Webbing Clothes Moth
(Solenopsis invicta) Adults are small moths, shiny golden wings with no markings, tuft of reddish hairs on head. Larva feeds on hair, wool, carpets, furniture, feathers, insulation, lint, etc. – any product of animal origin. Adults do not feed. Adult and larva avoid light. Larva spins silken tunnel over its food and feeds beneath this cover. About 45 eggs per female, adults live less than 1 month
Vinegar Fruit Fly
(Drosophila sp) Adults small (1/a”), light colored, with red eyes, striped abdomen. Larvae feed on fermenting fruits, vegetables, often in bottles of juice or alcohols. Up to 500 eggs from female, the life cycle from egg to adult is as little as 8 days. Control is best by general cleanliness and cleanup of spilled syrups and foods.
Fungus Gnat
(Sciara sp) Adults very small, black, shaped somewhat like small mosquitoes. Breed on damp materials which are decaying, and may occur within potted plants in structures, or commonly outdoors.
Green Bottle Fly
(Phaenicia sp) Adults large (over 1/4″) and shiny metallic green in color. Common structural larval sources are dead rodents and garbage cans, pet droppings outdoors. Maggots commonly leave food source to crawl long distances to pupate. Adults “loud” flyers, attracted to light.
Common House Fly
(Musca domestica) Adults about 1/4 ” long, striped thorax, light sides to abdomen. Larval food is any decaying organic matter, with livestock manure a favorite. Up to 100 eggs per female can develop to adults in as little as 6 days.Lesser House Fly (Fannia canicularis) Adults about %” long, thin gray abdomen,striped thorax. Animal droppings common larval source. Males spend long periods hovering around doorways, shaded areas.
Moth Fly
(Psychoda alternate) Adults small, very hairy, and gray or dark gray, and rest with wings held flat. Also called “drain fly” as larvae live in buildup of scum and debris in drains, sinks, water settling areas, or sewage plants. Harmless to humans, but annoying and an indication of an unsanitary condition. Larval development to adult in about 2 weeks. Control primarily by physical removal of the buildupharboring the larvae.
Phorid Fly
(Megaselia sp.) Also called “humpbacked fly” due to rounded shape to top of thorax of adult. Larvae live in decaying organic matter from animal or plant origin. Problem in mausoleums due to breeding within vases and floral tributes. Adults very small, light brown colored to black. Control by eliminating Ian/al sources.
Yellow Jacket
(Vespula sp.) Adults medium sized, with 5 or 6 common species across U.S. – yellow and black, lateral stripes on abdomen, 4 wings, long antennae. Social paper wasps which nest either in ground or in aerial nests – up to 20,000 workers possible by end of summer. Food sources are sweet liquids for adults and meat for larvae – naturaldiet often caterpillars. Colonies do not survive winter, but begin each year as individual queens.
Bumble Bee
(Bombus) Bumble bees are the only bees native to North America that are truly social. They live in colonies, have different divisions of labor or castes, and have overlapping generations, usually with multiple broods throughout the spring, summer, and fall.
Carpenter Bee
(Xylocopa) Derives from their nesting behavior; nearly all species burrow into hard plant material such as dead wood or bamboo
Honey Bee
Honey bees are known for their construction of perennial colonial nests from wax, the large size of their colonies, and surplus production and storage of honey, distinguishing their hives.
June Bug
(Cetoniinae) Whether you call them June beetles, Junebugs, or May beetles, these small, reddish-brown, clumsy flyers can be annoying. They get their name because of when they emerge. In San Jose, California, these pests come out in June. Other places get them in May, hence the difference.