If you’ve been celebrating the end of the mosquito season, you may be a little disappointed as a new pest is popping up around the country.
The pest is the invasive brown marmorated stink bug, native to East Asia, and may be trying to climb in your windows and doors as it finds somewhere to live for the winter.
According to Stop BMSB, a group dedicated to stopping the stink bugs, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the bugs have made an appearance in almost every state except Wyoming and South Dakota.
However, the bugs have become a “severe agricultural and nuisance problem” in Oregon, Michigan, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York, the group shared in a report.
Experts at Penn State shared that those looking to avoid rooming with the stink bugs for the winter should keep an eye on the warm parts of their homes, especially those that face the sun, as the critters are currently looking for a place to call home for the winter.
Even worse, once they get inside your home, it can be a tough fight to get them out. Squishing the bugs shows they live up to their names, as they produce an unpleasant odor that can cause allergic reactions like rhinitis or conjunctivitis for some. On top of that, the University of Wisconsin-Madison shares that several different kinds of insecticides aren’t able to fight off the stinky intruders.
So, what can you do to evict the bugs?
The best way to fight off the stink bugs is to be prepared, ensuring that your home is sealed off with caulk and that there aren’t any ways for them to get in, according to HGTV.
Checking doors and screens to ensure there are no holes or points of entry for the stink bugs is also important.
Using nicer-smelling products like essential oils and dryer sheets can also help deter the bugs from entering your home. Putting them in window sills or other points of entry has been used to keep them away.
If the bugs happen to get in, using a vacuum to remove them is helpful as they shouldn’t get squished and release the odor. Taking them outside to squish them, flushing them down the toilet, or putting them in a container with soapy water are also cleaner ways of getting rid of them.
If all else fails and they are able to enter your home, you won’t necessarily need to kill them as they won’t cause much harm outside of their odor and won’t reproduce while they hunker down for winter.