Other Pests

Creepy crawlies such as geckos (house lizards), centipedes, silverfish and bees or hornets pose a wide variety of health and safety problems.

KNOW YOUR ENEMY​

Geckos (House Lizards)

Geckos are insect-eating lizards found in almost in almost every household in this part of the world. Geckos have pads on its toes that enable it to cling even to smooth surfaces or stay inverted on ceilings.

They can be considered beneficial for their insect-consuming diet However, they can become a pest themselves. Their droppings soil the walls and contaminate exposed food. They love to nest inside drawers and their eggs are often found in undergarments.

House geckos have a signature sound which may sound eerie, especially as they occupy human homes. If you start hearing scurrying around and squeaking or chirping sounds, you may have a gecko problem.

Solutions To Geckos

Unfortunately, geckos cannot be completely eradicated from a home. There are no registered substances available to pest control companies, and the various urban myths regarding homemade cocktails that can kill them are not that effective.

But, there are a few actions that you can take in order to protect your home against geckos:

  • Get Rid of The Insects in Your Home – The more insects you have on your property, the more geckos you will attract. So it’s important to get the help of a pest control company and to keep any kinds of insects or spiders under control
  • Seal Up Cracks – Since geckos are also hunted by other animals, they prefer to have cracks or holes around in order to hide. However, if there are no hiding places around, they will feel vulnerable and will leave
  • Use Insect Screens on Windows – This way, not only will you protect your home against flies, mosquitoes, moths and other insects, but also against geckos
  • Turn Off Outdoor Lights – When insects are swirling around a source of light, there will definitely be geckos around too. But if you remove the source of light, you also remove the gecko’s source of food
  • Use Glue Boards and Sticky Cards – They can catch and eventually kill the geckos. Place them strategically near lights, windows or other surfaces preferred by geckos. Be aware that this method does not kill the creatures on the spot, and does not allow for a humane release.
  • Repellent and Residual Spray – To prevent geckos from crawling into the house, spray on the edge of window grilles and openings. The smell of the spray will deter them from advancing.

As mentioned before, getting rid of bugs, flies, mosquitoes or other insects in your home is essential for also getting rid of geckos. PESTSHIELD is here to help!

KNOW YOUR ENEMY​

Silverfish

The Silverfish is a teardrop or fish-shaped insect with silver-grey scales. This fungi, moisture, and decay pest has three long, bristle-like appendages protruding from the rear end of its body and a pair of long antennae.

Adult silverfish are wingless and possess a flattened body with a length of 13-25 mm. Their elongated shape tapers from head to rear and is covered with fine, powdery scales. Immature silverfish are smaller than adults, but have a similar appearance. Their silver-grey scales appear after their third or fourth moult.

Silverfish feed almost exclusively on polysaccharide, which is a carbohydrate found in starches, glues, and paper products. Thrive in humid and moist environment, feed on polysaccharides (starch & cellulose) such as book glue, carpet fibres, household glue, paint, fabrics, and even furniture. Once they find a satisfactory food source, they generally remain close to it.

Other than seeing silverfish, holes in clothing, chewed areas on boxes and damage to pages of books could also indicate a silverfish infestation. Sometimes the damage is accompanied by a yellow stain

Solutions To Silverfish

Prior to any silverfish treatment a spring clean is required;

  • Ideally throw out any cardboard boxes used for storage and replace with sealed plastic containers. If you must keep cardboard boxes they should be stored off the ground and treated (but this won’t guarantee re-infestation)
  • Carry out a thorough vacuum of rooms (especially the room edges and under furniture) and cupboards
  • Remove any clothes and belongings from areas to be treated and check for silverfish.
  • If the clothes and belongings are not susceptible to heat, place in a black plastic bag and leave in the sun for 1-2 hours, to kill any silverfish and eggs on the clothes.
CHEMICAL CONTROL
  • Use a total release aerosol (Fumigate or “bomb”) in rooms of high infestation.
  • Spraying of residual insecticides under furniture, around the perimeter of rooms and in all shelves and drawers of cupboards.
  • Potential hot spots in roof voids and sub-floors should also be sprayed.
KNOW YOUR ENEMY​

Bees, Wasps & Hornets

Bees and hornets are feared by many, but these social insects are vital to the health of both ecosystems and human societies, as the former are tireless pollinators as well as efficient honey producers, while hornets prey on large variety of other insects, including pest species.

The common bees, wasps and hornets found in Singapore:

  • Asian Honey Bee (Apis cerana) 
  • Yellow and brown/black bands
  • Giant Honey Bee (Apis dorsata)
  • One less brown/black band at the top of the abdomen compared to Asian honey bee
  • Pear-tailed Potter Wasp (Delta pyriforme)
  • Black and reddish and established with a long petioles
  • Lesser banded Hornet (Vespa affinis)    
  • Black with yellow-orange band across the first and second segment of abdomen

Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants. Of all insect species, the honey bee is perhaps the most beneficial.

The honey bee makes its greatest contribution by pollinating plants. More than one half of all fruit and vegetable crops are pollinated by honey bees. Wasps contribute by preying on many pest insects harmful to crops. Unfortunately, bees and wasps can be a threat to human health. Most die from an allergic reaction to venom within one hour of the sting. Those allergic to stings should carry emergency epinephrine injection kits as directed by their doctors.

If you have a wasp or hornet problem, the best course of action is still to contact a pest control service. Disturbing a hornet or wasp nest may result in devastating consequences as these insects are very aggressive and would not hesitate to sting repeatedly. Their streamlined bodies allow them to fly at faster speeds than bees, but are still easy to outrun. Unfortunately, by the time you outrun them, you would have already received a few painful stings from them.

HAVING TROUBLES WITH PESTS?

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With a vision to construct a pest free living environment, we are striving to improve the environment by eliminating many disease-carrying and destructive pests, to keep your residential or commercial premises pest free to the best of our ability.

CATCHING STRAY BIRDS, CATS, DOGS, AND SNAKES?

The Vector Control Operator license only covers 5 main vectors: Mosquitoes, Flies, Fleas, Cockroaches and Rodents. The decision to handle other pests is entirely up to the discretion of individual operator. For wildlife, you might want to refer the enquiries to AVS and ACRES.

  • Animal & Veterinary Service (AVS)
  • ACRES (Animal Concerns Research and Education Society)

– 1800 476 1600 (24-hours)
–  9783 7782 (24-hours)

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