It’s that time of year again – the 2023 stink bug invasion is upon us.
As the weather turns colder, the little stinkers have started to look for places to stay warm at night, and they’re finding the perfect environment in all the new homes we’ve built around the Charlotte region.
View this post on Instagram
“Warm summer weather supported their development, so there is a good probability the brown marmorated stink bug numbers this fall will be higher than in the past few years,” said Greg Krawczyk, an insect research professor at Penn State University.
Now’s the time to protect your home and seal up cracks, as this is the time stink bugs will start looking for entry points behind baseboards, around window and door trim and around exhaust fans or lights in ceilings. Once the creatures get inside your home, they will alert other stink bugs to the entry points via powerful scent trails.
The creatures aren’t harmful to most people, but they have caused allergic reactions in those who are allergic to the strong odor, which the bugs will emit when threatened or killed.
Experts recommend sweeping up the little critters moving them far away from your house so as not to attract others with the odor.
The best way to prevent a stink bug infestation is to make sure all doors, windows, and floorboards are completely sealed with weather-tight silicone caulk.
Another defense homeowners can use against the little stinkers is to spray around their property with a diluted pyrethrin solution, which will repel stink bugs, cockroaches, and other beetles without harming other plants or animals.