Thousands of pest photos submitted for identification.
7085. What kind of spider is this it’s a bit scary. Dollard des ormeaux, Quebec. Canada
Number 7085. This is Araneus diadematus, a cross orb weaver, aka a European garden spider. It is a harmless orb weaver (family Araneidae) that is found on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. We often see them in England when we visit family there.
7084. An employee Found this crawling around on a roof next to a large maple tree. Never seen anything like it before. Vankleek Hill, Ontario. Canada
Number 7084. This is a monkey slug caterpillar, Phobetron pithecium (Lepidoptera: Limacodidae). Contact with its hairs reportedly can cause dermatitis as well as painful inflammation in some cases. Click here for more detailed information.
7083. Inman, South Carolina. United States
Number 7083. This is a yellow-striped oakworm, Anisota peigleri (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae); Click here for details on its life history.
7082. I took this picture in August of 2020. I can’t find it anywhere in order to identify it. Murillo, Ontario. Canada
Number 7082. These are dogwood spittlebugs, Clastoptera proteus (Hemiptera/Auchenorrhyncha: Clastopteridae); Click here and Click here.
7081. I am not looking to publish anything, I have never seen such a flying insect in this region during fifty years of living here. I am concerned about evasive species. Del D’Arcangelo. Courtenay, British Columbia. Canada
Number 7081. This is a native species; it’s Urocerus californicus, a woodwasp/horntail (Hymenoptera/Siricidae), Click here. Woodwasps lack venom and are harmless to humans.
7080. Very curious as to what type of hornet this. I’ve never seen one like this before at our cottage. Coldwater, Ont. Canada
Number 7080. This is a European hornet, Vespa crabro (Hymenoptera: Vespidae), an introduced species. I have found these to be less aggressive than their cousins, yellow jackets. Click here for more detailed information.
7079. Found in an apartment building in Windsor. Windsor, Ontario. Canada
Number 7079. These appear to be assassin bugs known as a masked hunter (Reduvius personatus; Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Reduviidae), a cosmopolitan species often found indoors and reputed to have a very painful ‘bite’- Click here for more detailed information.
7078. Black with yellow stripes around its butt, it didnt seem aggressive but looked like it could sting. Looks similar to a hornet but way skinnier and its unlike anything I’ve seen. Trying to figure out if this is what caused my allergic reaction. Truro, NS. Canada
Number 7078. This is an ichneumon wasp (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae). These all are parasitic on other arthropods, mainly other insects; they lack a stinger and are harmless to humans. Click here for an image
7077. We saw this or a twin bug carring a grasshopper at least 1 1/2 times its size which is about 2 1/2 “. rock creek, BC. Canada
Number 7077. This is a banded horntail, Urocerus gigas flavicornis, (Hymenoptera: Siricidae). Also known as a woodwasp, it would not have been carrying a grasshopper, or any other insect for that matter, as they do not feed on other insects – Click here for details on its life history. The insect carrying the grasshopper more likely was a great golden digger wasp, Sphex ichneumoneus (Hymenoptera: Sphecidae); Click here for an image.
7076. I believe they are cigarette beetles. Toronto, ON. Canada
Number 7076. Based on the appearance of the antennae, these more likely are drugstore beetles, Stegobium paniceum (Coleoptera: Anobiidae). Control recommendations for both species are identical; Click here for details.
7075. WOODBRIDGE, ON. Canada
Number 7075. These are Japanese beetles, Popillia japonica (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae), a widespread introduced pest species. Click here for more detailed information, including control recommendations.
7074. What kind of bug is this? Does it bite? Is it a bug that can turn into an infestation? Kelowna, BC. Canada
Number 7074. This is a nymph of an assassin bug known as a masked hunter (Reduvius personatus; Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Reduviidae), a cosmopolitan species often found indoors and reputed to have a very painful ‘bite’- Click here for more detailed information.
7073. It was 5mm. Ottawa, ON. Canada
Number 7073. This appears to be a banded carpet beetle, Attagenus fasciatus (Coleoptera: Dermestidae). Also known as the wardrobe beetle, it is a cosmopolitan pest species. Click here for some control recommendations.
7072. KLEMTU, British Columbia. Canada
Number 7072. These are German cockroaches, Blattella germanica (Blattodea: Ectobiidae), a peridomestic species difficult to bring under complete control. Click here for some control recommendations.
7071. I live in kelowna BC. This thing was super huge. The body w/o legs was about the size of a quarter at least. When I squished it with a broom handle, it popped like a massive pimple. What the heck is it? West Kelowna, BC. Canada
Number 7071. This is a harmless orb weaving spider (family Araneidae) in the genus Araneus, Click here for an example. If you see another, please let it live, they are volunteer pest controllers.
7070. Wondering what this Insect is, I thought it was an immature dragonfly, there are about 50 on this dying tree. Are they harmful? Do I just leave them alone? Turkey Point, Ontario. Canada
Number 7070. This is a giant ichneumon wasp, Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae, in the genus Megarhyssa; likely M. macrurus. It is a female in the act of boring through the tree wood in order to lay her egg in the tunnel of her prey, the larva of a wood wasp in the family Siricidae. They are harmless to humans as well as to the tree. Click here for details on their life history.
7069. August 23, about 1/2 inch in size. Found about 20 of these on our floor in the house this morning wondering if they are maggots or something else. Started searching for where they would be coming from and cannot find anything anywhere in the house Pulled fridge and stove out moved furniture around but cannot find any source to where they would be coming from, I am stumped. Renfrew, Ontario Canada
Number 7069. This is a maggot of a muscoid fly, so there must be a food source somewhere in the vicinity. When these maggots complete their growth, they crawl away from their food source in search of a safe, dry place to undergo pupation.
