A firefly (or lightening bug) is not a fly at all - it is really a beetle.
Of some thirty or so insect orders, termites are the only one in which all species are categorized as highly social or "eusocial".
In addition to being found in beds, bed bugs can also be found in carpets, under wallpaper, behind baseboards, and in small cracks and crevices throughout a room.
An ant can lift 20 times its own body weight. If a 175-pound man had the comparative strength of an ant, he could lift four tons.
Lice are most easily spread among children who share clothing, hats, or very close contact in these classroom settings.
Rats can squeeze through a space as small as a half dollar.
An estimated 15% of all new homes have serious structural defects and damages, which may include termite damage.
On many butterflies the color is only an illusion. The color we perceive is created by refraction of the light as it reflects off the surface of the scale.
Unlike many other insects, all of the periodical cicadas in an area emerge from the nymph stage as a full-grown winged adult at once.
More women claim mosquitoes (24%%) had been problems in the past year, while more men cited cockroaches (16%).
There are 1,830 different kinds of fleas known throughout the world.
Insects have been present for about 350 million years, while humans have only walked the earth for 130,000 years.
The kitchen is the area of most concern for pests among homeowners.
Tick paralysis is a tick-borne disease that is caused by the toxins in tick saliva and can occur when the tick remains continuously attached for 2-7 days.
Flea eggs will hatch on the ground, in nests, carpet, bedding, upholstery or cracks in the floor.
Over 5 million children are sensitive to cockroaches.
Fleas can remain frozen for a year and survive.
The use of DDT nearly wiped out bed bugs at the end of WW II but experts believe that the ban of DDT in 1972 has contributed to the resurgance of bed bugs.
Of the 20 million people in Latin America who are infected by Chagas disease, a serious kissing bug-borne illness, about 50,000 die annually.
36% of the reported Hantavirus cases in the United States have resulted in death. Hantavirus is a virus spread by rodents.
When excited or disturbed, the acrobat ant workers run about with their abdomens held high above their heads.
A female flea may consume up to fifteen times her own body weight in blood each day, to support the huge production of eggs.
House mice are said to be the most common mammal in the U.S.
Formosan termites, widely considered a "super" species of termite, because of the rate of destruction it poses, currently infest 11 states.
With Lyme disease, a tick-borne illness, about 30-50% of victims get a pinkish bull's-eye type rash but victims are more likely to feel like they have the flu.
It doesn't matter if a room is dirty or clean. Bed bugs only care about a dark hole to hide in and access to humans.
Body lice infestations spread rapidly under crowded conditions where hygiene is poor and there is frequent contact among people.
There are about 2,000 known species of termites in the world.
Carpenter bees drill round holes about one inch deep into wood and then turn 90 degrees and drill galleries four to six inches long in which to lay their eggs.
Formosan termites originated in China and have only been in the United States for about 50 years.
Cockroaches can run up to three miles in an hour.
Cockroaches can live without food for one month, but will only survive a week without water.
Men claim their number one pest concern to be termites (24%) while women put spiders as their number one pest concern (16%).
A small portion of the population is allergic to fire ant stings and should see medical treatment immediately if stung.
Fire ants first entered the United States in the 1920s through the port of Mobile, Alabama.
32% of households that experienced ants called a professional.
About 1,000 cases of malaria are reported each year in the U.S.
The long cerci, or clippers, on their backsides can easily identify an earwig.
When forming a new colony, flying male and female "swarmer" termites break off their wings, enter wood through a crack or hole, mate and begin feeding.
The brown-banded cockroach often hides her egg capsules, containing up to 18 eggs, in furniture.
One female flea can lay about 18 eggs a day and just 20 fleas on a dog can produce 360 eggs per day and over 2000 eggs in a week.
Male mosquitoes do not bite humans, but rather live on plant juices and other natural liquids from plants and decomposing organic material.
Subterranean termites are a concern in every U.S. state except Alaska.
After mating, queen ants lose their wings and never fly again.
Fleas can jump 7-8 inches vertically and 14-16 inches horizontally.
Girls get head lice more often than boys, women more than men.
In 2000, 59.4% of surveyed pest professionals received no bed bug calls. In 2004, 67.1% reported receiving bed bug calls. That's a 63.6% increase!
