painful bite...
ASSASSIN BUG
... but kills garden pests
New kids in town...
Florida bugs
By Dee Smith
Rat Lady, NaturZone Pest Control 941 / 378-3334 naturzonedee @ gmail. com
Howdy folks! Happy summertime in good ole sunny Florida. I haven’ t written in a bit so I thought I would talk about some new pests that I have had the pleasure of meeting in the past year. One is called a harvester ant, and we don’ t have them here in the Sarasota area, or even Tampa. I met them up in a small town called Bushnell. It’ s about 103 miles north of Sarasota. It is known for the Florida National Cemetery, Dade Battlefield and lots of rivers nearby. Being in the bug business for as long as I have, who would’ ve thought we’ d have such differences in climate and bugs? Well, let me tell you, they look like a cross between a carpenter ant and huge, big-headed ant. They have hairy beards and make huge nests that can be up to two feet in diameter— all sand. They seem to just pop up overnight. It’ s crazy! They eat large amounts of grass seeds and have a bite like a wasp! I am intrigued with them, however there is no room to share with them on my property, so one of us must go, and it is not me. I plan to send them on their merry way right across the road to the next pasture.
My sister is always calling me in a panic,“ Dee, what is this bug?” And she describes a tarantula that is really a small spider the size of a pencil eraser. I am like,“ geez! I’ ll be right there.” The latest was a young wheel bug, aka assassin bug. Well, it turns out they are beneficial. Who knew an assassin could be good? These critters eat
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