beetles Archives - Pest Control Philippines

January 23, 2017October 28, 2020

7 Cutest Insects in the World

There are millions of insects in the world. Some of them, like the silent destroyers, are harmful to people and their properties, prompting house owners to call a termite control service provider to help eliminate them.

However, there are insects which are quite helpful to the environment. For instance, the black and yellow garden spider is dubbed as the ‘guardian of the garden’ because it helps control the population of pests. Meanwhile, the eastern carpenter bee plays a big role in the pollination process, contributing to the world’s food supply.

The truth is, not all insects are the same. Some are hazardous to your health while others are helpful to you and the environment. Even their appearances are very different from one another. While there are insects that look creepy and dangerous, there are some that are actually cute and colorful. Actually, there are at least seven bugs which are so adorable, no one would think about calling them pests!

Swallowtail Caterpillar

Everyone knows that before acquiring magnificent wings, butterflies start as caterpillars. However, not all of them are as cute as this adorable larva of the spicebush swallowtail – an elegant looking black butterfly with stunning blue patterns in its wings. This cute and squishy caterpillar has eyes that deceptively look like that of a snake’s, scaring and confusing predators.

Damselfly

Known for its electric blue color, the damselfly resembles another insect – the dragonfly. How do you differentiate the two? If the insect you spotted is holding its long wings parallel to its body, then it’s the former because a dragonfly usually keeps its wings outstretched when resting. The damselfly is considered as one of the animals with the most incredible and charming eyes.

Hot Neon Hopper Nymph

One of the most colorful insects that you’ll ever encounter is the hot neon hopper nymph. With its amazingly green googly eyes and bright orange body, this cute insect looks like it belongs in an animated movie. The hot neon hopper nymph comes in various colors such as yellow and green.

Jewel Beetle

This type of beetle is sometimes called as rainbow jewel beetle. Why? It’s because this beetle is covered in different colors that glint vividly like oil slick in a puddle. Due to its astonishing appearance, its larger and more colorful types are sought after by collectors. In some Asian countries, their elytra are also used for beetlewing jewelry and decoration. The Jewel beetle belongs to the family Buprestidae – a family of beetles is considered as one of the largest with over 15,000 known species worldwide.

Man-faced Bugs

Man-faced bug or Catacanthus incarnatus is a species of true bug. How did it get its name? On the back of this insect, you’ll see a face-like image complete with eyes, mouth, and slicked back hair. However, despite its cool look, man-faced bugs are pretty smelly. This insect can be found in southeast Asia and it comes in four bright colors: red, cream, orange, and yellow.

Saddleback Caterpillar

With its saddle-like green pattern in its dorsal midsection, the saddleback caterpillar is one of the cutest insects you’ll ever see – it looks like a miniature dog that is covered in green, white, and brown! However, despite its adorable appearance, you should be careful with this insect as its spikes are venomous.

Treehopper

Member of the family Membracidae, treehoppers are cute little bugs that come in different shapes and colors. The cutest of them all is probably the Umbonia spinosa – a green treehopper with red lines across its back. Currently, there are at least 3, 200 known species of this type of insect. And although their kind has been thriving for millions of years, each treehopper actually lives for a few months only.

With their adorable shapes and bright colors, it’s no wonder that these seven insects can catch anyone’s attention! Unlike other insects, the bugs on this list will surely leave you astonished with their cuteness.

February 23, 2016October 27, 2020

3 Beetles that Deserve to Have Pest Control Used on Them

Beetles are one of Earth’s most magnificent creatures. As the largest group of living organisms ever, they can be found in varied forms all over the world. Some of them – like the Hercules beetle or the Unicorn beetle – are completely harmless to humans. However, with a diversity and population that huge, it comes as no surprise that there are also “bad” varieties as well – the kinds that need a little bit of pest control to keep in check.

Beetles have over 300,000 species worldwide. They can be found in almost every environment, and as such, they’ve developed roles in the ecosystem that either hurt or help their current homes. While some are happy to encourage pollination, get rid of garbage, or snack on other dead organisms, there are also those who destroy crops or personal property. The ones who commit the latter actions are, of course, the ones that need to go.

In this article we’ll tackle some of the beetles that need regulation, so watch out if you happen to come across any of them!

The Varied Carpet Beetle

Able to grow to a size of only 3 millimeters, this beetle is most commonly found in normal residential homes or – more disturbingly – museums. Their life cycle begins when the eggs are laid. This is usually done in dark, isolated places where they won’t be disturbed. Once they hatch and begin to pupate into adults, that’s when the problem begins. This is because this type of beetle is fond of eating organic materials such as furniture, clothing, carpets, or anything fiber-like; items that have been stored for long periods of time (including woodwind instruments or felts) are no exception.

