A Cold Winter Does Not Minimize Spring Pest Problems

The weather this year has been particularly strange. 70-degree days were flanked by 40-degree days and areas that normally never dip below freezing reported snow and sleet.

Can Frigid Temps Kill The Bugs?
Regardless of the cause behind the wacky weather, many homeowners wonder whether uncharacteristic deep freezes can kill off insect populations and make for a better spring and summer when it comes to pest management.

While that sounds like a nice idea. Cold weather typically does very little to harm insects. In fact, most pests have evolved extremely fine tuned mechanisms for surviving the cold.

Adaptation Strategies
Some insects produce their own antifreeze, others simply bury deep into the ground to avoid the frost and ice, still others learned to hibernate and find warm areas to nest for the winter.

Termites for example can take refuge under the eaves of a house throughout the winter before emerging in the spring and creating new colonies of destruction. Oftentimes, homeowners don’t realize they’ve been housing termites for months because the insects were inactive and in self-preservation mode during the chill.

They’ve Been Around Longer Than We Have
Scientific data reveals that insects were among the earliest life forms and have survived several ice ages. Today even, there exists an insect called the Antarctic midge that can live in ice for more than 300 days. That’s a hardy creature!

Ultimately, it’s hard to hear, but frigid weather does not reduce the pest population in most cases. So, even though you might not see them now, insects and other creepy crawlies will make their return before you know it. Find a reliable pest control company to proactively handle any infestations before it becomes a real problem.