As Florida continues to recover from the effects of Hurricane Irma, many mosquito control districts in the state are temporarily stepping up their spray programs. It is important to realize how and why this is an important response to strong ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease
This summer, keep your bees' water source from becoming a breeding ground for mosquitoes. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) Best Management Requirements for beekeepers requires that managed honey bee colonies ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease
It is that time of year when it seems that everywhere you look is an insect you have never seen before. To keep you in the know we have pulled together some of the newest Creatures from the University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Crops, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS Extension, Work & Life
Above: A regal jumping spider at rest between jumps. UF/IFAS photo by Lyle Buss. Even if you don’t like spiders, you have to admit that jumping spiders are kind of cute (possibly even very cute). Florida is home to a few species of jumping ... READ MORE
Category: Pests & Disease
Are you seeing fantastic creatures that are the stuff of nightmares (or an entomologists day dreams)? We all have had these moments and can often be surprised by how small some of these so called evil creatures are. We have compiled for you ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Crops, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, Work & Life
The silver critters that you find in boxes are called silverfish (Figure 1). They are a primitive type of insect that lack wings and are ametabolous (meaning they do not go through metamorphosis). Silverfish prefer places that have little airflow, ... READ MORE
Category: Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, Work & Life
If you have ever seen what looks like clumps of dirt ascending your walls, you are actually seeing an insect. The “dirt” is actually a case that surrounds a household casebearer caterpillar (Figure 1), which is the larval stage of a Tineid ... READ MORE
Category: Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, Work & Life
When you have an infestation of bed bugs (Figure 1), bleach should not be used as a control method. Bleach can be harmful to people if not used carefully, and it will not work effectively to completely eradicate bed bugs from your ... READ MORE
Category: Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, Work & Life
Those little, squirming things in your birdbath are container-breeding mosquitoes (Figure 1). These mosquitoes are in their larval stage. Adult container-breeding mosquitoes lay eggs wherever water collects, which can be natural structures—like ... READ MORE
Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension
Between April and November, you might notice spike-tailed green worms (Figure 1) feasting on your tomato plants’ leaves and fruit. These voracious creatures ravaging your garden are caterpillars called tobacco or tomato hornworms. The caterpillars ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension