 BMSBs from January through June as they moved about his home seeking egress from their overwintering refuge. Yikes! 

Loose bark, rock crevasses, and homes provide overwintering refuge for the brown marmorated stink bug.

Why do populations of BMSB fluctuate so dramatically from year to year and place to place? Scientists at Virginia Tech and the USDA’s Appalachian Fruit Lab have evidence that visits from polar vortices in the winters of 2014 and 2015 put a beat-down on overwintering BMSB in our region. Mounting evidence from several universities and government laboratories in our region suggests that indigenous and introduced predators and parasites may be catching up with stink bugs and levying a toll on their populations (see Death of a stink bug, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4).  My money is on the possibility that all of these factors, and perhaps some still unknown, conspired to reduce stink bug numbers in our region over the past several years. However, as is often the case in the natural world, as prey populations decline, so too do numbers of predators, pathogens, and parasites attacking them.

In the next few weeks, don’t be surprised to see a stink bug waiting for a cup of coffee in the morning.

Perhaps a relative dearth of stink bugs in preceding years and a resultant regional decline in Mother Nature’s hit squad has allowed stink bugs populations to rebound a bit this year in some locations, including around my home. Only Mother Nature and the stink bugs know for sure. Is this a crescendo leading to the return of stink bugs to major pest status here in the DMV? Only time will tell. One thing is certain, over the next several weeks stink bugs will be on the move. It’s time to seal cracks and crevices around the home, replace worn weather-stripping and door sweeps, and make sure that screens are in good repair. Steps to keep stink bugs out will also help to keep energy in during the winter season, paying dividends now by reducing the stink bug nuisance and later by saving energy costs.

Acknowledgements

Bug of the Week thanks Marie, Tom, Eloise, Abigail, and members of the BMSB Working Group for providing information and inspiration for this episode. Interesting studies including one by D. B. Inkley, “Characteristics of home invasion by the brown marmorated stink bug (Hemiptera:  Pentatomidae)” and “Frequency, efficiency, and physical characteristics of predation by generalist predators of brown marmorated stink bug (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) eggs” by William R. Morrison III. Clarissa R. Mathews, and Tracy C. Leskey were also consulted. 

To learn more about BMSB biology, distribution and management, please visit the following web site: https://www.stopbmsb.org/   

To learn how to keep BMSB out of your home and what to do when they get in, please watch the following video: Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Control: Keeping Stink Bugs Out of Your House

Battle of the spotteds: Spotted orb weaver, Neoscona crucifera, vs spotted lanternfly, Lycorma delicatula

Spoiler alert: The match between the spotted lanternfly vs spotted orb weaver will go to the spider.

A few episodes ago we learned the fate of an unlucky spotted lanternfly that had a paralyzing encounter with a pair of scrappy house spiders. This week while putting away some tools, I noticed a very large and impressive spotted orb weaver feasting on a brown marmorated stink bug on the side of a tool shed. Marmorated stink bugs are one of those rascally invaders from Asia that was quite the stir when they first arrived in the DMV more than two decades ago.  Well, as I watched the orb weaver devour the stink bug, I couldn’t help but wonder if she might enjoy another tidbit from the Far East.

A fine morning mist reveals the beautiful web of a spotted orb weaver. Webs can be several feet at their widest dimension.

The following evening resting on the shed door not more than a meter away from the web was an adult spotted lanternfly. With just a little gentle prodding it launched itself into the orb weaver’s web. As you might have guessed, the match between the spotted lanternfly and the spotted orb weaver wasn’t much of a match at all. Within moments, the spider snared, wrapped, and paralyzed the lanternfly. Game over, but not exactly, as the spider fed on the lanternfly for several hours before abandoning its victim.

As twilight falls, a beautiful spotted orb weaver seems to float in air as she spins the delicate, nearly invisible strands of silk that form her web. Watch as she uses her hind legs to attach the sticky spiral threads to the radial lines. How cool is that?