Fortunately, there are numerous ways to combat them. By keeping your items generally clean overall, the risk of finding them lodged into your stuff decreases significantly. Avoid stockpiling your things (for long periods of time) and vacuum them regularly. It also helps if you place naphthalene balls in your closets and remove other dirty items should you have any.

The Merchant Grain Beetles

You can easily spot these beetles by their extremely flat body structure which allows them to squeeze through small spaces such as packaged foods or little containers which they need in order to successfully live and reproduce – and reproduce they definitely do! They’re not rare creatures; in fact, they can be found all over the world especially in cooler climates where it’s easier for them to thrive. Just look in food processing areas or warehouses and they’re bound to be there somewhere. They’re especially drawn to foods which are high in fat such as cakes, cookies, or chocolate, so keep them safe in air tight containers!

The Powder Post Beetles

Similar to the Merchant Grain Beetles, they too have long, flat bodies that enable them to be mobile even in small spaces. Instead of feeding on packaged goods, though, Powder Post Beetles would rather feed on hard woods and the like. They live there too, using small niches in the wood as nests to lay their eggs in. They are fond of feeding and digging into wooden items such as floors, walls, and even furniture! Keeping them away is essential to keeping your home in shape, so make sure that you take preventive measures to keep them away. Try methods such as inspecting the wood in your home every now and then to make sure it hasn’t gone bad or painting and sealing any exposed raw wood. These beetles may seem harmless but they can really cause a lot of damage, so keep them far away!

October 12, 2015October 27, 2020

5 Most Destructive Tree Insects

Agricultural threats usually entail the attack of pests. While they would seem harmless to humans, pests are notorious for harming crops, trees, and the likes. If left uncontrolled, the damages inflicted by pests can truly exasperate livelihood for quite a lot of people, and on a larger scale, the source of food for majority of the people in the Philippines. Luckily with the dawn of new age and innovations’ rapid propagation, businesses for pest and termite control have become our saving grace for these travesties.

Threats such as pests and destructible insects are most detrimental when hungry. That being said, when on the occasion that hunger strikes them, natural instincts would move them to quickly scarf down on any biotic entity they set their eyes upon on. There are some beneficial and good-natured insects, but that’s not what we’re here to talk about. Check out the five most notorious culprits that are the most common killers of tress! (Despite our track record, humans are not included in this list.)

Asian Longhorned Beetle

They mainly munch on hardwoods and are usually spotted in places like Massachusetts, New York, Ohio and Ontario, living on and off any kind or species of hardwood such as oaks, poplars, mountain ash, birch trees and maples. Pests like these are usually borer insects, meaning they have larvae that are able to dig tunnels throug the trunk of trees, while the adults would hollow out oval furrows in the bark. You can easily spot them because of their dark, glossy bodies, irregular white spots, and long antennae. Not to mention, the Asian Longhorned Beetle are pretty large, ranging from 0.75-1.25 inches long.

Brown Spruce Longhorn Beetle

Brown Spruce Longhorn Beetles are villainous because of their known affection for destroying spruce trees. They often target weakened and distressed trees. When a spruce has holes in their bark as well as flowing resin, then it is almost certain that the suspects are Bruce Spruce Longhorn Beetles. Their larvae digs an “L” shaped tunnel under the bark on the trees they infest.

Spruce Budworm

Otherwise known as the choristoneura occidentalis, Spruce Budworms are more common and widespread in forests of North America. They would destroy and infest on douglas-fir and white fir, also there are times when they would infest on spruce, blue spruce and sub-alpine fir. They are very obvious to spot because of their caterpillar appearance and are usually brown. While they normally live in the forest, there is also a large possibility of them visiting you in your backyard as well.

Beech Scale

beechscale

Beech Scales are one of the most common pests that can detriment any tree and are surprisingly tiny, usually no bigger than 1 mm. Usually when Beech Scales wreak havoc, they would use their mouthpiece to suck and pierce through the bark of a tree to suck its sap. These holes they make will take a long time to close, if ever at all. The infected tree usually has a hard time recovering, and they become more vulnerable to fungal infections and diseases that could cause its eventual decay.

Emerald Ash Borer

Ash trees in other parts of the world are the most prominent figures of forests, and they are especially abundant in cities as well. These ash trees are the favorite targets of Emerald Ash Borers. These critters love to dig an “S” shaped grooved in the tree’s bark, which can kill it slowly in five years’ time. The ash trees that get infected would have a distinctive hole that can easily influence other shoots of the tree to become ill, which may cause the tree to lose its leaves among other things.

It’s sad to think that one of our most beloved entities of nature are easy prey for pests. However, take comfort in knowing that this can be prevented. Should you suspect that the trees in your beloved front or backyard have unwanted visitors, do not hesitate to call for pest control to confirm!