Thank you - I'll will check if my university has offers this service.
It looks a conifer bug. Are those trees in the pine family?
Thank you - I'll will check if my university has offers this service.
It looks a conifer bug. Are those trees in the pine family?
Yes, there's a big pine in the back!
ETA: but I think that it belongs to the condo next to us?! I'll check in the morning. LOL
Asian lady beetles were non-native and were originally brought to the US to help control the aphid (and other insect) population. But as you indicated in your post, everything is interconnected, and these beetles have taken over like nobody's business. They have fewer natural predators here than they should, and they have proliferated like crazy. In the fall some years, they literally swarm and completely cover the south side of buildings, looking for ways inside to overwinter. I am not a fan of pesticides, either, and I choose to use none on my yard or in my garden. Nor do I use them every year on the house, but some years it is unbearable indoors unless we spray the house (just once normally does it), as the lady beetles get in, hibernate, and then wake up - indoors - in the spring. The house is full of them. We have been tightening up the outdoors more and more every year (new windows, new insulation, and we're planning on new siding soon), which helps, but not enough.
Anyway, they are definitely not the same as native lady bugs - those adorable, beneficial and non-swarming red insects that are great for gardens! Indeed, I haven't seen a native lady bug since the infestation of the Asian lady beetles.
Here ya go: Western Conifer Seed Bug.
Leptoglossus occidentalis
You are not alone
http://italyhouse.wordpress.com/2011/11/15/western-conifer-seed-bug/
It looks like they are trying to control this invasive insect with an insect pathogen to kill them off. Definitely contact any agricultural authority you can, I saw there is an entomological forum in italian as well. If this is your bug, it is the one that has impacted the pine nut crop etc., and something they are actively trying to get rid of. Dont spray unless they tell you to, I imagine they dont want it to become resistant...
Here is an older article that describes their life cycle and advises about screening windows etc. There may be a new treatment or trap available since this artlcle...
http://entomology.cornell.edu/cals/entomology/extension/idl/upload/Western-Conifer-Seed-Bug.pdf
Hopefully you will fine some help soon...
Lady beetles? = ladybugs? The same? :cry:
I am killing myself trying to attract them to my garden and make habitats for them. They are so rare here.
OP, I am so sorry to hear about your bug situation. You mention the trees, it is possible that the trees are infested which is why they dont look well and why there is a bug problem at that side of your house?
I dont know where you are but if there is a university around, there usually is an agricultural extension service that can help identify and deal with pests like this, first by identifying what they are precisely, and then helping you figure out what to do to decrease the problem: either by removing their habitat--in the case of rotting trees--- or providing you with the proper ways to deal with them at the source, or by using the most effective treatment.
You might be able to attract them away from you home with something like dim garden lights, for example, if they are more active at night. Or you may be able to find a natural predator for them, as for example ladybugs are natural predators for aphids and control them better than any pesticide
There may also be things you can plant in the garden that will discourage them...marigolds for example may turn them away somewhat. Or putting out a bird feeder may attract birds to your yard that will eat these bugs...lots of possiblities...
Different pesticides target different kinds of insects, particularly if you are trying to use the environmentally friendly kinds of insect controls. Pest control companies often use a broad spectrum insecticide that kills EVERYTHING, which, yes, is terrible for the environment. Bugs are part of country life, believe me I know! But sometimes we have to choose our battles, it is impossible to just kill everything. Best to find a way to make some peace with at least some of them, particularly those that will not harm you.
Spraying is not healthy for you either....and if your bug has a natural predator it will kill that too. And worse yet, can kill the bees that visit the gardens looking for food. Bees are already dwindling, so yes, I do take every opportunity to say lets not make things worse for them, we need them for 80% of our food crops and they are amazing.
Anyway, hopefully you can target the insects that are making the most trouble for you. Oftentimes we dont understand that the insects are beneficial in the food chain, for example as food for bats or birds; or important for their control of other insects, too.
If you must spray, please try to find someone who will help you target the kind of bug you have the most trouble with, not all of them. Perhaps with these beetles you will need to treat the soil....
There are LOTS of alternatives that do less harm than a broad spray of chemical insecticide. Even pyrethrins, while natural, is also a very broad killer. I hope you can find one that will help you feel at ease in your home.
Good luck.
Wow, that is terrible!! I wonder if a simple spray of a little dish soap and water in a spray bottle would make them easier to get rid of in the house. That really is awful, NC