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Subscribe to RSSResidents in Portage, Utah, can't seem to get rid of boxelder bugs that have swarmed their small town. KSL's Mike Anderson reports.
In Portage, Utah, they're everywhere: on children, on dogs, in the food, in basements and along window sills. Residents there and in much of Utah are used to seeing these visitors, known as boxelder bugs, but not in the numbers that this year has produced.
"They've just been awful this fall," Keith Wadman told NBC station KSL-TV. "They're in your food, they're in your house ... they just crawl everywhere."
"They're in the kitchen, they're in the bathroom, they're in the bedroom. They walk right on the dogs even," added Lisa Bryant, one of the few hundred residents of Portage, a town near the Idaho state line.
"Every time the kids come in, we play a little game to see how many they have on them," said Nick Tree, "then we kill 'em."
Tree added that while he constantly vacuums them from his basement, "somehow they creep back in."
Diane Alston, a bug expert at Utah State University, had some advice for terminating the bugs until the winter cold does it for them.
"At my house I like to use an insecticidal soap product and just spray it up on the sides of the house," she told KSL. "That soap will break down the wax covering on their body and dry them out."
The university also has a list of tips for dealing with boxelder bugs, among them: "Avoid squishing adults because they can leave a stain on fabrics and can release a foul odor."
The university suspects this year has been particularly bad because of wet weather last year, a mild winter and then a warm summer.
As you might expect, boxelder bugs are a hot topic not just in Portage but across Utah. KSL reader comments on the story included these:
- One suggested using the dead bugs as garden fertilizer. "Sounds a little grotesque, but hey, maybe it would be a good solution for some folks."
- Deploying chickens to eat live bugs was suggested by a few readers. "We have had a dozen free-range chickens for years and NEVER see one," posted a reader.
- A mix of water and dishwater soap to kill them was endorsed by several. "I used 3 spray bottles full and soon we had snow-shovels full of dead bugs to dump in the garbage," one reader stated.
- "I think I perpetuated the problem by bringing about 20 plus back in the crevices of my car from the Idaho side of Cache valley," lamented another reader. "It's not cool when you're driving and they pop out at you in the car. This is the first year however that they have gotten inside our house."
- And from nearby Rose Canyon, a reader had this to say: "They are bad here!! You can't even tell the color of my house during the day."
Wadman, the Portage resident, did see a silver lining. "The only redeeming quality they have," he said of the bugs, "is that they don't bite."
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We could call the leader of these bugs Joseph Smith Jr. and one of the high ranking females Helen Mar Kimball.
The rest of them we could call elders.
They are bad this year in MIchigan as well
I killed about a thousand of them on my garage wall yesterday. They seem to be everywhere here in Wisconsin, too.
Holy elderbugs! Sorry for your dilemma. Please dont package them up with the plants you send to our state from your nurseries like you did the earwigs. Wonder if the seagalls will step up this time.
They're nasty here in Minnesota as well! All over the garage and siding; I'm constantly finding them in the bathroom and living room and one day they were crawling out of the heating vent in our bedroom! My puppy is curious about the critters and doesn't know whether to eat them or bark at them, haha! Icky as they may be, I'm glad they don't bite or lay eggs or build webs....!
TRY DIATOMACEOUS EARTH! It is an easy solution that gets rid of the bugs, is non-toxic to pets and humans and is good for the soil and the diet, too. You can buy it at feed stores or online. It is like fine white flour and you can dust it into cracks and crevices or on the bugs themselves. If they walk through it or it is on them, it dries their shell/skin out and they become dessicated. It also works on other bugs and ants.
Google the product. It has been used for years in grain silos and packaged in rice bags as a non-toxic method to keep the bugs at bay. It can do all kinds of other things, too. We use it here in AZ in our pool filters to super clean the pool water and, if you buy the food-grade quality diatomaceous earth, you and your pets can ingest it to get rid of parasitic worms and other problems because of its unique microscopic design. It also is a valuable mineral that has been touted to help stimulate stronger collagen and healthier hair growth. I mix up a bit and drink it (food grade quality only) as a nutritional supplement.
in days gone by we referred to an infestation of bugs like this as a punishment from god for the sins of the community, perhaps for the sins of one of its prodigal sons. Perhaps this plague of insects that infests the mormon state is God trying to punish Romney for his constant lying.
They are bad here in Ohio, too. The neighbor's wood fence had this 5-foot wide "stain" on it recently. When I went to check it out, I discovered there were literally thousands of these bugs on the fence and the 20-ft. tree next to it. I sprayed, and killed most of those I could see. But they laid eggs. When those hatched out, we've had thousands more. UGH!
