Many types of insects are considered pests and with good reason. They can bite or sting you, spread dangerous diseases, and damage your home. These are all very good reasons to call pest control in Toronto. However, as annoying as these pests can be, they have some capabilities that are impressive or would be if they were not arrayed against you. Learning more about insect pests is not only interesting, but it may help you to deal with the situation more effectively. 

1. Bed Bugs Can Bite Without You Knowing It

A bed bug’s saliva has chemicals that work as an anticoagulant and an anesthetic. The anticoagulant is to prevent your blood from clotting, which would make it harder for the bed bug to feed. The anesthetic prevents you from feeling the bite so that you do not wake up before the bed bug has finished eating. Both of these chemicals wear off fairly quickly, but they last long enough so that the bed bug can finish eating and hide before you wake up. It is only after you are awake that you may experience symptoms such as itchiness, redness, and swelling, but because the bed bugs are hidden, you may be confused as to what is causing them. 

2. The Queen Bee Prompts the Workers To Create a Successor

The queen bee is vital to the continuation of the colony because she is the sole egg-laying member. Queen bees have an impressive lifespan of approximately five years, but they do not live forever. 

A dying queen releases a pheromone that triggers the workers that take care of larvae, also known as nurse bees, to start feeding royal jelly to a group of recently hatched female larvae. Royal jelly is a substance that nurse bees secrete from their heads. It is richer than the food that bee larvae normally receive, and it activates the reproductive system of any female larva that consumes it, which would otherwise remain dormant. 

The workers feed royal jelly to multiple female larvae so that there are several potential queens. However, each hive can only have one queen, so the one that survives after killing off all the other potential queens takes the crown, so to speak. 

3. Cockroaches Crave Touch

Cockroaches can squeeze in very small cracks and crevices. This makes them harder to find, let alone remove. However, this is not the only reason that cockroaches squeeze into small spaces. 

The response of an animal to touch or physical contact is called thigmotaxis. Cockroaches are positively thigmotactic, which means they like physical contact, preferably all over their bodies at the same time. This craving for touch is what drives them to seek out enclosed spaces and gather together in large numbers. 

4. Termites Spend a Lot of Time Grooming One Another

Termites can cause extensive property damage by consuming the wood in your home, so an infestation is a major problem. However, even with all the issues associated with termites, a lack of cleanliness is not one of them. 

Termites live in large colonies, and a contagious bacterial or fungal infection that spreads through a colony could be devastating. Therefore, termites spend a lot of time keeping each other clean. As they groom one another, they check for infections using their antennae. 

Contact Truly Nolen for Pest Control in Toronto

Apart from all the concrete problems that can arise from pest infestation, it can be upsetting to have your home invaded by harmful insects. Truly Nolen offers residential pest control for these and other insects, as well as spiders, rodents, and birds. Find out more about how our services can benefit you.