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Pest Files: page 17

One reference page per pest: identification, the damage it does, what treatment involves and how long it realistically takes.

Articles

Back porch light glowing above a front door at duskCockroaches

Bugs That Look Like Cockroaches but Are Not

Ground beetles, June beetles, click beetles, crickets, earwigs, stink bugs and wood cockroaches are the usual lookalikes, and none of them breeds indoors. Here is the...

October 8, 2026Made bed with white linen and a suitcase beside itBed bugs

Bugs That Look Like Bed Bugs (and Bugs in Bed That Are Not)

Carpet beetles, bat and swallow bugs, spider beetles, booklice, cockroach nymphs, fleas and ticks are the usual bed bug lookalikes. Here is the test that settles...

October 8, 2026Kitchen at night lit by the light under the range hoodCockroaches

Bugs in the Kitchen Sink and Cabinets at Night: Who They Are

Cockroaches first, then drain flies, fruit flies, carpenter ants, silverfish and springtails. A five-minute torch check after dark, the under-sink leak, and when to call a...

October 8, 2026White bathroom sink and tiled wall in morning lightDamp-loving pests

Bugs in the Bathroom: What They Are and What They Mean

Drain flies, springtails, silverfish, booklice and house centipedes each point to a different kind of damp. How to read them, the overnight drain test and the...

October 8, 2026Dehumidifier running in a basement storage roomFor Property Owners

Tiny White Bugs in the House: Mites, Booklice and the Rest

Booklice, mould and grain mites, springtails, mealybugs and whiteflies are the usual tiny white bugs indoors. Most point to damp, and drier air is the main...

October 8, 2026Hand lifting a glass storage jar from a pantry shelf of rice, pasta and beansFor Property Owners

Little Brown Bugs in the House: How to Tell Which One

How to identify little brown bugs in the house by wings, shape and location, including the bed bug versus seed-like beetle test, with sizes from extension...

October 8, 2026Person vacuuming along the edge of a living room rugFor Property Owners

Little Black Bugs in the House: 10 Usual Suspects

Ten small black bugs found in US homes, split into the ones that bite and the ones that do not, with sizes from extension sources and...

October 8, 2026Woman crouching on a kitchen floor checking the skirting board with a small flashlightFor Property Owners

Tiny Bugs in the House: What They Are, by Colour and Room

A fast decision guide to the tiny bugs found in US homes: match colour, room and whether it jumps, flies, bites or crawls to the 15...

October 8, 2026Suburban back lawn in early spring with raised soil ridges and a small conical mound of earthWildlife

Moles and Voles: Telling the Lawn Damage Apart

Moles push soil up and eat earthworms; voles eat plants down. Killing grubs does not remove moles, and castor oil is the one repellent with trial...

October 1, 2026Roofline soffit and fascia junction of a suburban house with a gnawed gap at the cornerWildlife

Squirrels in the Attic: Timing, Gnawing and the Law

They enter through a 1.5 inch hole and enlarge anything smaller. Two breeding seasons set the exclusion windows, and relocation is illegal in much of the...

October 1, 2026Empty bird nest tucked into the soffit and eave of a house exterior seen from belowFleas and biting bugs

Bird Mites: The Problem That Starts When the Birds Leave

Exclude the birds without removing the nest and the starving mites disperse into the building. They bite people but cannot breed on them.

October 1, 2026Dim attic space with exposed rafters and blown insulation lit by a shaft of daylight from a ventFlies, moths and pantry pests

Ground Beetles, Larder Beetles and What They Tell You

A larder beetle usually means something died in the building. A ground beetle means a porch light. A foreign grain beetle means the place is damp.

October 1, 2026