November, up to this point, has been rather mild compared to October.  On the warmer sunny days, a number of household invaders have been active during this extended fall season.  Multicolored Asian Lady Beetles (USDA link) and Western Conifer Seed Bugs (Penn State link) have been the most noted invaders.  Both insects make their way into buildings to spend the winter.  Those households that may have a yellowjacket nest hidden in an eave or similar place, may have had an influx of the insects into the living space as the days cool off.  These yellowjackets seem to have a way of making their way towards the warmer inside temperatures.  Once inside, they tend to accumulate at the windows, attracted to the natural light.  Even though the insects are often lethargic in this situation, it is still disconcerting to encounter yellowjackets inside the house. [Yellowjackets: html || pdf || En español] (Univ. of Kentucky)

There are a number of insects that still fly even though temperatures may dip down into the forties.  Among them are several moth species, including the Bruce spanworm.  The woolly alder aphid is a another late season flyer (looks like a flying snowflake).  Several caddisfly species fly into November, including the dotwinged caddis (Frenesia spp.).  There are a number of midges (nonbiting) that fly this time of year, too.  Persistent flyfishers would be interested in these last two types of insects! 

October 5th - by Clay Kirby, Insect Diagnostician

Household pests submitted to the lab during late summer and early fall included root weevils, house centipede, springtails[Univ. of Arizona], acrobat ants [Clemson], flour mites, fruit flies [Iowa State], spider beetles, drugstore beetles, ground beetles, and cluster flies

Landscape, lawn, and ornamental pests included yellownecked caterpillars.(NCSU) (includes photos), red humped caterpillars, arborvitae leafminer, gladiolus thrips [Univ. of Florida], Phyllophaga spp. white grubs.[U. Maryland], eastern spruce gall, oak leaf shothole leafminer, lilac leafminer, tulip tree spot gall, and mites.

Food crop pests included onion thrips [Cornell], redheaded flea beetles, Meloe blister beetles [pdf via Rutgers], probably the first squash vine borer [Ohio State; Penn State] to make it to the Pest Management Insect Lab, pear slugs, pear leaf blister mite, apple and thorn skeletonizer, and tortoise beetle larvae. 

A couple of curiosities sent in to the lab were dog day cicadas and pigeon tremex.

Gardening After Late Blight (Late Sept. 2009)
The gardening season has come to an end and you are already thinking ahead to next year.  The garden was a big success except for LATE BLIGHT that wiped out the tomatoes and potatoes.  A few tomatoes managed to ripen and the potatoes, if there are any, are still in the ground.  Of course, the potato plants have been dead for 2-3 weeks now and the tomato plants certainly need to be given last rites.  So, now what?!
Find the answers in our new "Gardening After Late Blight" fact sheet:
MS Word || pdf

To date, there have been 15 horses in Maine that have died from EEE (12 that have been confirmed with 3 that are right now classified as 'suspect'), one confirmed llama death [also in Maine] from EEE, and in New Hampshire both an alpaca and a llama have also succumbed to it. Three pheasant flocks in Maine have also been confirmed to be infected with it.  Maine counties with confirmed EEE so far are: Waldo, Penobscot, York, Cumberland and Kennebec. Scroll down for further information about EEE (its transmission cycle, for example) as well as how you can protect yourself from becoming infected. 

August 14th - by Clay Kirby, Insect Diagnostician

Landscape samples and pests coming into the lab since the last summary (July 17) include elm sawfly larvae, spruce gall midge damage, woolly alder aphids on silver maple, fall webworm, Asiatic garden beetles, Oriental beetle, woolly psyllids on amelanchier, dogwood sawfly larva on red ossier (one of the larval stages is a striking chalky white), mites on phlox, ragged spruce galls, brown wilted pine and spruce leaders (white pine weevil damage), bristly roseslug, oak apple galls (are turning brown from green), Allegheny mound ants, white pine sawfly larvae, thrips from iris and daylily, and hickory tussock moth larvae (a white hairy caterpillar with tufts of black hairs).

Food crop pests insects include tortoise beetles on pepper and potato, earwigs (these can be predators, too), and plum curculio (a weevil) on plum, cherry, and apple. 

Household pests include bird mites (usually from bird nests on the premises), carpenter ants (can be winged), root weevils (attracted to water), merchantgrain beetles (similar to sawtoothed grain beetles in appearance and habits), larder beetles, glabrous cabinet beetles, and dark mealworm beetles. 

