The Species Breakdown: Pests and Their Effects

Summer is finally here, and that means that the need for pest and bug control in Auckland is on the rise. The heat of summer drives insects and other pests to seek out cooler areas where they can nest in peace, and for a home with insufficient protection, this can mean an infestation.

In this blog post, we’re going to look at two kinds of pests that can plague your home in the summertime: rats and mosquitos. More specifically, we’re discussing the effects they can have on your household.

Rats seek out two main things: shelter and nutrition. Because homes have both, they are a haven for rodents in need of shelter. They breed quickly, and before you know it one rat will turn into an entire colony of them, and your home will be theirs! Therefore, it’s important to be vigilant and watch for signs of them. If you do have an infestation, invest in an effective system for rat pest control.

Aside from breeding in large numbers, a rat infestation has several other unpleasant side effects. Most people don’t know that rats are, by nature, territorial creatures. Once they’ve established that a home is “theirs”, they will continue to return to it for years to come. They pass this knowledge down through generations of new rats, so you might end up with an infestation that lasts years if not handled appropriately.

Rats usually occupy the walls of an infested home, and they’re known for chewing through power cables, water supply lines, and even the very walls themselves. Despite their aversion to human contact, they will venture out through the walls to snag food if they can.

Lastly, rats are notorious for being carriers of disease. Their faeces carry harmful bacteria that can be transferred to humans, and most rats harbour ectoparasites—like fleas—in their fur. Fleas will feed on both humans and rats interchangeably, and this presents the strong possibility of disease transference through their bites.

Mosquitos do not nest indoors, however in areas with lush foliage or bush, homes will be plagued by their persistent buzzing and insatiably itchy bites. If you have a swarm of mosquitos outside, some of them may drift inside around dusk to feed on the humans living in the home (although not all mosquitos feed on humans). For most, the fact that mosquitos don’t live indoors means that they ignore them as much as possible, but waking up with a collection of new bites every morning quickly becomes tiresome.

Mosquitos do little more than bite, buzz, and feed. All three of these behaviours present an annoyance to anyone living near a swarm. Enjoying the warm outdoors in summer suddenly becomes a mission from which you must recover, and the persistent appearance of new bites quickly becomes unbearable. Luckily, our techniques for mosquito pest control save Auckland families from this all the time, even though mosquitos live outdoors.

We are the leading experts for bug control Auckland-wide, catering to hundreds of clients a year. If you’re dreading the appearance of pests this summer, or if you’re already battling a tide of unwanted guests, give us a call for your pest control quote today.