Brown marmorated stink bug control
Iam really surprised that I have not received any calls recently on this invasive insect pest. At the Bowman home, we may have seen a few inside the house plus several in or on our vehicles. I do remember back in 2018 arriving at my daughter’s high school softball game and our lawn chairs had collected many of these stink bugs from the trunk of the car or garage.
This brown marmorated stink bug can be more of a nuisance issue for the majority of people, but they also can be an economic issue for growers of certain crops. Today, I will give some basic background information on this insect pest and on control tips. I will be sharing information from a co-worker, Paul Pugliese from Bartow County, data from a UGA pamphlet on this insect plus information found on the UGA Media Newswire. You may say stink bugs are nothing new. We always have stink bugs in our area. This is true, but this is a new species.
I remember as a young boy helping my parents pick blackberries on the family farm in the 1970s. I was eating more than were going into my bucket. Finally, I received a big surprise when that last berry had a stink bug wanting it too. Both the berry and the stink bug went in my mouth. I don’t think I consumed anymore blackberries on that trip. In fact, that scenario may be why blackberries are not on my list of favorites even today. Again, these stink bugs are a different species.
In Georgia, they are established in north and central Georgia. The first documented report of the brown marmorated stink bug was in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania in 2001, but claims are they had been observed in the area by homeowners since
1996. These stink bugs are native to Asia. The population we have seems to be more closely related to the stink bugs found in China. The general idea is this species came to the United States in freight containers. At the time of our pamphlet printing, the brown marmorated stink bug has been seen in 42 states and 2 Canadian provinces mainly due to their ability to hitchhike in vehicles and commerce. To top it off, there are few natural predators of this stink bug.
Keep in mind to not consider every stink bug as the brown marmorated sting bug. The brown marmorated stink bug that can be damaging will have a stripped antennae, smooth shoulders and a small mouthpart. The beneficial predator sting bug can have a solid antennae, spines or indentations on their shoulders and a stouter mouthpart. The beneficial predator sting bugs will eat harmful insect pests. Again, proper identification can be important in many situations.
What can a homeowner do? I will remind you that this stink bug can cause crop damage to small fruits, vegetable crops, flower stems, soybeans, field and sweet corn and cotton to name a few. Today, we will just center on what homeowners can do to reduce issues on the property. If the brown marmorated stink bug is calling your house, storage building or even vehicle home, a vacuum cleaner may be the best way to remove. A shop vacuum is recommended since stink bug odors can absorb into conventional vacuum cleaners. I will add that stink bugs can be easily eliminated when dumped into a bucket of soapy water. I don’t want to scare you, but our information states that in some reports, over 25,000 stink bugs have been found in a single home. I have never heard of that in our area.
Exclusion of this pest from the home in the first place is the best method. As weather cools, these stink bugs seem to congregate on the south and west facing sides of homes that receive warm sunlight. Stink bugs will also enter a dwelling at any place they can find an opening. The goal can be to weather-proof your home. By weather-proofing, you not only keep the insects out, but you can have energy cost savings. Caulk can be your best friend by using the proper silicone or silicone-latex caulk to fix cracks around windows, doors, siding, utility pipes, behind chimneys and underneath wood fascia for example.
Read the label of any product or check with a sales associate to make sure you are using the correct product. You need to fix any damaged screens on doors, windows and attic vents. Weather stripping can be beneficial and also use of door sweeps can help. Again, the goal is to keep this stink bug on the outside. If your time is limited in doing this work, you may want to start on the south or west facing sides of the home or building since this is where they seem to congregate in the fall. Once cold weather arrived, their activity is reduced.
Just keep in mind, if you had issues in the fall with home entry, you will see them trying to exit the home when the warm spring weather arrives. I will add one more thing on the weather-proofing of the home. Many if not all of these steps will assist in reducing any issues with lady beetle invasion too. Remember, lady beetles are beneficial insects, but we definitely want to keep them outdoors too. The goal of the insects is to find a nice warm place to spend the winter while your goal is to keep them on the outside.