Pest control

[Sana]

I've just moved into a new house and I'm having some issues with various pests, aphids currently topping my list of annoyances. The darn little wretches are everywhere in the yard and travel in on the dogs, my clothes, and anything else that enters the house. I've spent some time researching ways to get rid of them and there are any number of ideas out there. Chemicals pesticides are off the possibles list out of common sense (tarantulas+pesticide, duh). There are other suggestions such as neem oil, dish soap, and of all things, ladybugs. Neem oil and soap seem to have some similar potential issues to pesticides. Anything coming into the house through the yard tracks it in and if I'm reading correctly those can both have negative effects on spiders. So then there's ladybugs (common name for members of the Coccinellidae family I think). I ran across a thread here that suggests ladybugs may be excrete a toxin that is harmful to spiders. The thread was specifically in regard to feeding them to tarantulas and that isn't on my list of plans. Before I cultivate a ladybug colony (?) in my yard does anyone know if they do indeed secrete a toxin that would harm my tarantulas?

 

[Tenevanica]

Coccinellidae is what I would suggest. They release a chemical through their leg joints when they're disturbed, but I'm unsure of its toxicity. I'm sure it would be fine, but lady beetles are hard to culture. You aren't going to keep them in a colony. They're easy to collect with a sweep net though! Just go out to a field and start sweeping. Lady beetles are some of my most common catches using that method!

 

[Sana]

Coccinellidae is what I would suggest. They release a chemical through their leg joints when they're disturbed, but I'm unsure of its toxicity. I'm sure it would be fine, but lady beetles are hard to culture. You aren't going to keep them in a colony. They're easy to collect with a sweep net though! Just go out to a field and start sweeping. Lady beetles are some of my most common catches using that method!

My local nursery sells containers of them this time of year. From my reading both ladybugs and aphids are attracted to marigolds, which are super easy to grow here. I did some research on the best ways to entice them to make a home in your yard when you release them so I would stand the best chance of getting them to hang around.

 

[Flexzone]

Adult ladybirds are able to reflex-bleed from the tibio-femoral articulations (leg joints). The blood (hemolymph) is repellent by having a repulsive smell as well as containing (in some species) various alkaloid toxins (adaline, coccinelline, exochomine, hippodamine, etc.). The hemolymph is yellow and its repellency and toxicity are believed to be a defense mechanism against predators, deterring feeding in both larval and adult beetles. Should be fine as long as you wash your hands when interacting with them and keep them in a secure setup.

 

[EulersK]

I had an infestation of aphids when I first moved into this house.

Had.

$20 worth of ladybugs on Amazon fixed the issue right quick. I couldn't recommend it any higher.

 

[sdsnybny]

as well as the lady birds from your better home and garden centers you can by mantis egg sacs to let hatch in your yard.

 

[Sana]

as well as the lady birds from your better home and garden centers you can by mantis egg sacs to let hatch in your yard.

Mantids have been added to my list. I ran a quick search on the best species for my area and Mantis religiosa are the only species that will be likely to survive a winter in my area. I'm having trouble finding them for sale though.

 

[Trenor]

Mantids have been added to my list. I ran a quick search on the best species for my area and Mantis religiosa are the only species that will be likely to survive a winter in my area. I'm having trouble finding them for sale though.

If they are like the mantids we have here they lay eggs and die out in the winter any way. You just need to find a species that will live during spring/summer for your area.

 

[cold blood]

I had an infestation of aphids when I first moved into this house.

Had.

$20 worth of ladybugs on Amazon fixed the issue right quick. I couldn't recommend it any higher.

They will also eat mites. My place is crawling with ladybugs at some points of the year, I know they've found there way into enclosures as I see their shells, I've also seen true spiders eating them.

 

[viper69]

I had an infestation of aphids when I first moved into this house.

Had.

$20 worth of ladybugs on Amazon fixed the issue right quick. I couldn't recommend it any higher.

aphids are primary food for Ladybugs, didn't know you could buy on Amazon.

I've used them before and it worked perfectly. Thankfully not in conjunction w/my Ts.

 

[EulersK]

They will also eat mites. My place is crawling with ladybugs at some points of the year, I know they've found there way into enclosures as I see their shells, I've also seen true spiders eating them.

Don't they pretty much eat anything that's slower and smaller than them? They are insectivores, after all. Have you seen the mandibles on those things? Absolutely ravenous, it's on par with the mouth parts of a mantid.

 

[Sana]

If they are like the mantids we have here they lay eggs and die out in the winter any way. You just need to find a species that will live during spring/summer for your area.

Interesting. I must have misunderstood what I was reading. I'm pretty excited for the idea of having a mantid and ladybug population in my yard. I'm also learning to build a bat box. They eat a number of pests, maybe even aphids if I'm lucky. They definitely eat mosquitoes though so either way it's a win.

 

[Sarkhan42]

Ladybugs can bite and draw blood, I know from experience, those mandibles are no joke. They're definitely an excellent pest control option, but I've also known people to have infestations of them as well, but granted they're much more pleasant than aphids, and much less likely to infest given the amount of prey they have to consume.

 

[Trenor]

Interesting. I must have misunderstood what I was reading. I'm pretty excited for the idea of having a mantid and ladybug population in my yard. I'm also learning to build a bat box. They eat a number of pests, maybe even aphids if I'm lucky. They definitely eat mosquitoes though so either way it's a win.

Stagmomantis carolina - This species is found in southern North America, from the state of New Jersey west to Illinois, Missouri, Texas, and Arizona, and down through Mexico to Central America. (Lutz, 1948)

They mature over the spring and summer, lay their egg sack, die with the coming winter. It does mention they can live longer in states like FL that have milder winters. Here is a few good links for info on them.
http://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Stagmomantis_carolina/
http://bugguide.net/node/view/4821

Ladybugs are good to have too. We always had those around in the spring and summer.

Bat boxes are fun, my niece made a few and had good luck with them. We had a lot of bats on the farm growing up. Our two hay barns had a hollow boxed roof over hang that the bats loved. As a kid, it was always fun to sit out near the yard night light and watch them rolling after food.

Ladybugs can bite and draw blood, I know from experience, those mandibles are no joke. They're definitely an excellent pest control option, but I've also known people to have infestations of them as well, but granted they're much more pleasant than aphids, and much less likely to infest given the amount of prey they have to consume.

They can appear to infest when they hatch but usually disperse quickly unless there is an abundance of food right where they hatch. Usually when people see them in their houses they have hatched there from one or two who got inside. Without a lot of food available, an open window will quickly see them move out. If food is available they will stick around till it's not.