7068. Found this in our crawlspace. What is it? Oro-Medonte, ON. Canada
Number 7068. This is a mature larva/prepupa of a rodent bot fly (Diptera: Oestridae; subfamily Cuterebrinae) Click here for details on their life history.
7067. This big guy I found on my driveway. About an inch to an inch and a half long. Tried to find some photos online but no luck. Bay Tree, Alberta. Canada
Number 7067. This is a predaceous diving beetle (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae). They and their larvae (“water tigers”) are general predators on other small aquatic life forms. They also are very strong fliers, and may be found quite some distance from any water source.
7066. Found in our yard on August 19th. Regina, Saskatchewan. Canada
Number 7066. This is a pigeon tremex, Tremex columba (Hymenoptera: Siricidae). They lack a stinger (what looks like one actually is their ovipositor); Click here for more detailed information.
7065. What is this? I found one on my kitchen counter last week and another just crawled on me in the living room. Please help. Ont, Toronto. Canada
Number 7065. This is an earwig (order Dermaptera). These basically are harmless nuisance pests; most species either are scavengers or predators on small soft-bodied insects, but some occasionally can cause damage to very tender vegetation. Click here for more detailed information.
7064. Hello! I found this bug on a bedroom wall by the window, in a rural part of northern Nova Scotia. We had spent the day at Waterside Beach, and it’s possible this came from the beach home with us — though the house is also in a rural setting surrounded by fields and some trees. I’ve been told it’s possibly an assassin bug, maybe a kissing bug, and it could be a western conifer seed bug. I have children staying here and my main concern is safety. Many thanks in advance! Scotsburn, NS. Canada
Number 7064. This may be a nymph of an assassin bug known as a masked hunter (Reduvius personatus; Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Reduviidae), a cosmopolitan species often found indoors and reputed to have a very painful ‘bite’- Click here for more detailed information.
7063. These insects have infested our house, especially around windows area. We went on vacation the last week of July and when got back we noticed some in our house and have not been able contain. Quispamsis, NB. Canada
Number 7063. This looks like a nymph of a hairy chinch bug, Blissus leucopterus hirtus (Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Blissidae), a lawn/turf pest – Click here for details including control recommendations.
7062. They come out by the hundreds, only on hot sunny days, along the foundation and my deck. Glen Haven, Halifax. Canada
Number 7062. This looks like a nymph of a hairy chinch bug, Blissus leucopterus hirtus (Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Blissidae), a lawn/turf pest – Click here for details including control recommendations.
7061. Want to know how is it different from grasshopper. What is the special thing near the neck part. Odisha, Dhenkanal. India
Number 7061. This is a so-called ‘hooded grasshopper’ (Orthoptera: Acrididae; Teratodes sp.). They get that name from the shape of their pronotum, which is expanded into a high crest – Click here
What is the most effective and still available product for killing mites in chickens in northwestern Alberta? Diatamaceous earth is not very effective. Wembley
Chicken mites: Control of mites on chickens is problematic to say the least, as there does not appear to be any treatment available that is approved for use in Canada. There are some ‘off label’ possibilities that might be considered; Click here for a detailed discussion.
Can be bugs travel from one apartment to another via baseboards, electrical outlets, etc? Any info you can provide will be greatly appreciated. Thanks. Ottawa
Bed bugs: “Once bed bugs are introduced, they can crawl from room to room, or floor to floor via cracks and openings in walls, floors and ceilings.” Click here for details.
We have elm seed bugs and I was wondering if there is something that would attract them when they are in the house? Something sweet? We have been spraying home defence around windows and doors but still find a few that are alive. Medicine Hat
Elm seed bugs: I am not aware of anything in a house that would be an attractant to elm seed bug. Simply vacuuming up any that get indoors should suffice; Click here for details.
I bought A box of food into my house today then all of a suffdn my cupboard was full of cockroaches what do I do. London
Cockroaches: The box of food and the appearance of cockroaches could just be coincidental. That aside, control recommendations will depend on the species involved. Click here for details.
I went down to my basement today, I was down there day before last, and I noticed a squeaking sound (almost like a bird chirping) the lights were on and I couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. I went back down about an hour later turned the lights on again, same thing noticed nothing but the sound. I decided to check again a half hour later but leave the lights off and same sound and I just turned my tv off to go up to bed and now I can hear the sound from the top of the stairs. So what would squeak for hours on end? Edmonton
Squeaking sound: Unless you can pinpoint the source, it likely will remain a mystery. Crickets excepted, the only home-infesting insects capable of making a sound audible to humans that I know of are the larvae of old house borers – Click here for details.
Hello, I would like to know if using elector psp is approved in Canada (spinosad). Amos
Spinosad in Canada: The last I saw, spinosad still was undergoing review in Canada. According the site Click here , a decision was due last January, but I have seen nothing confirming that.
I was bitten a couple of weeks ago and I have been spraying Ortho Bug be gone and vacuuming daily. I have also purchased a new mattress and box spring which I have kept the plastic on. I have been wiping the baseboards daily as well. I wash the bedding daily. The pest control inspector came in and looked at the baseboards behind my bed which I told him I had cleaned and he checked my headboard which has also been cleaned. That’s all he checked in my bedroom. He than checked the other bedroom my sister occupies doing the same thing. He informed me that there was no sign of bed bugs and had never been any. My question is could I have washed the evidence away. The bedding wasn’t even checked? Sudbury
Bed bugs: Based on your narrative, it would be extremely unlikely for you to have a bed bug infestation; there are many other possible causes for your bite symptoms, Click here for some possibilities.
How do I get rid of Powderpost beetles? Sherbrooke, NS
Powder post beetles: Small/limited infestations sometimes can be resolved simply by removing and destroying the infested wood. More extensive infestations may require the services of a professional. Click Here and Click here for details.