Insects in the City
Whether it’s termites or fire ants, white grubs or aphids…if it’s an insect pest, we’ll try to provide you with the best in science-based, pest management solutions. Check out the tabs at the top of the page for practical information on a variety of insect topics. If you’re a pest management professional, visit the Insects in the City blog for professionals to see what’s happening with pest control in Texas.
In the Master volunteer classes I teach every year on entomology, I race through so many different kinds of insects that I fear I do all a disservice. One group I always mention in passing are the different kinds of homopterous insects. This group includes the “hopper” families: treehoppers, leafhoppers, planthoppers and froghoppers. These are all plant-sap feeding insects that produce honeydew. One of the things I mention in class about some of these is that their droppings (excrement) are often so abundant that you can feel them… Read More →
If you’ve never heard of “murder hornets,” more accurately called Asian giant hornets, Vespa mandarinia, you’ve probably been living on the space station for the past month. And at the risk of stirring up a hornet’s nest, I thought it worthwhile to remind us all June is the month of the cicada killer wasp. This is another common large wasp likely to be mistaken for the Asian giant hornet haunting news feeds this spring. Actually, both Asian giant hornet workers and cicada killer wasps vary in size based… Read More →
When Denton urban forester Haywood Morgan moved to Texas from Milwaukee, Wisconsin six years ago he thought he was leaving the devastating emerald ash borer behind. Instead the ash borer found him again. Morgan became reacquainted with EAB this month during a trip to look at some sick ash trees along a Denton, Texas street. After inspecting ash borer-like damage on the 11 year old ash, his experienced eye caught a glimpse of shiny green. A quick grab and he had it–what appears to be the first… Read More →
