Where Do Pests Go In The Cold?

With all of the snow this past weekend, it’s been rather chilly.  Luckily enough, we can put on jackets and parkas and whatnot to stay warm, but there are plenty of insects out there that aren’t so lucky.  So, what do they do to stay warm in a world where there is a short supply of tiny coats made for pests?

Some Just Keel Over

Yes, it is a sad fact of life, but there are some critters out there who are not made to survive the freezing cold temperatures of a winter, and instead use their final days to prepare for the next generation of pests to come.  Field crickets fall into this category, as while their exoskeletons are not the greatest at holding in heat, their eggs can make it past winter temperatures into the spring. So, once their eggs are safely put in the ground and winter comes, they can leave happy knowing that they have fulfilled their life’s mission of passing on their genes.  Morbid, we know, but that’s just the way the cookie crumbles for these critters.

Some Head South

Other pests—once they catch wind of changing temperatures—will high-tail it out of the cold lands and into much warmer ones.  The monarch butterfly is a prominent example of doing this. In practicality, unless you are a farmer, you typically do not deal with migrating pests too much.  Even though they are moving en masse, they are unlikely to pose a strong danger to your home.

Some Seek Shelter

Alright, now these are the ones that you need to worry about.  Some pests will try to find suitable shelter to wait out the winter, and many of them, like beetles, will find a rotting log or a tree to reside in to stay warm during the cold months.  Yet, if they stumble upon a warm, human-built structure before they can find the perfect log, you better believe that they will make themselves feel right at home. During the winter, people most often see ladybugs in this fashion, as they will move in droves to find warm shelter together.  Don’t let that be your home. To reduce the chances of them coming inside, ensure that your weatherstripping is intact and keep doors and windows open for as little as possible.

Just like you, pests want to stay warm, but that doesn’t mean that you need to open up your house to them.  If you find some pests hunkering down for the winter inside your home, please give us a call!