Germantown Pest Control

Most Common Pests in Louisville, KY

Louisville is home to many species of insects, rodents, and wildlife. Learn more about the most common pests in the area by reading below.

Termites

Louisville homeowners often suffer from termite infestations and the damage they cause. The Eastern subterranean termite is the most prevalent throughout the area. This species lives underground in large colonies, eating away at wood and other items like paper. Small gardens and mulch beds that are up against the foundation of your home can harbor entire colonies, hidden out of sight. Subterranean termites construct protected “mud tubes" that can appear on walls in your structure, utilized for safer colony travel. Wooden features throughout your home such as support beams, flooring, and window and door frames can be damaged by a subterranean termite infestation.

Stink Bugs

Stink bugs are small, shield-shaped insects that invade homes in the late summer and early fall. They are about ½ inch long and come in several shades of brown, with six legs and a set of antennae. Stink bugs make their way indoors beginning in the late summer to overwinter in wall voids and attics. Once they enter a structure, homeowners may periodically see some activity but overwintering insects are in a diapause or hibernation. They are not feeding and have limited energy reserves to stay active all winter. As the weather warms up and spring arrives, stink bugs will emerge throughout your home as they try to make their way outdoors once again. That's usually when you'll find a lot of stink bugs by windows as they attempt to go back outside for the spring and summer.

Cockroaches

Brown-banded, German, American, and Oriental cockroaches are the most abundant in Louisville area homes. German cockroach infestations most often begin when someone unknowingly brings an infested item into a home or building. Poor sanitation such as leaving out food or dirty dishes can encourage an infestation since this type of clutter provides a good food source for the roaches. American roaches usually originate from drains or sewers and make their way into working or living areas via the pipes and drains. The adults migrate from home to home commonly through the sewers. Without addressing a cockroach infestation, they can multiply very quickly.

Mice

Mice can squeeze through holes the size of a dime, making it possible for them to get into your home through even the smallest of gaps and holes on the exterior of your home. Once indoors, they quickly cause unsanitary conditions, leaving large amounts of droppings throughout your home as they move around at night. Mice can also contaminate food in easily penetrable or unsealed food containers like cereal boxes. Oily spots called “rub marks" can stain walls where openings exist. Their coats are full of natural oils that transfer as they scale walls or enter and exit through small spaces.

Rats

Norway rats (brown rats) and roof rats are the most common species of rats that infest homes throughout the Louisville area. Regardless of species, rat infestations can cause a lot of frustration and anxiety when homeowners have to deal with their existence. Norway rats live in burrows within the ground. When faced with a cityscape, Norway rats will even find gaps in asphalt to access soil or use available soil patches to burrow into the soil and nest. They typically search for food outdoors, but many times will come inside manmade structures at night to gather food and return to their burrows. It is important to note that they can live indoors. They may search for food indoors and nest. They can travel hundreds of feet which could mean that you are suffering from your neighbor's rat issue or as a result of poor garbage storage from nearby businesses. As their name suggests, roof rats are skilled climbers, making their nests in higher areas like attics, drop ceilings, and even cabinets when living indoors.

Silverfish

Silverfish find their way indoors while searching for shelter, moisture, and food. Easy entry points exist around your home such as windows, door frames, and utility pipes. They can also be brought in as stowaways in boxes or packages. Although silverfish wouldn't cause structural damage to Louisville homes or pass on disease-causing pathogens to humans, they can cause damage to books, wallpaper, paper goods, and sometimes clothing. Once the silverfish have established themselves inside, they can live for several weeks without any food source or water and have an average lifespan of 3 years. However, if they find an abundant food source, they'll stay close by.

House Ants

No matter where you live in the Louisville area, house ants are an incredibly common household pest. Because house ants like odorous house ants are so small, they can stealthily enter your home, often without a trace. Tiny tears in window screening, exterior cracks, and gaps around windows and doors are some of the most common access points for ants. They can also be brought into the home by hitching a ride with potted plants or hanging baskets from garden centers. Ants can be found in any part of your home, but the kitchen and bathroom are the most common place they live. The main reason why they are congregating in these spaces is because of easily accessible water and food sources. Your home can easily suffer from ant infestations if food isn't stored properly, entry points aren't repaired or sealed, and weak wood or damp insulation exists.

Spiders

Louisville is home to a wide variety of spiders including cellar spiders, black widow spiders, American house spiders, fishing spiders, wolf spiders, and more. Although you could encounter many or all of these as a resident of Louisville, the most common species of spider that infests homes is the cellar spider. Secluded corners, cabinets, closets, and attics are ideal hiding places for cellar spiders due to the low amount of foot traffic and human activity. They're typically harmless and feed on other small pests that could be lurking around your home.

