Sacramento Pest Control: Beetles, Beetle Pest Control Sacramento

Varied carpet beetles

Varied carpet beetles get their name from the rainbow of color on their backs.

Powderpost beetles

Powderpost beetles lay their eggs in cracks of wood and the larvae tunnel into the surface, filling it with a very fine powder-like dust. Powderpost beetles have long, narrow, flat bodies that allow them to easily attack wood surfaces. These beetles are reddish-brown in color.

Merchant grain beetles:

Merchant grain beetles are typically not found in grain products, but instead like to attack cereals, cake mixes, macaroni, cookies and chocolate. Merchant grain beetles are dark brown and have six saw-like teeth on each side of their bodies. They can grow to be one-eighth of an inch long and have very flat bodies.

Pillbugs:

Sowbugs and pillbugs are not insects but soil-dwelling crustaceans in the Isopod order, more closely related to crayfish than to insects. Isopods have a hard, shell-like covering that is made up of a series of segmented plates. Some isopods roll up into a ball when disturbed and are called pillbugs. Isopods have seven pairs of legs and are dark gray or brown but may be almost purple or blue just after molting.

Stink Bugs:

Several kinds of stink bugs feed on tomatoes, but all are similar in life history and damage. The most common species statewide is the consperse stink bug, which tends to be the most important species in the Sacramento and northern San Joaquin valleys. The redshouldered stink bug is considered the most prevalent species in the southern San Joaquin Valley. Chlorochroa sayi and C. uhleri are most prevalent on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley. The southern green stink bug, Nezara viridula, occurs in parts of the Sacramento and northern San Joaquin valleys, but is kept at relatively low levels by an imported parasite. Adult stink bugs are distinctly shield shaped and either brown or green. Some species have red, pink, or yellow markings. Adults overwinter on the ground under leaves, in orchards, legume crops, blackberries, or on certain weeds such as Russian thistle, mustards, and little mallow (cheeseweed). They become active in March and April and begin laying eggs at this time. Eggs are drum shaped with circular lids and are laid in clusters on foliage. Immatures resemble adults but do not have developed wings