Some curiosities that have shown up here at the lab include a variety of flower longhorned beetles, "red-shouldered" longhorn, brown Prionid, northeastern sawyer, whitespotted sawyer, shoe leather beetle (a scarab), and digger wasp.  The run on longhorned/sawyer beetles has been due to publicity about the Asian longhorned beetle being in Massachusetts.  Better to have false alarms than to miss the real thing!
 
 
 

July 17th - by Clay Kirby, Insect Diagnostician

Ornamental pests/damage that have/has come into the lab since the last summary include:  woolly beech adelgids (aphid-like insects), sawfly damage on rose, Japanese Beetles [their numbers are rising now] on a variety of ornamentals, rose chafers on many hosts, a huge flight of large aspen tortrix moths in Houlton, lilac leafminer damage, balsam woolly adelgid twig gouting, spruce spider mites, and lace bugs on Pieris and rhododendron.  Also, European chafer adults (can be numerous) are now taking flight at dusk and are attracted to looming silhouettes such as roofs and large trees.  They don't do much damage in the adult beetle stage, but are a notorious lawn pest as a larva (one of several species of white grub pests in Maine). 

Garden: Samples coming to the lab from the garden included cabbage maggot, black cutworm, earwigs (totally riddled Chinese cabbage leaves), raspberry cane maggot (photo link), and bot fly pupal skins (apparently from horse manure spread over the garden).  We've been getting whitespotted sawyer beetles in due to news-savvy people mistaking them for Asian longhorned beetles.  I guess we'd rather have false alarms than miss the real thing!

Household: Recent household arrivals include Calliphorid fly maggots (most likely from a dead animal somewhere on the premises), powderpost beetle sawdust (flour-like consistency, however, can be grainy with some species), carpenter ants, larder beetle larvae (dark hairy worms with two tiny "thorns" on the end, pointing back), and Pennsylvania woods roaches (these are spread over a large area of Maine and live outside, often seen on plants; they are attracted to lights at night and do not have the same disgusting habits as their notorious cousins).
 

July 2nd - by Clay Kirby, Insect Diagnostician

Japanese Beetles were found in Orono, so they must also be 'out and about' in areas south of Orono.

June 29th

June's Bug Report - by Clay Kirby, Insect Diagnostician

Small fruit pests that have come through the insect ID lab doors include rose chafer  (hits many other plants too), cyclamen mite [photo link], and raspberry cane maggot.

Ornamental pests this month have been sawfly on azalea, balsam twig aphid, dogwood scale, cottony maple scale, lace bugs, erineum (red or white velvety spotting on foliage of maple and oak, caused by eriophyid mites), tortoise scale on pine, ragged spruce gall, oak leaf shothole, viburnum leaf beetle , hydrangea leaftier, lily leaf beetle, and lace bugs.  Turf pests included Japanese beetle, Asiatic garden beetle, and European chafer grubs.  European red ants are bothering people with their stinging/biting behavior.

Household pests that have been submitted to the lab for ID included larder, black carpet,  and drugstore beetles.  Another pantry pest, the Indian meal moth(frequently associated with birdseed) has been a common submission.  Mosquitoes, quite abundant with all this rain, are not only plentiful outside, but are finding themselves indoors as well.  Bird mites, normally traceable to bird nests on the premises (e.g. eaves), have been found in camps, outhouses, and homes alike.  These tiny critters can cause a rash-like bite. Household ants include carpenter, field, cornfield, and odorous.

We are anticipating Japanese beetles to show up soon.  The gloomy wet weather may have slowed their appearance.  Keep an eye on your roses for first arrivals!

Spring 2009 - by Clay Kirby, Insect Diagnostician

Some indoor insects and related creatures that grabbed homeowner attention this past April included Western Conifer Seed Bugs(having spent the winter indoors), millipedes in basements and garages, carpenter ants+(number 1 household pest in Maine), and pseudoscorpions(a beneficial predator of tiny household pests).  The most important outdoor samples coming into the lab during April were ticks (dog ticks and deer ticks). Photo Link comparing the American Dog Tick together with the Deer or Black-legged Tick

May brought on an explosion of all kinds of insects.  White grubs dominated the outdoor insect scene.  White grub species included Japanese beetle, European chafer (a serious contender), Oriental beetle, May/June beetles, and Asiatic garden beetles.  An encouraging development was the detection of a white grub parasitic wasp in several areas in central and southern Maine.  Also encouraging, were the numbers of solitary groundnesting bees hovering over lawn and garden areas this spring.   The most common spiders we received from homes this spring were fisher spiders (large, fast spiders that live near water or marsh areas).