Must be my eyesight... those things look like good old fashioned cockroaches to me.
Doesn't boric acid work on them like on "regular" roaches? Sprinkle the powder and pretty soon they're a done deal.
Because these pests always were bad in the fall in Dakota we always called them Democrats.
looks like utah needs to call in the seagulls from salt lake again
Good one, Goldfish, but in the bug world, the female rules. No Joseph Smiths.
The picture does make them look a little like cock roaches, but they're different. Smaller, more colorful (black/gray and orange), not as dirty and nasty.
I lived in Utah when my first son was born. There was a huge infestation that year, and I remember we were horrified these nasty bugs were crawling on our perfect little baby. Have lived in Colorado for years now and saw one for the first time this year.
@ xotac--We call them Democrats here in Kansas as well. They are all over everything here!!! Cannot seem to walk down the sidewalk to check the mail without thousands flying at you!!! Its annoying!
I remember occasional infestations in Iowa when I was a kid. despite the inconvenience of dealing with large numbers of them, these insects are pretty much benign. I'd prefer them to the horned up Mayflies that appear regularly in some places, slicking roadways and smelling bad.
The best, most cost effective "AND" non-chemical way to get rid of them is to buy dish detergent (it's cheap) buy a few bottles, if you do not have one of those pump up deck stain bottles (2 to 3 gal ea.) then get one. they're only $19.99 for a cheap one.
Fill the pump up bottle a little more than half way and add one whole quart of dish detergentto it. Slowly shake it up and mix well. Pump that bitch up and spray them the hell out of 'em evenly. They breath through their bodies and this will almost instantly starve them of oxygen and they will drop by the hundreds. The soap in the water creates minute little bubbles that clog their breathing holes.
For interior bugs, I go to Home Depot and buy a hand spray bottle for $1.99 and do the same inside.
I live in NJ and we don't get that many bugs but some years, they're coming out of the woodwork and I do this. I even do this with ants and bees. They drop left and right as if it's 500 degrees out. Our biggest problem now is these "Stink Bugs" They look like a police-mans badge and man do they stink if you handle or squish them. I will do the hand spray bottle on them inside the house.
Out front of my house I have a couple squirley looking evergreen trees. They get this little tiny bug mite that you can hardly see and they start to kill the branches and small needles on them in patches that tum brown. This same system works on these little mites.
Again, it's cheap and safe. When you're complete, come back in an hour with a garden hose and guess what?! Whatever you sprayed now is sudsy and going to be cleaner than when you started. Plus if you by the lemon or orange scented dish detergent, a pleasant smell.
Hope this helps out some of you guys that have too many bugs around.
Next, I'll let you in on my secret on how to get rid of "Bill Collectors" without chemicals. ;-) Nah!!
Have a good day...
Make an on-time payment for all your debts so they don't bother you in the first place? Or is that too simple a concept?
It's a "JOKE". Is that too simple to observe from 3,000 miles away?!
On-line........
When I first read the head line. I thought Congress had moved to Utah !!!!!
But like these bugs ( including congress ) you just have to live with them. I have found that Bull Sh@# repellent does work on keeping congressmen away. Haven't tried it on bugs yet.
You can send those bugs to a guy down here that eats huge numbers of them! He even won a cock roach eating contest recently too.................oh wait a minute, I think he died...................never mind.
I see that a few people call these bugs Democrats.....Now that's funny, I don't care who you are! We used to also call the leeches that crawled up your ass in the water......................Republicans!
Not sure. Is this Obama's or Bush's fault?
Occam - Neither. It's the fault of both Woodrow Wilson and Wilford Woodruff.
"Every time the kids come in, we play a little game to see how many they have on them," said Nick Tree, "then we kill 'em."
Kinda harsh, isn't it? After all, it's not ALL the kids fault...
This is being caused by Willard Romney's constant lies!
Hay its just a cycle! seen it happen many times before don't worry, someone will try to make a buck on this , and someone will lose a buck.
nyuk,nyuk,nyuk
Then again its Utah right, the next event for the birds. I dont know what birds eat box elder bugs, my problem is those damn Asian stink bugs, is it possible to make a trade?
"They don't bite." LMAO. Bullcrap. When they poke that little needle like tube into you you'll think you got stabbed. Oh wait, you did. It hurts like hell.
We have them. I ignore them (although we have had very few in the house). People freak out too much about harmless or helpful insects. Very, very rarely have I ever seen the need to use insecticides.
All I have to say is "Eeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwwwwwwww"!
I asked some kids visiting for the summer from Tennessee, how they liked central Texas. They said they liked it, except that it seemed to them that everything here bit, stung or stuck.
