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One of the cats brought in fleas (they're not supposed to be out in the first place, but that's another story). My husband has about two bites. My flesh is covered in them. Fleas like me. My husband keeps saying "I don't think it's the fleas that are biting you, they prefer animals if there are any around". I tell him that he does not know fleas and me. Fleas have always liked me. I tried the oiling up, and that was a bust. I've told him he needs to find the Advantage and dose the cats, but he's taking his own sweet time about it.
In the meantime, I have discovered where the nasty little ants are coming into the apartment. An ant stake will be bought. I don't mind ants when they wander in the window now and then, but coming up through the wall is not playing fair. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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CDC has a collaboration with Orkin. Here is a brochure Orkin put out about pests. Not all of them are insects or even arthropods, but they're all nasty!
Posts: 2069 | Registered: May 2001
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I noticed on Saturday that we have what I think may be ladybug larva in our back yard (black bodies, six legs, a few orange looking slashes on them, and a very efficient search pattern). I'm thrilled to think that in a few weeks we could have lots of ladybugs around. I hope they'll find food nearby (the only aphids I've seen have been on weeds when we pulled them out) so they'll hang around.
I haven't seen any geckos yet, which makes me sad. I've joked (but am actually half serious) about capturing some from my parents house (about 15 miles away) and bringing them to my house.
I'm pretty good about living with bugs, but there are a couple that I have a hard time with. For me, it's earwigs - they just look plain creepy and I can't get past it - and cockroaches - they're too dang fast and it weirds me out that you could step on them and they'd just get up and run away. Luckilly for me, I've rarely seen either in my space.
I usually try to take spiders found indoors outside - hubby has an intense visceral hatred of them. The exceptions are black widows - they get set on fire along with their webs and eggsacs - regardless of where they are. I've actually been rather pleased at the scarcity of bugs at our new home (since we are in a new development and border on a huge area of empty land - an Indian reservation). We'll see how it goes as it continues to warm up. I just hope we won't have to deal with scorpions. I kind of figured we'd have seen some in the winter time (when they're looking for someplace warm to be) if they were around.
Posts: 5879 | Registered: Apr 2001
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I get along well with most insects, and even spiders. There is one very pretty gray one that lives under my bed, and sometimes when I'm doing homework he comes up to visit. However, other arachnids frighten me.
I'm trying to come to terms with my disgust for ticks especially. They just seem so revolting. And I was thinking today about chiggers. I don't know exactly what a chigger is, but it sounds bad.
So, I guess my questions are, what are chiggers, are they harmful, and can anyone say anything good about ticks.
Posts: 349 | Registered: May 2003
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Chiggers are little red bugs that burrow into your skin and sit there. And itch. And sit there. And itch. They only way I know to get rid of them is to suffocate them out by putting nail polish over the bite(?).
And that is my info about chiggers. Don't sit on things in the South. Like rock walls or logs. They will get in yout rear end and sit. And itch. Do you get my point yet? They also like to live in Spanish Moss.
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Centipedes and millipedes are one of my phobias. I learned to tolerate, if not like, most bugs when I was a camp counsellor and had to act "cool" in front of the kids who were freaking out at the sight of a ladybug. But I cannot abide millipedes and will cower in the metaphorical corner. They are just gross and disgusting and *shudderSHUDDERSHUDDER*
I do kind of like stinkbugs, though. Or at least, I was told they're stinkbugs. They move slowly and they actually look cool compared to most bugs. This kind! I guess I'm pretty weird in that I'd rather hold a stinkbug than a caterpillar. Of course, I'd rather hold neither, and observe without touching (this was o.k. at camp because we stressed the "look but not touch" thing a lot anyway).
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Was it in the Mamma Bugga Bugga thread that I posted my centipede story? It would horrify you, EL, so you're lucky I'm too tired to either find the original post or repost the story here.
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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quote:the only other insects known to do this are social spiders
Well, that's kind of an egregious error for a supposedly scientific journal to make. That's kind of like discovering a species of rodent that's evolved a hard shell for protection and saying, "The only other mammal known to have this is the turtle."
Posts: 1814 | Registered: Jul 2004
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