Fleas can survive for months without feeding.
Bed bugs can withstand a wide range of temperatures from nearly freezing to almost 113 degrees Fahrenheit.
Ants are able communicate with each other about danger and directions to food.
20% of homeowners surveyed said termites were their main pest concern.
The light deflected from an eye of a horsefly can form a rainbow.
Scorpions are carnivores and feed on mainly insects, such as crickets, moths and caterpillars.
36% of homeowners surveyed said they had problems with spiders during the past year.
A female tarantula found in South America weighed 1/3 of a pound, and had fangs 1 inch long.
More than half of homeowners surveyed perceived spiders, mice/rats, and bees/wasps as not difficult to control.
Bed bugs draw blood for about 5 minutes before retreating to digest.
Kissing bugs are not as romantic as their name implies. Rather, they bite and suck blood while their human or animal host is sleeping.
While their name may be misleading, pavement ants can also be found inside the home.
Most cockroach species live in the tropics but they can make their home all over the world, including the North and South Poles.
All insects have a hard exoskeleton, six jointed legs, two antennae, compound eyes and a body divided into 3 main body sections - a head, thorax and abdomen.
More people in the West mentioned having problems with rodents such as rats and mice (35%) in the past year.
If crushed, the odorous house ant worker gives off a rotton coconut odor, hence it's name.
Female German cockroaches can produce one egg capsule every 20 to 25 days. Each capsule contains from 18 to 48 eggs.
Termites are sometimes treated with bait traps, cylinders containing wood and slow-acting poison that are buried in the ground around the perimiter of a home.
Flies taste what they walk on.
No one knows exactly how long termite queens live, but many are known to live at least ten years and records of some long lived mounds suggest a longevity of over 40 years.
The cicada has the longest life cycle of any insect, ranging from 2 to 17 years.
Body lice infestation is unlikely to persist on anyone who bathes regularly and who regularly has access to freshly laundered clothing and bedding.
Head lice are not necessarily present due to neglect, unsanitary living conditions, or any kind of abuse.
Male silk moths can detect female moths up to several miles away.
The American cockroach has shown a marked attraction to alcoholic beverages, especially beer.
The queen of a certain termite species can lay up to 40,000 eggs per day.
There are about 91,000 different species of insects in the United States. In the world, some 1.5 million different species have been named.
Of all the insects that jeopardize man's health, mosquitoes rank first.
In Mexico you might find "pulgas vestidas", or "dressed fleas" for sale. Fleas are dressed in tiny costumes and posed holding tiny loaves of bread, tools, or whatever.
Its flat shape allows cat fleas to easily pass between the hairs of animals.
Mosquitoes can transmit West Nile Virus and encephalitis, both of which are relatively uncommon.
Termites have the most uniform nomenclature of all living orders, all but six genera of the 283 genera in the order end in -termes.
Conservative estimates place as many as 14,000 people each year in the U.S. bitten by rats.
More than half of homeowners surveyed (52%) were concerned about pests causing illness and insect bites/stings to their family.
Mosquito-borne disease is likely the number one cause of death in developing countries.
The average mosquito has 47 teeth.
Cockroaches can withstand temperatures as cold as 32°F. In extremely cold places, however, they survive by moving in with humans.
Any water that stands for at least seven days can breed mosquitoes
1 in 4 people are sensitive to cockroaches.
Rats will eat just about anything, including decaying material.
More than half of homeowners surveyed (53%) were concerned about pest damage to their homes and property.
The largest spider in the world is a species of tarantula found in South America where one specimen had a leg span of over 11 inches.
Because bed bug bites are painless, people often don't even notice there's a problem until the infestation is large.
Approximately 25% of homeowners surveyed perceived ants, termites, and ticks as difficult to control.
Firefly beetles are carnivores and eat insects (including other fireflies), insect larvae and snails.
Termites are the most likely of all pests to be treated by a professional.
Formosan termites are the most destructive termite in the world.
Bed bugs leave a cluster line of itchy bites.
About one-quarter (24%) of homeowners surveyed believe the risks associated with pest infestations have increased over the past few years.
