The American cockroach is the largest species of cockroach to invade residential and commercial properties here in Colorado, coming in at approximately 1.5 inches long on average. These cockroaches are typically reddish-brown in color, and have a pale yellow or brown band around the edges of the area behind their heads. Male cockroaches are slightly longer than females in most cases, because their wings reach .25 inches beyond the tip of their abdomens.

American cockroaches invade homes while seeking out food, moisture, and shelter from outside conditions. However, finding cockroaches on your property can lead to potential health risks for you and your family.

These large, filthy creatures often bring several different bacteria, pathogens, and parasites into the properties they infest, usually after traveling through one of their many food sources. A few of the items cockroaches enjoy feeding on include animal carcasses, feces, sewage, decaying organic matter, and garbage.

While cockroaches may be a beneficial part of nature, they become a health hazard when they venture into your home or business. Reducing moisture around your property and removing available food sources can help deter cockroaches from your property before they’ve invaded. If American cockroaches have already found their way onto your property, it’s always best to reach out to a professional pest control company before your cockroach infestation begins to multiply.

Fire ants get their name from their reddish-brown coloring and the sharp, burning pain that they induce when they sting you. While these nuisance insects are not native to the United States, fire ants have spread across the majority of the southern states. Fire ants originated in South America, and first appeared in the United States in the 1930’s, introduced through the port of Mobile, Alabama.

Now that fire ants have made themselves at home in our country, however, they cause many problems for Colorado residents. In most cases, fire ants build their nests outside, and only venture indoors to find an easily accessible source of food, though there have been instances where fire ant nests were built within wall voids and other vacant spaces.

Unlike other ant colonies, fire ants create distinctive dirt mounds where their nests are located, which can be as large as 61cm, or approximately 2 feet wide.

Viewed as the most dangerous ants found in our area, fire ants are attracted to fats and sweets, which can often be found in garbage cans and unsecured food storage containers. These aggressive ants are more likely to build their nests in open, sunny locations, although sometimes they can be found in shaded or forested areas.

During the summer months, mosquitoes are simply accepted by most residents as an unfortunate part of warmer weather. While these annoying insects are labeled as nuisance pests in most areas, mosquitoes can actually be quite dangerous under the right circumstances.

Most of the time, being bitten by a mosquito will only leave you with an uncomfortable, itchy bite mark on your arms, legs, hands, or feet. However, mosquitoes are also known for their capability to spread harmful diseases all around the U.S. and the rest of the world.

Some of the diseases mosquitoes have transmitted to humans include encephalitis, malaria, dengue, and yellow fever. These diseases are passed from person to person when mosquitoes bite an infected individual and move on to bite a healthy individual soon after. When you’re bitten by an infected mosquito, a small portion of the infected blood is transferred from the mosquito’s proboscis into your bloodstream, which is how these diseases are spread.

Mosquitoes thrive in warm, humid climates with lots of moisture, which is why you can often find large clouds of mosquitoes around thick foliage, tall grasses, and around stagnant bodies of water. To reduce your exposure to mosquitoes this summer, it’s important to avoid these mosquito hot spots.

Roof rats are horrifying pests to discover on your property, and not only because they can reach lengths of up to 18″ long from nose to tail. Often referred to as the “black rat” due to their sleek, dark brown or black fur, roof rats get their name from their incredible ability to climb trees, walls, and roofing.

These agile rodents are often mistaken for Norway rats due to their similar appearance, though roof rats can be identified by their slightly longer tails and more pointed noses. If roof rats find a way into your home or commercial property, you could potentially be dealing with an all-out infestation within a matter of a few months. Roof rats can reproduce up to four times a year, and young rats reach maturity at about three months of age.

When roof rats invade, they chew on furniture, personal items, books, wiring, piping, and structural wooden beams. Like all rodents, they need to constantly chew on items to keep their front incisors from overgrowing. In addition to the damage they can cause by chewing, roof rats also spread harmful bacteria and parasites, which can cause severe health issues for you or your family.

Yellow jackets are a type of wasp species that are between 3/8″ and 5/8″ in length. These wasps are social insects, which means they live in large colonies with several hundred individual workers. Yellow jackets are considered to be more aggressive than many other stinging insect species. However, most yellow jackets will not sting unless they feel threatened or are defending their nests from potential predators.

These frightening wasps construct their nests out of paper, and have been known to nest in trees, around buildings, inside logs, and even in the ground, depending on the species. Yellow jacket nests can grow to be quite large, with anywhere between 500 and 15,000 cells, and may consist of several thousand wasps within larger colonies. If yellow jackets are nesting on your property, there’s a chance they were initially attracted to your home by an open garbage can or other accessible food source.

Yellow jacket stings can be painful, and may even trigger anaphylactic shock in individuals who are allergic to yellow jacket venom. It’s important to understand that yellow jacket infestations should never be dealt with alone. Professional stinging insect treatment and control is always better than putting yourself and your family at risk by taking wasp control into your own hands.

Ventura County Pest Control always goes the extra mile for our customers! To learn how we can protect your home or business from the threat of pests, contact Ventura County today!

Here in Colorado, there are many different species of spiders that residential and commercial property owners must deal with on a daily basis. While most of the spiders you will encounter aren’t harmful, every spider infestation can still become a nuisance. The size of most invading spiders range between 0.02″ and 3.5″ long, and come in a variety of different colors and patterns. Some spiders may appear tan, while others are black, yellow, or striped.

Wolf spiders are among the most common spiders to invade Colorado properties and are relatively large when it comes to size (about 1.3″). Unlike other species of home-invading spiders, wolf spiders use their speed and strength to chase and hunt down their insect prey instead of catching them with webs. While these large spiders can be terrifying to discover late at night, wolf spiders are not a health threat for humans.

Black widow spiders and brown recluse spiders, on the other hand, are two species of spider you want to stay far away from. Both of these spiders produce a dangerous venom, and though black widow and brown recluse spiders would rather avoid human contact, they will bite when threatened. When it comes to spider infestations, it’s better to be safe than sorry and contact a pest control professional. This will help you to avoid the threat of spider bites and will ensure that your property remains spider-free all year long!