Late summer is a time when many spiders reach maturity and maximum size, having devoured prey throughout the growing season. The web of the spotted orb weaver was no tiny affair like the webs of cellar spiders or common house spiders that we met in previous episodes. This web spanned more than three feet from one end to the other. In nature the spotted orb weaver is a denizen of woodlands, where it builds its web amongst the twigs and branches of trees and shrubs. Interesting studies of their web placement revealed that these spiders are creatures of the light. Webs are strung in relatively well lighted areas where the density of flying prey may be greater. This scenario surely fits with the location of my spider’s web, cleverly constructed in a flyway between two sheds.

On the side of my tool shed a lovely spotted orb weaver built her web. One evening I watched her devour an invader from Asia, the brown marmorated stink bug. I couldn’t help but wonder if she might enjoy another tidbit from the far east. The following evening, with a little prodding an adult spotted lanternfly hopped into the web. As you might have guessed, the match between the spotted lanternfly and the spotted orb weaver wasn’t much of a match. Within moments, the spider snared, wrapped, and paralyzed the lanternfly with venom. With her victim subdued, she embraced the lanternfly and began to feed. Game over, spider 1 - lanternfly 0.

During the daytime, the orb weaver hides in a small silken refuge beneath the roof of the shed. At dusk, I watched her spin a new web, and by nightfall she had snared a stink bug. Once a hapless victim was entangled, she secured it with sheets of silk from spinnerets on her rear end and delivered venomous bites with her fangs. Powerful fangs are used to pulverize the stink bug, and proteinaceous fluids and morsels are turned into spider eggs. In the current battle against spotted lanternflies, clever studies by scientists at Penn State have found spiders to be the invertebrate most often observed attacking lanternflies. With luck and abundant lanternflies, my spider may produce a marble sized egg sack with as many as 1000 eggs before chilly weather brings an end to her beneficial escapade. Nice work spiders.

The underside of the spotted orb weaver may provide a clue as to how it got its name. Image credit: Erin Kollins

References

The wonderful website “Neoscona crucifera (Spotted Orbweaver)” at www.spiders.us, “Using community science to identify predators of spotted lanternfly, Lycorma delicatula (Hemiptera: Fulgoridae), in North America” by Anne E. Johnson, Alison Cornell, Sara Hermann, Fang Zhu and Kelli Hoover, and the article “Choosing Hunting Sites: Web Site Preferences of the Orb Weaver Spider, Neoscona crucifera, Relative to Light Cues” by M. R. Adams were used as references for this episode. We thank Erin Kollins for the image of the underside of the spotted orb weaver. The inspiration for this episode came from several Maryland Master Naturalists enamored with large spiders they had recently observed.

Invite a trio of digger wasps to control white grubs in your landscape: blue-winged digger wasp, Scolia dubia, noble digger wasp, Scolia nobilitata, and double-banded digger wasp, Scolia bicincta

This hairy wasp with a yellow spot on each side of the abdomen digs through the soil to lay its lethal spawn on subterranean beetle grubs. White grubs, be very afraid when Scolia dubia comes to the garden.

This week let’s visit a trio of gorgeous and really cool wasps intent on annihilating   dastardly beetle pests in our lawns and gardens. The beetle pests these wasps attack include larval stages (a.k.a. white grubs) of green June beetles, Japanese beetles, Oriental beetles, Asiatic garden beetles, and other members of the scarab clan that dwell in soil and devour roots of our lawn grasses, annual, and perennial plants. As adults these beetles, known as scarabs, strip leaves and blossoms of hundreds of species of ornamental plants and wholesome vegetables. Adequate spring and summer rains conducive to grub survival have turned my flower beds into ideal breeding sites for these rascals. But in Mother Nature’s system of checks and balances, it is not unusual to see populations of predators and parasites rise shortly after populations of their prey increase.