Although the plague is often believed to be an historical disease, about 10-15 people in the U.S. contract this flea-borne illness each year.
Spring followed summer as the season of most concern for pests for 42% of homeowners
A bed bug is brown before it feeds and afterwards turns reddish-brown.
Not all crickets have wings.
Blacklegged (deer) ticks, carriers of Lyme disease, like to spend the winter nestled in the fur of a deer.
There were 2,700 reported cases of West Nile Virus, a mosquito-borne disease, in the United States in 2005.
75% of households that experienced termites called a professional
Other insects have long lived immature stages but termites appear to have the longest lived adult reproductive lives.
Flies use the hairs that cover their bodies to feel, taste and smell.
The Madagascan Hissing Cockroach is one of the few insects who give birth to live young, rather than laying eggs.
10% of the world's animal biomass is composed of termites.
Problems with spiders were higher in the west (49%)
Filth flies can carry diseases such as E. coli, leprosy, typhoid and polio.
Cockroach allergens are derived from secretions, excretions, dead bodies, and associated debris.
Earwigs got their name from the myth that they crawl into sleeping people's ears and tunnel into the brain.
Honeybees may make 10,000,000 trips to gather enough nectar to make a single pound of honey.
Crickets hear through their knees.
Drywood termites feed only on dry wood, including wooden doors, porches, cupboards, and entertainment centers.
Rats contaminate and destroy enough food worldwide each year to feed 200 million people.
Cat fleas attack both cats and dogs.
The total distance traveled by all the bees to create a pound of honey may equal twice the distance around the world.
The Africanized Honey Bee (a.k.a. "killer bee") have been known to chase people for over a quarter of a mile once they have gotten excited and aggressive.
Spider silk is extremely strong and extremely elastic. It may be stretched up to 25% of its own length.
A rat can swim for 3 days before it drowns.
Scorpion stings are more dangerous for children and those with existing heart or lung problems.
Adult German cockroaches can live up to one year.
Head lice make no distinction between races, sexes, or economic classes of people.
The abdominal area of the firefly beetle glows a bright yellow-green color. The firefly can control this glowing effect.
More people in the South and West report having problems with ants.
The world's largest roach (which lives in South America) is six inches long with a one-foot wingspan
Subterranean termites spend winters underground.
More than 2 million people in the United States are allergic to insect stings.
There are 5,000 species of cockroaches worldwide.
A single colony of Formosan termites could eat the whole structure of a home within two years.
More than 500,000 people seek emergency medical help each year as a result of insect stings.
Bed bugs can lay 1-5 eggs in a day and can lay up to 500 eggs in a lifetime.
Poisons in the body of a Monarch butterfly are sufficient to kill a small lizard and cause severe vomiting in large birds.
A female housefly can lay up to 600 eggs in her short lifetime.
About 400 people in the U.S. contract typhoid, a fly-borne illness each year. 75% of these cases are associated with international travel
The German cockroach is the most common cockroach found in and around apartments, homes, supermarkets and restaurants.
Scorpion babies crawl on top of their mother and live there for the first week or two, feeding on scraps of her catches.
Only 10% of homeowners nationwide feel that cockroaches are a threat to their family's health.
Ants cannot chew their food. They move their jaws sidewards, like a scissor, to extract the juices from the food.
A cockroach can hold its breath for 40 minutes.
If food becomes scarce, scorpion mothers have been known to eat their offspring when they are old enough to venture out on their own.
There are about 200 species of filth flies.
Cockroaches are believed to have originated more than 280 million years ago, in the Carboniferous era.
Ants are the #1 nuisance pest in the United States.
In addition to Lyme disease, ticks can also transmit Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tularemia, relapsing fever and ehrlichiosis.
Bed bugs can live more than a year without eating.
Formosan queens can produce up to 1,000 eggs a day.
Bed bugs are now found in all 50 states
48% of homeowners believe there is an increased need for professional pest control services. Most of the remainder (44%) feel the need is about the same as in years past.
Mice feed 15-20 times a day.
When living on a person, an adult female mite can live up to a month.
67% of homeowners are most concerned about pests in the summer
Black Widow spider silk was used for making the cross hairs in bomb sites of World War II aircraft.
