Pests

Carpenter Ant

• 1 to 15 mm long. Black, brown or reddish in colour.
• Live in moist or decaying wood and cut tunnels out of the wood to travel from one chamber to another. They do not eat the wood, but eject it outside the nest. Sawdust at the entrance to a nest is sign of infestation.
• Indoors, they can be concealed in wall voids, ceilings, sub floors and attics or hollow doors.
• Outdoor diet consists of insects, and the sweet secretions of aphids which are found on shrubs and trees. Indoors, ants will look for meat and sugary foods such as sugar, honey, and syrup.

Fire Ant

• 1 to7 mm long. Brown, yellow, red or black.
• Nest in large mounds up to 45 cm wide and 45 cm high. A colony can have 250,000 workers. Aggressive if nest is disturbed. A sting will produce a burning sensation. Can pose a threat to small pets.
• Diet consists of insects, meat, fruits, seeds, greasy foods and sweet foods.
• Queen lives up to six years and lays 1500 eggs per day. Eggs mature to adult in 30 days.

Faraoh Ant

• 2 mm long, yellow or light brown, almost transparent.
• Found in large buildings and hospitals and thrive on artificial heating. Commonly infest food service areas.
• Diet consists of almost all foods, especially sweet foods and meat.
• A single queen produces up to 400 workers in a few months. Colonies number from several dozen to 300 000 individuals.
• Very difficult to eradicate. Comprehensive baiting program is required.

Pavement Ant

• 3mm long and dark brown to black in colour.
• Nest outdoors under pavement, sidewalks, and building foundations.
• Will invade homes and buildings to eat almost anything, from honey, bread, meats, nuts and cheese.
• Queen produces up to 20 eggs per day. Eggs grow to maturity in 40 days.

Bed Bug

• 5 to 8 mm long. Reddish-brown, oval and flat body. Wingless. Resembles an appleseed.
• Human parasite. Feeds on blood. Active at night while host is asleep. Bites can be very itchy and uncomfortable.
• Hide in bedsheets, furniture, behind baseboards and picture frames. Infest houses and hotels internationally by travelling in suitcases.
• Females lay 200 to 500 eggs per lifetime. Lifespan is 300 days.

American Cockroach

• 23 to 32 mm in length, reddish-brown and winged.
• Can fit into small cracks and under doors despite its fairly large size. It is considered one of the fastest running insects. Generally live in moist, warm areas and do not tolerate the cold. May enter houses via sewer connections, under doors, around plumbing, air ducts, or other openings in the foundation.
• Feed on a wide variety of plant and animal material.
• Adult cockroaches can live up to one year, during which females produce an average of 150 young.

German Cockroach

• 13 to 16 mm long. Tan to light brown. Has two dark parallel streaks running from the head to the base of the wings. Although it has wings, it cannot sustain flight.
• One of the most common and prominent household cockroaches in the world. In colder climates, they are found primarily in households, restaurants and hotels as they do not tolerate the cold.
• Omnivore. Particularly like starch, sugary foods, fats and meat.
• Very resistant to pest control due to large number of nymphs produced from each egg case, the short period between birth and sexual maturity, and their ability to easily hide due to their small size.

Oriental Cockroach

• Large species of cockroach measuring 2.5 cm long. Dark brown to black with a glossy body.
• Often found near decaying organic matter and in sewers, drains, damp basements, porches and other damp locations.
• Cockroaches are mainly nocturnal. Oriental cockroaches can be elusive in that a casual inspection of an infested dwelling during the day may show no signs of roach activity.

Cricket

• 3 cm long with 3 black lines on the head and thin antennae. Body is yellowish-brown.
• Nocturnal. Active at night and attracted by light. The chirp (which only male crickets can do) is generated by raising their left forewing to a 45 degree angle and rubbing it against the right forewing. Crickets chirp at a higher rate in warmer temperatures.
• An excellent digger, it lives in deep tunnels underground.
• Omnivore. It will eat almost anything, including organic material and decomposing plants.

Flea

• Dark, wingless, agile insect with tubelike mouthparts. 2 to 6 mm long. Long legs capable of jumping 18 cm high.
• A parasite to humans and their pets. Live off the blood of their hosts. Bites cause itching and allergic reaction and can also transmit disease.
• Female lays 20 eggs at a time. Eggs usually found where infested host sleeps. Eggs take from 2 days to 2 weeks to hatch.

Drain Fly

• Small flies 1 to 5mm in length with light grey or tanned body. Short, hairy body and wings. At rest, the wings placement can be horizontal or folded on an incline over the body like a roof.
• In homes, adults can be found on the walls of bathrooms, kitchens and basements.
• Larvae live in shallow water environments containing organic matter such as bathroom sinks.
• A new generation of drain flies is produced every 1 to 3 weeks.

