What is Big and Black and Spider-Like in Texas?
Chances are, what you are seeing is a black field cricket. These pests can overrun a town and they will gladly congregate in the city by the millions.
How Do You Control Crickets?
One of the best ways is to use bait from mid-spring through summer. The lifecycle of cricket is that in the fall, females’ mate and lay eggs – anywhere from 100-400. The eggs overwinter in soil and hatch the following spring or early summer. Crickets are nighttime insects, so you don’t see them often in the daytime until the fall when they are everywhere.
One of the other ways to help reduce infestations of crickets around your home is to decrease the amount of lights that are on at night. Night time insects track their position based on the light from the moon and the stars. They have not evolved enough to deal with porch lights and flood lights. That is why brightly lit buildings are plagued by moths, crickets and other insects that come out only at night.
Cricket Swarms
A swarm of any type of insect is pretty creepy but crickets, though harmless, in your home look like spiders. They run across the floor, up walls, and dash out when you move something. Their biggest defense is to startle you and they are pretty good at that.
To recap: The key to dealing with cricket is early and aggressive bait programs. These help to control crickets around your home. They will not help – at least not much – to control crickets around your neighborhood. To decrease the chances of cricket swarms, decrease the amount of light around your home at night and where you need light. Switch to a bulb that produces a yellow hue – these are often sold as yellow incandescent bulbs and many will indicate that they reduce the attraction for insects to light.
Baiting Programs
Baiting programs deal with insects and pests that forage. These include ants, rodents, and crickets. It is not always enough to zip down to the local store and buy bait. There is a lot of science that goes into creating an effective baiting program. One of those factors is safety. You want to make sure that bait is not in an area where pets might consume it or where children might find it. Kids put everything in their mouths when they are small.
Another factor is timing. Not only do you need to know when to put out bait, but also how long it will last. Will you need to reapply and if so, when? You also want to make sure that the bait is suitable for the pest it will target. There are positives, such as time-release technology that help bait remain active longer, so it does a better job.
To learn more about how to solve these problems give our team a call. We help employ comprehensive baiting programs that are safe, effective, and affordable. We offer comprehensive pest solutions throughout the entire Bryan and Collage Station communities.