Centipedes

House centipedes are a common household pest in Louisville. They have long, thin bodies with a large number of legs that allow them to scurry across the floor and up walls quickly. Although they are relatively harmless, centipedes can be alarming to unsuspecting homeowners. You're most likely to find centipedes living in your garage, storage spaces, and areas with higher moisture levels such as bathrooms, and under dishwashers and sinks. Their diet includes insects and spiders, so if there is an infestation of another pest, centipedes can thrive.

Earwigs

Earwigs are nocturnal pests that can invade your home. In most cases, earwigs live under boards and rocks, within soil and mulch, and around garden beds. Their need for moisture draws them to these areas. This is why you'll most likely find earwigs on the ground floor of your home. Earwigs can make their way indoors when they accidentally wander in through an open or improperly sealed exterior door or when hitching a ride in soil from potted plants in garden centers. You've probably heard about earwigs because of the common myth that they can crawl into your ears and lay eggs. Fortunately, this is untrue and highly unlikely. They are nothing more than a nuisance when they enter your home.

House Crickets

House crickets are a frequently found pest in Louisville homes. These noisy pests can be found in laundry rooms, storage spaces, behind baseboards, under appliances, attics, and other spaces with less foot traffic in your home. Cricket infestations are not only difficult to control, but they are also very noisy while they chirp at night. House crickets will attack paper, damage silk, foods, and even rubber. Though they can be irritating, house crickets are usually harmless to humans.

Paper Wasps

Paper wasps are small stinging insects that frequently nest on properties throughout the Louisville area. These flying insects build their nests in virtually any covered space such as inside window frames, on overhangs, in attic vents, under outdoor furniture, or on play equipment. They make nests outdoors that resemble an upside-down umbrella with a honeycomb pattern. Paper wasps scrape wood shavings off decks, wooden railings, wooden patio tables and chairs, and other wood around your property turning it into a paste when mixed with their saliva. This mixture is used to construct their nest. Most paper wasp nests are light gray, but they can be different hues based on the color of the wood found in the area. They are mildly aggressive and can sting if they feel threatened or if you get too close to the nest. Other stinging insects that can be found locally in Kentucky are European hornets, bald-faced hornets, and yellow jackets.

Bed Bugs

Louisville is considered to be a bed bug hot spot. With such a large and active population, it's easy to see why. They are transported as stowaways, hiding in luggage, couches, beds, pillows, backpacks, and more. Bed bugs cling to sheets and mattresses and can easily fall off, allowing them to relocate and spread. It's also a common occurrence that bed bugs lay eggs on these items. As the host moves, they can fall off and hatch far away from where they originally came from. Bed bugs prefer to hide in tight spaces like around mattress piping, in the corners of bed frames, within upholstered furniture, inside dresser drawers, and even behind light socket covers and hung artwork. If you find what looks like small marks made with a permanent marker on your mattress, bed frame or upholstered furniture, bed bugs could be about.

Fleas

Fleas are small biting insects that feed on live hosts, mostly dogs and cats but occasionally humans. Fleas are very small and usually only spotted when they jump, which can be almost a foot vertically. Fleas can be spread through the house as their eggs fall off a pet as it moves through the home and the yard, but in general, they spend most of their time on the host animal. They can become an even larger issue when they begin breeding in your home. Fleas can bite humans and breed in carpet fibers, making them nearly impossible to eliminate without professional pest control. The immature stages can be found in carpets and pet bedding. These tiny jumping pests are a true nuisance and plague Louisville residents that experience their activity.

Mosquitoes

Mosquitoes are a big problem and frequently encountered pests for Louisville residents. They lay eggs on outdoor surfaces where even a small amount of standing water has gathered. During humid weather and after rainfall, mosquito populations will increase. Trying to enjoy time outdoors can become unbearable for those who are relentlessly bitten. Mosquitoes do not die off but instead remain in diapause over the winter, staying dormant until it warms back up again in the spring. So although there is relief from mosquitoes in the winter, they will return when the weather improves.

Ticks

Blacklegged ticks, brown dog ticks, American dog ticks, Gulf Coast ticks, Lone Star ticks, and deer ticks are the most common species of ticks across Kentucky and throughout Louisville. Tick populations surge in the summer, but they are active year-round in the area. The threat of tick-borne illness is ever-present, with both humans and pets becoming potential targets. Ticks live within brush, tall grasses, and amongst tall foliage. As a host passes, ticks latch on and feed on a blood meal. By doing so, they can pass on pathogens that may cause disease like Lyme disease, Tularemia, babesiosis, Powassan disease, and more.