I've noticed these in Indiana for the first time this year! I've never seen them before and they are all over the place. We did have a really warm winter...
I agree that the soap trick works well. We had them last year when our boxelder tree produced a bunch of seed pods. They were freakin' everywhere on that side of the house. A few buckets of detergent water splashed on them one weekend did a good job of nuking them, and cleaned the house some too :)
We have another bumper crop of the Chinese stinkbugs this year... these boogers are nasty!
I see a good science fiction movie in the making with these little critters.
Just another sign...
Sign of what?
These bugs have been a nusiance longer than I can remember.
Here's yours (courtesy of Bill Engval)
This is happening in Utah because Mormons are heretics that don't believe in the Virgin Birth. If a Mormon gets into the Whitehouse God will unleash many such plagues across the country.
Fitz79, I hope your place is the first to be hit with the plaque since you decided to bring politics and bash a religion in one stupid sentence.
Fitz - So God sent a plague of harmless bugs to a tiny Utah town as a warning to the rest of us? Seems plausible. But what about all the other bad/inconvenient things that happen in all the other states from time to time? Could it be that sometimes stuff like this just happens? Could it be that you're selectively interpreting reality to fit your preconceived notions, while ignoring all the other incidences that don't support your, uh, "theory"? Could it be that you're taking a chapter out of the fundamentalist playbook by assuming that God shares all your prejudices and biases?
The story has nothing to do with religion or politics, but you nut jobs always seem to include either one of them into everything.
Jeeze did every park their sense of humor at the door?
I like the chicken idea... takes care of the bugs and feeds the chickens. Seems like a win/win to me.
Republican bugs, Democrat chickens?
Round 2 to Obama/Biden.
Yep those Democrats are always looking for a free meal from working Republicans..
Biden is rude and laughed about serious things because he really does not care as he is a career politician and Mr. Obama has the worst business sense in history.. Taxpayers lost another 1/4 billion dollars because Battery123 filed bankruptcy like Solindra did and that stimulus money vaporized.. Designed rip offs all..............
its Bush's fault........
Roadrunner... boogy man Biden and Obama may be hiding under your bed or in your closet tonight! Be afraid be very afraid. Who you gonna call? Rush Limpbags will save you!!!!
Actually, LookingForward, you're not far off the mark. Monies targeted for pest spraying programs throughout the U.S. were drastically reduced during the Bush era. Bugs can now pretty much have the run of the place. Nothing left to stop them. Global warming, too, which Bush decided wasn't real.
dman1115, you show me where the government every paid for pest control.
Then your not looking very hard. Billions are given out in farm subsidies that pay for pesticides. Subsidies are given to counties that provide for spraying of wetlands for mosquito control.
Roadrunner - How's life in that alternate reality you're living in?
They even have them in their magic underwear!
LOL!! That was great! I've never heard that term before.. You should write comedy for Bill Maher! I bet he'd love to use that term on his show..
Really, you should write him and see..
Sorry that you don't have a sense of humor. Must be a mormon. Sucks to be you.
and its so much better to be your own kids uncle, right tombones?
tombones...The magic underwear is so old now it's really boring...And you guys always act like you are the first ones to say it.
There are bugs everywhere and they are too smart to declare themselves either Republicans or Democrats. Can't anyone ever stay on topic in the comments? Always bigotry...The ones who seem to know who is going to be roasted in hell are the worst.
It's not Magic Underwear . It's Secret Underwear. Whoops guess the cat is out of the bag.
No seagulls to eat them? Must not be worthy enough in Portage.
yeah, where is a miracle when you need one?? Save the mormons!
Give those nuisance mormom pairs flyswatters and tell them to make some use of their time instead of bothering christians.
Maybe you should stop bothering them....
I saw some of those yesterday trying to figure out what they were...and I'm it Atlanta.
yhe soap is the best idea. most soaps have a fairly large percentage of potassium, that makes an exceeant fertilizer as well as killing the bugs.
How come no one suggested maybe getting uhhhh an exterminator?
Because what the heck would an exterminator do exactly? There are millons of these bugs hatching every day OUTSIDE. Are they supposed to exterminate the outdoors now? Good suggestion dingbat.
Here in the midwest--we have them in mass each fall--The boxelder trees----Could cut the trees, but they have a long range and fly for miles! They are a mess, and do leave poop trails----Soap em down and kills the ones that you hit--In an hour--more to replace them--After it freezes--they are history! Some brilliant scientist brought in asian beetles as well-this year they sprayed the beans for another bug---killed off the beetles--YAHHH! Hope they keep them in Asia this time. I sware they could crawl through walls!
