Box elder bugs
Box elder bugs are a common sight in rural areas of southern Ontario. They are a frustrating insect that can bother people to no end but they are not dangerous to humans. They are not poisonous and they are not going to damage your home. They are not going to burrow into anything like termites or carpenter ants and they are not a health hazard they do not being dangerous bacteria into your home. The thing that makes them frustrating is their presence and their smell
Killing box elder bugs
When you kill one of these bugs and by that I mean squashing it you can release a terrible smell that is like wrote. Like a stink bug they can also emit this smell when they are scared or frustrated. Their internal organs are bright red like raspberries so when you squash one it will permentantly stain when ever you squashed it on including while cloth and linen and white walls or any light colours material. So do not squash them.
Why are they so annoying
These bugs are fine in the summer they really do not bother anyone and are rarely seen in any populated area like a city. However as the temperatures go down and winter approaches these bugs panic and want to find a warm place to house themselves. This is commonly against a wall of your house or even inside of the house. They will struggle and fight to get into the house and will pile up on the outside leaving stains all over your home and causing all kinds of mayhem to the people living in the house. It can be terrifying seeing this many bugs trying to get into your home and is a threat not to your physical health but your mental health.
Dealing with them
There are many natural methods of dealing with them. Like all insects they have a carapace and this carapace takes in oxygen through tiny holes called spiracles that lead to pipelines that lead the air to the internal organs. This is the same for almost all insects and is the reason they do not have lungs. By blocking these openings you can kill them. This can be done with soap. Mix soap like dish soap in water in a spray bottle and spray the bugs. The soap will dry up and block their spiracles and they will suffocate. This may sound horrifying but trust that this is not like drawing a mama in water. They just fall asleep and don’t wake up.
Box elder bug treatments
If this situation has gotten too sever for you and you want a real treatment you can call a professional exterminator that can do a pesticide spray on the exterior of the house. This will kill the bugs when they try to gather on it they will die from the spray. If they are getting inside the house a basic baseboard spray would be enough to kill them off. Just don’t sweep the bugs up they need to be vacuumed or they will leave marks on the floor.