Mints and asters bring digger wasps like Scolia dubia, Scolia nobilitata, and Scolia bicincta to your garden on sunny days in late summer and autumn. Scolia dubia is easy to know by the two yellow patches on the sides of its furry reddish abdomen. Scolia nobilitata has two pairs of orange or yellowish spots on its black abdomen and their cousin Scolia bicincta has two brilliant white bands wrapping around the dorsal surface of the abdomen. After tanking up on energy-rich nectar, they will search for white grubs in your lawn and gardens, dig into the soil, and deposit eggs on hapless grubs. Upon hatching, wasp larvae devour the grubs and thereby help to rid your landscape of these noxious pests. These wasps don’t harm humans or pets, so plant some mints and asters and enjoy the show. Video credit: Marie Rojas and Michael J. Raupp

Over the past week or so, several folks have commented on hordes of dark winged wasps cruising back and forth a foot or so over their turf. Most of these sightings are digger wasps, members of a family known as Scoliidae. The digger wasp moniker stems from the impressive ability of these fierce fliers to locate white grubs beneath the surface of the earth, tunnel through the dirt, deliver a paralyzing sting, and deposit an egg on the skin of the grub. The hapless white grub is incapable of removing the egg, which soon hatches and the parasitic larva of the digger wasp slowly consumes its living victim. Glad I’m not a white grub.  After completing its development during summer and autumn, the wasp larva spins a silken cocoon, pupates, and then passes the winter in the burrow created by the grub. Fresh, new wasps emerge as adults the following August and they are now busy in our landscapes gaining nutrition in the form of nectar and pollen as they visit flowers in our gardens and landscapes.

When not hunting white grubs, Scolia dubia is often found nectaring on flowers during August. Photo credit: Joann Pettinicchio

Several species of digger wasps can be found in the DMV, and three in the limelight this time of year are the blue-winged digger wasp, Scolia dubia, the noble digger wasp, Scolia nobilitata, and the double-banded digger wasp, Scolia bicincta. Scolia dubia sports striking iridescent blue-black wings. Its body is black excepting the end of its fuzzy abdomen, which is reddish brown. Scolia dubia is easily recognized by one pair of bright yellow spots on either side of its abdomen. Its cousin, Scolia nobilitata, has smoky brown wings with two pairs of yellow or off-white spots on its abdomen. Scolia bicincta has dark black wings and two brilliant white bands wrapping around the dorsal surface of the abdomen. These colorful beauties need energy to search for grubs and tunnel underground to find their victims. They are often seen carbo-loading in preparation for the hunt on nectar-rich members of the mint family (Lamiaceae) such as mountain mint and spotted horse mint, and members of the aster family (Asteraceae) such as goldenrod and wingstem, a.k.a. yellow ironweed.

Whether it’s small white grubs in the soil or zany green June beetle grubs that crawl on their back across the ground, these pests face an awesome grim reaper when Scolia digger wasps come to my garden. Video credit: Michael J. Raupp

Lawns and landscape beds rampant with white grubs often attract squadrons of digger wasps flying in tight figure-eight patterns just above the ground, presumably hunting for prey. While they might appear scary, please understand that these wasps are not aggressive towards humans and that they are highly beneficial by virtue of the beat-down they put on white grubs, as well as pollination of some of our favorite plants. You can befriend these beneficial wasps by providing nectar sources, such as mints and asters, in your landscape and thereby invite them to hang around and find some pestiferous white grubs to serve as food for their offspring. As part of Mother Nature’s system of checks and balances, plant some flowers, sit back and relax on a warm autumn day, let them do their work, and enjoy the show.

Acknowledgements

Bug of the Week thanks Marie Rojas for the awesome video of blue-winged digger wasps nectaring on mountain mint and Joann Pettinicchio for the pretty picture of the noble digger wasp. The wonderful books “Destructive Turfgrass Insects” by Dan Potter and “Bees, Wasps, and Ants” by Eric Grissell were used as references.