I'm in southern Wisconsin and we have them periodically. During a bad year they're everywhere in the house - I can collect a large paper grocery bag full of them every day.
skrekk - I'm in Northeast Wisconsin and I've seen these bugs but nothing like this. I had no idea they were that bad in the Southeast part of the state. Icky!
I used to live in Va Beach, had a box elder tree in my backyard, and these things were unbelievably prolific! Thank goodness they never came in the house, but some days I couldn't walk in my backyard for the swarm of these all over the yard. Wish someone had told me the soap solution - we even tried full strength malathion spray directly on them, and they just used it like a fresh shower and kept on going!
They are all over the place in Maryland as well.
And just in time for Halloween how appropriate is that?
Boy for a minute after reading the headline I thought Michelle was there druming early votes for the king. Guess I was wrong.
When we lived in Salt Lake City in the early 70s, we had them. All summer if you wanted to take a bath, you had to scoop them out of the tub where they completely filled the bottom. We assumed they were looking for water. Since they don't bite, they really weren't much of a nuisance. We just got used to them being there every year. When I see one where I live now, I look on it with a kind of nostalgia lol.
this is obama's fault, i mean look at his policies! whats next free healthcare for 47% of these bugs!!
The fact that that 47 percent covers the elderly and many military seems to be a joke to you. Probably covers Honey Boo Boo new niece from her 15 year old sister.
I thought my house was bad with them bugs on my window frames, garage door, and outside walls. Poor Utah.
I'm from TN, and my office has been plagued by these for years in the fall. Thankfully, we just moved our office across town before they arrived. They don't bite, but there's still something unnerving about feeling one crawl on your head. They also stink if you smash them, so we always vacuumed them up. The soap and water trick never worked for us. One time I sprayed a group of them with wasp spray. Of course that worked.
They are bad here in Northeast Vermont. We do have instead of being on the trees they decided to kling to the house. It wouldn't be so bad but they love the front of my house. I find Raid in the blue can (ant and rouch kill?) seems to work fine but becareful it leaves stains on the siding.
I live in Utah and I'm glad its not bad at all where I'm at (depends on where you are in utah). I've seen them bugs around here but atleast there not at infestation levels. I've heard of these bugs being bad in the surrounding states too like nevada, idaho and wyoming.
I've never seen these bugs, thank goodness, but looking at the pics, they remind me of "palmetto bugs" or roaches that we had in Florida. Really don't miss them here in NC~
oh, lord, i used to live in SC and those palmetto bugs are disgusting!
Bonnie..
I hate to bust yer bubble, but...
Newsflash!!! There ARE Palmetto bugs in North Caroline. I live in Charlotte. They are common here. Maybe they haven't made it to the north end of the state yet. Be careful about not bringing them home in bags or boxes from the stores. If you recycle aluminum cans, be sure to store them away from the house, as they love old beer...
Good luck!
Bonnie
No worries, I am sending a couple of boxes via UPS to you tomorrow. Unfortunately a box only holds about 2 or 3 as they are kinda big. Be careful that some don't get loose and fly away, as they have been known to fly by and pick up small dogs and toddlers and can only be taken down with Stinger missiles. I hear the Air Force is fitting them with camers and bomb racks and will use them in secret missions in the Middle East. The code name for the operation is "RAID"!
We suffer from occasional invasions of Gypsy moths. Much sympathy for those suffering from these bugs. Just hope for a good freeze.
Oh yea, the bugs in Utah are terrible! They are all over my house, my kids, and all of my wives!
haaaaaaahhahah
Cook you wives like that nut in California.
My cat loves em... He's a excellent bughunter.
abe..lol.
My dad used to have tons of these in his backyard, we live in California. We just sprayed them with bug killer.
I thought you were refering to Abes wife comment.
I am in Kentucky and have had these elder bugs for several years. This year I found that roach and ant spray works to keep them from crawling through the front door. I noticed that since I sprayed the foundation, the ones that are up high will not travel down and to get zapped in the sprayed area. I think I have killed the next generation that were on the ground. They are making a real mess with their poop on my light siding. I will be purchasing a larger portion of the ant and roach spray.
You should try soapy water in a sprayer. It suffocates them and cleans your siding all at the same time. Read this from another person's post and have done this for years myself to deal with the wood bees that get in my garage area. A few sprays of soapy water and those bees drop like a rock. ;)
Locusts - one of the biblical plagues - ha, ha. Not so funny if you have to live with it.
The world is plagued. And that is not so funnny and we'll have to live with and face it.
One day we won't be living with this world anymore.