Large numbers of fire ant stings can result in death.
Adult female mosquitoes can live up to four weeks if they have a food source, while males live less than a week.
Cockroaches spend 75% of their time resting.
Bed bugs grow up to ¼ inch
11% of women homeowners believe bed bugs are a threat to their families' health.
There are 22 varieties of earwigs in the United States but more than 1,000 species worldwide.
Termites cause as much as $5 billion in damage each year. Formosan termites alone cause over $1 billion in damage every year.
Only female bees and wasps can sting. Males do not have the egg-laying "ovipositor" that is modified as the stinger on female insects.
Cockroaches have been implicated in allergy and asthma from people breathing in aerosolized pieces of their broken down exoskeletons/cuticles.
Hantavirus is a viral disease that may be contracted through direct contact with, or inhalation of, aerosolized infected rodent urine, saliva, or droppings.
The large "bird spider" tarantulas of South America have been known to live over 27 years.
Wasps feed on sweet liquids, and some that have been feeding on fermenting juice have been observed, eventually, to get drunk and pass out.
Japanese beetles winter underground.
Among those experiencing the pest, mosquitoes are least likely to be treated by a professional.
While most beetles are not toxic to humans, warehouse beetles have small hairs on their abdomen that can irritate your mouth and digestive tract.
A majority of homeowners report being concerned about ants.
Silk comes from the cocoons of the true Silk Moth. More than 25,000 cocoons must be unraveled to make a single pound of silk thread.
One in every four animals on earth is a beetle.
The Head and Pubic lice are currently NOT known to transmit any diseases to humans, so they are not health threats in that way.
Fire ants currently infest 14 states in the southern portion of the U.S.
Caterpillars may have over 4000 separate muscles. Humans have only 792.
Males of most cricket species make a loud chirping noise by rubbing their forewings together.
Scorpions give birth to live babies, several dozen at a time.
Termites burrow into wood to obtain food.
Bed bug hatchlings are so small they can pass through a stitch-hole in a mattress.
Mice can fit through an opening the size of a nickel.
More human deaths have been attributed to fleas than to all the wars ever faught.
House crickets can damage silk, woolens, paper, fruits and vegetables.
Crickets are omnivores and eat both plants and animals.
Termites eat non-stop - 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Fleas leave little bites on exposed areas, ankles and wrists.
Given enough time, termites will feed until nothing is left of the wood but a shell.
One colony of Formosan termites can eat up to 1,000 pounds of wood a year, compared to the 7 pounds that native termites eat.
Mosquitoes that attack people in their own yard are usually breeding close by on the property or on adjacent properties.
There are about 500,000 species of beetles.
The deer tick is smaller than a pinhead
Crickets are active at night and are attracted to light.
Spiders don't get caught in their own webs because they have self-oiling legs.
The most common pest of stored products found in the home and in grocery stores in the U. S. is the Indianmeal moth.
Warning signs of drywood termites include discarded swarmer wings, gritty sawdust-like fecal pellets, and hollow wood.
In the U.S., rodents try to come inside from October through February for warmth and food.
Odorous house ants may be difficult to control because they don't feed much from baiting stations.
Merchant grain beetles prefer to attack boxes of cake mix, cereal, macaroni and cookies rather than grain, as their name implies.
The front claws of scorpions are actually modified parts of their mouth.
A cockroach that has just shed its skeleton is white with black eyes. After eight hours, it has regained its regular coloring.
Powderpost beetles larvae will tunnel into hardwood floors, wooden antiques and the like, turning the wood in its path into fine, powdery sawdust.
The top four pests of concern for users of professional pest control were Ants (75%), Spiders and Termites (56%), and Cockroaches (48%)
Each year in the winter, rodents invade an estimated 21 million homes in the U.S.
Mice can jump a foot high.
Newborn German cockroaches become adults in as little as 36 days.
The largest butterfly species in the world is a "Birdwing" butterfly from the Solomon Islands, whose wings span twelve inches.
Fire ants continue to move and infest more and more of the country. The entire pacific coast is ripe for infestation
Firefly beetles use their glow to attract other fireflies. Males flash about every five seconds; females flash about every two seconds.
