KALAMAZOO, Mich. — If you’ve seen a lot of stink bugs lately, you’re not alone.
The months of September and October are when these pests try to find a warm place before winter, and many times it’s your home.
Stink bugs typically emerge in the spring and breed during the warmer months.
With how warm this fall has been, this gives them more time to breed.
Stink bugs also don’t have many natural predators in the United States due to the fact that they are an invasive species.
It wasn’t until the mid 1990s that these bugs showed up in the U.S., and they have grown in numbers ever since.
The best way to stop stink bugs from getting into a building is by targeting gaps, cracks, and crevasses.
One way to do this is by sealing them up.
Another way is to spray key areas that stink bugs use to get inside.
“Lay down that protective barrier around doors, windows, foundation lines, roof line, and along the soffits,” Tony Sorrentino, an associate certified entomologist and director of business development for Pest Pros of Michigan, said. “That’s where the gaps, cracks and crevices are. It might not look like a big deal to us, but to something that’s a half-inch long, there’s plenty of opportunity to get into your house.”
If a stink bug does make it into your house, avoid killing it, unless you want to stick up the room.
Instead, use a vacuum to suck up the bug.
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