Weather in Odessa can be pretty harsh at times, depending on the season. For that reason, many pests bother residents at different times of the year.
Here, we’ll show you:
- The types of pests according to the seasons in Odessa
- How to identify each one
- The worst insect species during the warmer months
- Surprising things you’ll finding when the weather gets cooler
Worst Fall Pests in Odessa
Flies
The house fly lays its eggs on top of decaying fecal material or garbage in late summer. The warm, humid air in September also aids in the reproductive cycle. What follows is a perfect blend of optimal conditions for millions of flies to emerge in early fall.
Added to the problem is the lowering temperatures. As the season starts to cool, flies naturally gravitate to indoor areas.
House flies carry bacteria from fecal matter to food, causing digestive disorders in humans, including:
- Diarrhea
- Dysentery
- Food poisoning
- Cholera
Boxelder Bugs
Boxelder bugs seldom cause much damage to ornamental plants. However, when they wander inside your home during late fall, they become a nuisance.
The adult boxelder bug is about 1/2 inch long. It’s primarily black and has several scattered fluorescent red lines on its wings.
You can find boxelder bugs in large numbers from late August through October. They typically find shelter from the cold in these locations:
- Tree trunks
- Under rocks
- Within wall voids
- Door and window casings
- Inside homes
Worst Winter Pests in Odessa
Mice
House mice are small, measuring from four to six inches in length. They have gray fur, large ears, and black eyes.
Mice can be identified by the droppings they leave, which are about eight millimeters long, black, and pointed at both ends. You can also tell where they’ve been by their urine trails which you can detect with a black light.
Mice carry diseases such as hantavirus and salmonella. They also contaminate food with their fecal material and urine.
Mice eat almost anything, but they prefer cereal grains. That’s why it’s vital to seal food storage containers, especially where rice and flour products are kept.
Mice are often a challenge to control since it’s difficult to keep pace with their rapid reproduction. For example, one female can produce over 50 pups in a single year, and it takes only six to eight weeks to reach reproductive maturity.
Bed Bugs
Bed bugs are parasitic insects that feed on human blood for survival. However, it will also obtain a blood meal from chickens, rabbits, and mice.
Bed bugs are tiny, measuring only about 1/5 inch long. They are usually reddish-brown but turn bright red immediately after receiving a blood meal from their host.
Each female bed bug lays from two to five eggs per day, totaling between 200 and 500 in a lifetime. At room temperature, the eggs will hatch in about 10 to 15 days. After that, they take around six weeks to develop into adults.
Infestations occur throughout the following locations in the home:
- Mattress seams
- Bed frame cracks and joints
- Wood joints within box springs
- Inside furniture
- Under wallpaper
- Cracks and crevices in walls
Worst Spring Pests in Odessa
Termites
During the early spring months in Odessa, you may notice flying termites. These are reproductives, but it doesn’t mean you have an infestation in your home. It simply indicates that there are termites nearby.
The most troubling of the termite species in Texas is the Formosan subterranean termite. Unlike other types, it can live above ground and chew through a building twice as fast as others.
It also reproduces at an alarming rate. One colony can split off into three or four within a few months, creating millions of workers, thereby making control almost impossible.
Worst Summer Pests in Odessa
Fire Ants
The red imported fire ant is an invasive species arriving from South America and the Caribbean around the turn of the 20th century. It infests most of the Southern states from Florida to California, and you can find it taking over yards, parks, and agricultural fields.
Red imported fire ants are about 1/5 inch long and are dark reddish-brown. They construct large dome-shaped mounds for nesting in soft dirt. However, in some instances, they build their nests in other locations, such as:
- Downed logs
- Under sidewalks
- Wall voids
- Electrical utility boxes
The best way to eliminate fire ant mounds is with a granular ant bait. However, drenching the mound with a pesticide labeled for fire ants may be the only option in an emergency.