Three percent of the American population is allergic to a stinging insect's venom.
A mouse produces between 40 to 100 droppings per day, while a rat produces between 20 to 50 droppings a day.
In the United States, African-Americans rarely get head lice.
American cockroaches can produce 6-14 egg capsules, each containing 14-16 eggs each, in one mating season.
African weaver ants can haul prey weighing more than 1,000 times their own weight up trees to their nests mainly through the aid of large adhesive pads on each foot.
In most cases, mosquitoes must feed on an infected person in order to pass on disease. They transmit but seldom carry disease-causing pathogens.
The largest Formosan termite colony found in America had infested a public library in Algiers, La. It weighed 600 pounds and contained 70 million termites.
One in five people surveyed fear pests.
A cockroach can live a week without its head. The roach only dies because without a mouth, it can't drink water and dies of thirst.
Black widow spider bites can cause intense pain and stiffness, occasionally followed by muscle spasms, abdominal pain, chills, fever and difficulty breathing or swallowing.
A female house mouse can give birth to up to a dozen babies every three weeks. Imagine having as many as 150 babies a year!
Bees must collect the nectar from 2,000 flowers to make 1 tablespoon of honey.
More women than men say they are afraid of pests.
Cicadas breathe through spiracles - small holes in the abdomen.
Detectable levels of cockroach allergens can be found in at least one location in 63% of all U.S. homes.
One pair of mice can produce hundreds of offspring in a year.
The German cockroach is not really German. In fact, the Germans call it the Prussian cockroach. It is thought to have originated in Southern Asia.
Only 12% of homeowners surveyed say they are concerned about bed bugs.
Honeybees have 2 compound eyes and 3 simple eyes, for a total of 5 eyes.
While the plague is often thought to be an historical disease, about 10-15 people in the U.S. contract this rodent-borne disease each year.
In many species of wasps, fertilized eggs become females, while unfertilized eggs become males.
Mosquitoes transmit some of the worst diseases known to man, including dengue fever, malaria, encephalitis, and yellow fever.
Spider silk from some House Spiders has been used to help stop bleeding from wounds, by placing a mat of silk over the wound
Earwigs hide during the day and feed on leaves, flowers, fruits, mold and insects at night.
To survive the cold winter months, many insects replace their body water with a chemical called glycerol, which acts as an "antifreeze" against the temperatures.
70% of homeowners view bed bugs as a nuisance pest, while 20% term them a disease threat.
When searching for food sources a honeybee may travel up to 60 miles in a single day.
A one-day-old baby cockroach, which is about the size of a speck of dust, can run almost as fun as its parents.
A mature Formosan termite colony can number in the millions.
Once away from the human body, mites do not survive more than 48-72 hours.
There are about 10,000 different species of grasshoppers.
A queen bee can lay her weight in eggs each day, laying 1 per minute, all day and all night, for a total of 1,500 eggs in 24 hours, and 200,000 in a year.
The total weight of all of the termites in the world is greater than the weight of all the humans in the world.
Mexican "Jumping" Beans jump because of a moth larva living inside each one.
There has been a 500% increase in bed bug infestations reported since 1999
West Nile Virus is the number one mosquito transmitted disease in the United States.
It can take up to 3 years for a varied carpet beetle to grow from an egg to an adult, and adults only live between 13-44 days.
Fleas are vectors of Bubonic Plague, carried from rodents to humans when they suck our blood. In 14th century Europe, more than 1/3 of the continent died from the disease.
Flea larvae feed on undigested organic matter, particularly the feces of adult fleas, which contain undigested blood.
In 2005, more people in the South mentioned having problems with cockroaches (26%) than anywhere else in the country.
56% of homeowners surveyed said they have had a problem with ants in the past year.
As many as 100 people die as a result of bee and wasp stings each year.
Bed bugs can ingest seven times their own weight in blood, which would be the equivalent of an average-sized male drinking 120 gallons of liquid.
Unlike bees, a wasp's body is smooth and has no hair.
Wild and domestic rodents have been reported to harbor and spread as many as 200 human pathogens.
Ticks have only six legs during their larval stage and eight legs during their nymphal and adult stages.