Though you probably do not live in the wild, the wild still has ways of getting to you. Your comfortable, temperature-controlled, and enclosed abode appeals to a variety of wildlife that—just like you—need somewhere safe to rest, nesting spots, and reliable food and water sources. Certain critters might also see your diverse garden and lush yard as a paradise of pollen, wood, and other plant nutrients that are not available in the wild.
Either way, it means that your comfortable home appeals to more than just you. Unfortunately, your home should not be shared with wildlife; that’s what keeps it civilized, after all. You will need to protect your family, house, and yard from invasive creatures that have innumerable destructive effects.
Here are some awful critters you may encounter in your home or yard and a few reasons why you should keep them out at all costs.
Cockroaches
The word “roach” alone can make your skin crawl—or even make tiny objects appear to crawl—for fear of encountering one of these downright hideous and famously diseased pests. They can spread salmonella and other pathogens to food, dishes, and personal hygiene products.
Leafcutter Ants
Every beautiful tree, bush, and shrub in your yard is vulnerable to these quick-working beasts. In just a single day, thousands of leafcutter ants can swarm your plant life and steal their leaves, stripping them bare and depriving them of their ability to generate nutrients from sunlight and air. Remember, where there is one ant, there are thousands more underground ready to clock in for work.
Japanese Beetles
Japanese beetles are infamous pests with refined tastes. They will destroy rose bushes, flowering plants, and lush grass, not only as they eat their way through your lawn but also as their larvae tunnel into your soil and much through your roots. Worst of all, Japanese beetle grubs are a favorite meal of moles, skunks, and other rodents.
Slugs
Gardening hobbyists, beware: if you can grow it, slugs will happily eat it. Slugs are unique insects because they consume plant life in various stages of growth; as slow as they may appear, they can consume large amounts of seeds, saplings, adult plants, and fruit in your garden.
Mosquitoes
Itchy, red bumps are the image most frequently associated with these winged nuisances, insects that practically define the word “pest.” While they may not damage your yard or home directly, they can lay eggs in your pets’ water dishes—causing serious health concerns—and are responsible for the widespread contraction of illnesses ranging from dengue fever and West Nile to the now-widespread Zika virus.
Wasps and Hornets
The National Pest Management Association has reported that insect stings are responsible for over half a million emergency room visits annually. Not only do they pack seriously painful stings, but wasps and hornets can burrow into your awnings and siding, damaging your home’s exterior.
Aphids
Aphids may look harmless and tiny, but do not be fooled: they are hungry for the fluids inside all of your plants. Hosts of aphids can stunt plant growth, share fungal spores, and spread plant diseases throughout your lawn and garden.
Carpenter Ants
Like human carpenters, carpenter ants have some serious skills with wood. Rather than building handsome chairs and rocking horses, though, they build long, intricate nests inside of live trees, piles of hardwood, and even your home’s wooden framing, especially where water damage has occurred. They can kill mature trees and even compromise the structural integrity of your home.
Ticks
The main transportation hubs of diseases everywhere, ticks are responsible for tens of thousands of Lyme disease contractions each year in the United States alone. They can also spread numerous other pathogens to pets and humans—and, unlike mosquito bites, every tick bite is a likely contraction—making ticks among the most dangerous pests on the planet.
Termites
In the wild, termite nests are actually helpful recycling centers that turn dead plant matter into usable nutrients and, eventually, new plant growth. In homes, though, termites are the kings of destruction. Wooden frames, trim, molding, cabinets, and any other organic building materials in your home are vulnerable to hungry and motivated swarms of termites. In short time, they can not only damage your home, they can make it entirely uninhabitable.