It's Stink Bug Season In Texas: How To Get Rid Of Them

AUSTIN, TX — Those noisy cicadas or locusts are gone with the passage of summer, but taking their place across the Texas landscape are those dreaded stink bugs. The critters derive their name from the foul odor they emit as defense mechanism that's often been described as rotting cherries.

The pests first made their way into the U.S. in the mid- to late-1990s. Today, they're found across the country. The bugs are flat, with a shield-shaped body and antennae. Those making contact with the insects should know that merely handling the pests can trigger them to release their nasty stench, so if you spot one — whatever you do — don't squash it.

Thankfully, there's an easy hack on ridding your area of the stinky bugs. A group of Virginia Tech University researchers found the simple solution, utilizing a pan filled with water and a light to attract the bugs to their doom. Store-bought stink bug traps can cost up to $50, while the homemade trap is easy to assemble and cheap. This is all you need:

• Water and dish soap
• A light to attract the bugs

Just fill a foil roasting pan with water and dish soap, and put a light over the pan to attract the bugs in a darkened area — including indoor rooms. The Virginia Tech trap eliminated 14 times more stink bugs than store-bought traps, researchers found.

For those truly squeamish as it relates to bugs, this variety that can grow as large as three-quarters of an inch long typically head indoors for the warmth when the weather gets cool. To keep them from entering your home, seal cracks, doors, windows and any other points of entry. If you see one in your house, there's a good chance there are more.

More tips from the Mosquito Squad:

• Check for cracks around utilities, chimneys, siding, trim, fascia, baseboards, exhaust fans, light fixtures, and trim.
• Use caulk or weather strips to close these openings.
• Replace damaged or torn screens.
• Search for egg masses in your garden and destroy them. Their light yellow, elliptical eggs are found in clusters of 20-30 on the underside of leaves.
• Cap your chimney.
• Tidy up around the home to reduce clutter where stink bugs can hide.

"If you find stink bugs in your home, use a shop vac or an old vacuum cleaner to suck them up," Mosquito Squad wrote. "This will prevent them from emitting their foul smell. Beware of using your daily-use vacuum cleaner, because the odor from the bugs may linger in the vacuum. The most effective long-term solution to getting rid of stink bugs is to call in professional help."

Are stink bugs dangerous to pets?

Thankfully, stink bugs don't bite, suck blood spread diseases or cause structural damage to homes, Mosquito Squad noted. But pets who enjoy chasing the bugs before munching on them could start to vomit or drool profusely on oral contact.

In extreme cases, Mosquito Squad adds, pets ingesting stink bugs can develop a hard mass called bezoar, a hard mass in the stomach incapable of passing through the digestive tract. Consult your veterinarian if you think your cat and dog has eaten an inordinate amount of these bugs. The mass that can form in their stomachs potentially could require surgery.

Aside from the unpleasantness of their foul stench, there's not much to fear from the pesky pests. Most species feed on plants, sucking moisture from leaves, stems, and roots of plants. They tend to attack seeds, nuts and fruit, including peaches, apples, tomatoes, green peppers, soybeans and pecans. Some stink bug species are predators, but they eat other bugs.