Fruit Fly

• Body is 1 to 2 mm in length and tan. Eyes are red. Abdomen is black on top and grey underneath.
• Attracted to ripe or rotting fruit, bark, flowers and mushrooms where females lay eggs and larvae develop.
• Life cycle is 25 days or more, depending on environmental conditions and food supply.

House Fly

• 5 to 8 mm long. Grey with four black longitudinal lines down the back. Red composite eyes.
• Carrier of over 100 pathogens such as typhoid, cholera and salmonella.
• Can walk on vertical surfaces or on ceilings with the aid of a liquid released near its feet which creates surface tension. Taste and odour receptors are located on the feet.
• Each female can lay 500 eggs during her lifetime. Larvae live and feed in organic material, such as garbage or faeces. Life expectancy is 25 days.
• In the winter, most house flies survive in the larval or pupa stage in a protected warm location.

Phorid-Humpbacked Fly

• 1/2 to 6 mm, black, brownish or yellowish with a characteristic hump on thorax.
• Found outdoors around flowers and moist decaying matter. Indoors, they breed in drain pipes. Adults escape by running quickly across a surface rather than taking flight.
• Female lays up to 100 eggs at a time that mature to adulthood in 25 days.

Mosquito

• Insects posessing a pair of scaled wings, long antennae and long legs.
• The female sucks blood from other animals to obtain the protein necessary for egg production.
• The eggs are deposited on stagnant water surfaces, natural and artificial, such as lakes, gutters, flower pots etc.
• Spread disease causing viruses such as West Nile Virus, yellow fever and numerous forms of encephalitis.

Spider

• Eight legs, wingless, without antennae.
• Certain types live in humid environments (basements, crawl spaces) while others prefer dryer areas (ceilings, attics, air vents). Hide in dark spaces.
• Feed exclusively on live prey caught directly or trapped in webs. Numerous species more active at night.
• Eggs are laid in silk cocoons. Depending on the size of the species, numbers vary from one to many thousands.

Tick

• Adults are 4mm long or 15 mm when engorged with host's blood, nymphs are 2mm long. Colours vary widely according to species.
• Ticks are ectoparasites (external parasites), living by hematophagy on the blood of mammals, birds, and occasionally reptiles and amphibians.
• Found in tall grass and shrubs where they wait to attach themselves to a passing host.
• Ticks can transmit a number of diseases, including Lyme disease and Tick-borne meningoencephalitis. The best way to prevent illness is to avoid being bitten. A close inspection upon return from the woods will allow detection and removal of ticks before they have a chance to transmit disease.

Rodents, Mice & Rats

House Mouse

• 7-10 cm long nose to tail. Large ears, small eyes and pointed nose. Light brown to grey in colour.
• Nests within structures close to a food supply. Excellent jumper and climber. Has musky odour and small, dark droppings. Mostly active at night. Can pass through holes or gaps 7 mm wide.
• Omnivore. Eats plant matter, grains, meat and dairy products.
• Reproduces 12 times per year with 3-16 young per litter.

Deer Mouse

• Grey to reddish-brown with a bicoloured tail(dark on top and light on bottom). 11-22 cm long body, pointed nose, large black eyes.
• Nests outdoors in hollowed logs or trees and prairie land. Nests indoors in attics or basements.
• Can transmit fatal illness in humans called Hantavirus.
• Eats seeds, fruits, nuts, caterpillars and other insects.
• Produces up to four litters a year, with 3 to 8 young per litter. Lifespan is 1 year.

Norway Rat

• One of the largest and most common rats in North America.
• Greyish-brown on top and greyish-white on underside. Up to 25 cm long with tail of similar length. Small eyes and ears, blunt nose and coarse fur.
• Nests in underground burrows and enters homes in search of food. Mainly active at night. Excellent sense of smell. Not a good climber.
• An omnivore, it will eat anything but prefers meats and grains.
• Female has 5 litters per year consisting of 7-15 pups. Lifespan is about 1 year.

Roof Rat

• Black to light brown with a lighter underside. 15 to 20 cm long with a 20 cm tail. Fur is smooth.
• Good climber who travels upwards to escape. Nocturnal. Omnivore, but has a preference for grains, fruits, nuts and vegetables.
• Females reproduce all year long with 3 to 6 litters per year and up to 10 pups per litter. Life span is 2 to 3 years in social groups of up to 60 individuals.
• Spreads a number of diseases, of which bubonic plague, typhus, toxoplasmosis and trichinosis are the most well known.

Humane Animal Capture

For nuisance animals such as a racoons, skunks, groundhogs, squirrels and pigeons we use only humane traps and relocate the animals to a natural environment where they are released.