Upon the onset of cold weather, stink bugs seek shelter to spend the winter in a dormant phase known as diapause. The life cycle of brown marmorated stink bugs generally involves mating, reproducing and feeding from spring to late fall. In general, adult stink bugs feed on fruits and nymphs feed on leaves, stems and fruit.
A professional can also pre- treat for stink bugs in the late summer or fall just prior to bug congregation. If an infestation has developed inside the home or building, a licensed pest control professional should be called to evaluate and assess the problem. After stink bugs have entered the structure, it is best to isolate the affected room or rooms by sealing the bugs out. The bag must be discarded to prevent odor from permeating the area.
If you need to know how to get rid of stink bugs that have already entered a home or building, a vacuum cleaner can aid in the removal of live or dead stink bugs.
Stink bugs are attracted to light, so change exterior lighting to less-attractive yellow bulbs or sodium vapor lights. Damaged screens on doors and windows should be repaired or replaced. Use a good quality silicone or silicone-latex caulk. Typical entry points include around door and window frames, electrical outlets, light switches, ceiling fans, skylights and ceiling light fixtures. To prevent stink bugs from entering homes and buildings, seal cracks around windows, doors, siding, utility pipes, behind chimneys, and underneath the wood fascia and other openings. By the last molt, the nymphs are almost as large as adult stink bugs. Each time a stink bug nymph molts, it becomes larger.
T he nymphs molt or shed their skin five times. They have bright red eyes during the nymph stage of their life cycle. Nymphs of the brown marmorated stink bug are yellow and red. Immature stink bugs, called nymphs, are very tiny when they hatch from their eggs. Fully developed wings are a way to identify adult stink bugs. The wings appear when the nymph becomes an adult. Nymphs do not have fully developed wings. It has lighter bands on the antennae and darker bands on the wings.Īdult stink bugs are good fliers and fold their wings on top of their body when they land. The brown marmorate d stink bug is a brownish stink bug. Their legs extend from the sides, s o this makes the adult bugs appear even larger. They are nearly as wide as they are long. They are characterized as both “large, oval-shap ed insects” and “shield-shaped insects.” Adult stink bugs can reach almost 2 cm in length. Stink bugs are described in several different ways. Read on to learn about how to get rid of stink bugs and stink bug Many other insects have these same characteristics, including some species of ants, beetles and other bugs. The stink bug earned its name from its tendency to release an odor when disturbed or when crushed. The bug’s native range includes China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. Today, brown marmorated stink bugs are most prevalent in the mid-Atlanta region, but they have been identified in 44 states and the District of Columbia. It quickly spread east to New Jersey, then Virginia by 2004, and now southward to the North Carolina border. The bug was first collected in the United States in Allentown, PA in the fall of 1996, but apparently not recognized or identified until September 2001. It is also referred to as the yellow-brown or East Asian stink bug. The brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) is considered an invasive species, or a pest of foreign origin, as it was introduced to the United States from Eastern Asia in the mid-1990s.