From the Ann Arbor team
Notes from the field.
What we are seeing across Southeast Michigan, when each pest actually shows up, and what works on a real house rather than in a brochure.
Latest
Why are Asian lady beetles all over my house?
They want a winter shelter, and your sunny wall looks like one. When they swarm in Michigan, the mark that tells them from native ladybugs, why caulk fails on vinyl siding, and the stocking trick for the ones inside.
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Why mice move in for the winter: how they get in, what they eat
Mice do not hibernate, and a house has everything they need for winter. How they get in, what they eat, how long they live, and why one mouse rarely stays one mouse.
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Scratching in the walls or attic at night: mice, rats or squirrels?
You do not have to see it to know which animal it is. What the time, the place and the kind of sound tell you about mice, rats and squirrels in your walls and attic.
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Do chipmunks hibernate? Where chipmunks go in winter
Not truly. Where chipmunks spend the winter, how to tell a chipmunk from a squirrel, and what the neat round hole by your front step means.
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Rats in Michigan: the Norway rat, and why roof rats are rare here
A big, heavy burrower that digs in at the foundation and moves in for the winter. How to tell a Norway rat from a roof rat and from a mouse, where it lives, and what its burrow looks like.
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Red, fox, gray or flying: which squirrel is in your attic?
Four tree squirrels live in Southeast Michigan, and any of them can move into an attic for winter. How to tell them apart, what the timing of the noise tells you, and what Michigan's rules allow.
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Deer mouse or house mouse? And what Michigan says about hantavirus
Check the belly and the tail. How to tell a deer mouse from a house mouse, why the difference matters in Michigan, and how to clean up after deer mice without breathing the dust.
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Yellow jacket, paper wasp or bald-faced hornet? Read the nest
The nest tells you which wasp built it, and whether it needs treating at all. Paper wasps, yellow jackets, bald-faced hornets, and the two big ones that scare people most.
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Ticks in Michigan: which ones bite, and when the season starts
Three ticks bite people in Michigan, and only one carries Lyme disease. How to tell them apart, when each is out, what the 168 percent rise in Lyme cases means, and what to do after a bite.
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Carpenter bee or bumble bee? How to tell, and why it matters
Look at the abdomen: bare and shiny drills your deck rail, hairy and striped nests in the ground. How to tell them apart, what the round hole and the stain mean, and why we never kill honey bees.
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What do carpenter ants look like, and is that sawdust a problem?
Big, black, and they do not eat wood. How to recognize a carpenter ant, what the sawdust under the sill means, how to tell a flying ant from a termite, and the one sign that the colony is inside.
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Voles or moles? How to read the damage in your lawn
Raised ridges, flat runways, or a neat hole by the steps: three animals, three kinds of damage. How to tell which one you have, what each is after, and what actually works.
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Springtails, silverfish and the other tiny bugs of a damp basement
Most small bugs in a damp Michigan basement are one of five, and all five are there for the same reason. How to tell them apart in seconds, the one that damages things, and what makes them leave.
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House centipedes: are they dangerous?
No. Michigan State University calls it harmless, and even beneficial. What it is, whether it bites, and what a house centipede in the bathroom says about the house.
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Are there brown recluse spiders in Michigan?
A few, and almost certainly not the one in your basement. Only 7 of about 700 photos Michiganders sent MSU were the real thing. How to tell, which Michigan spiders do bite, and why most recluse bites are something else.
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Mouse droppings or rat droppings? How to tell what you found
Size tells you almost everything. How to tell mouse from rat droppings, which of three Michigan rodents left them, and the CDC's way to clean them up without breathing the dust.
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Why are stink bugs and boxelder bugs all over my house?
Your south wall is the warmest place on the street, and both bugs want it for the winter. How to tell them apart, the September 15 date that starts it in Ann Arbor, and why sealing beats spraying.
Read the post17 posts so far. More on the way, and the pest guides below cover a lot of the same ground already.
Pest guides
Every pest we treat, written up properly.
Twenty-two guides. Each has a seasonality chart for Michigan, the warning signs to look for, and a straight answer on what it costs.
Ants
Spiders
Mice and rats
Wasps
Bees
Mosquitoes
Ticks
Yard fleas
Squirrels and chipmunks
Moles
Voles
Centipedes
Millipedes
Silverfish
Earwigs
Pillbugs
Springtails
Stink bugs
Boxelder bugs
Flies
Moths
Powderpost beetlesOne plan covers them allLooking for your town instead? The service area page has a guide for each town we cover.
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