If you live along the Colorado River in Bullhead City, Fort Mohave, or Mohave Valley, Arizona, or Needles, California, or the surrounding desert, you already know an important fact of life. This is a desert oasis for people and for pests. But the pests and insects that we live with are pale in comparison to those found in the Amazon rainforest or the jungles of Central Africa. And some of the critters in Australia are truly the stuff that nightmares.
Compared with some of these great insect kingdoms, our local bugs are rather innocuous. That doesn’t mean we want them to move into the house. And that’s where professional pest control comes in.
The Colorado River Valley may look like an unlikely place for a thriving diverse insect population. After all, this is the desert. But the Colorado River, irrigation, landscaping, swimming pools and residential development create pockets of water. We also have unique vegetation that is attractive to insects and other pests.
Bugs of The Colorado River Valley
The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension lists everything from rats, mice and mosquitoes to scorpions and ticks among the household pests Arizona residents living in the Colorado River Valley encounter. Baron Services, serving Bullhead City and surrounding Colorado River Valley area communities, provides pest-control services addressing all these critters as well as bed bugs, cockroaches and other common pests, as well as termite inspections and treatments.
Few creatures grab immediate attention as a scorpion. Arizona has more than 50 species of scorpions, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services. Bark scorpions are particularly important from a public-health standpoint. This is the species that is most encountered inside Arizona homes. Scorpions are particularly well adapted to desert life. They can squeeze into remarkably small spaces, hide in cracks and crevices, and become active at night. That makes professional prevention especially valuable.
Sealing potential entry points, reducing hiding places and treating the areas around a home can help make the property considerably less inviting to these trespassers. That adds a level of peace of mind because nobody wants to discover a scorpion in a shoe at 6:00 in the morning.
A Desert Oasis
The Colorado River is wonderful for boating, fishing, swimming and enjoying the outdoors. It is also a haven for mosquitoes. Bullhead City’s pest-abatement program works with local and regional agencies to manage mosquitoes as well as aquatic nuisance insects such as black flies. The city notes that these efforts are important not only for outdoor comfort but also for public health and the local economy.
Arizona is home to several types of mosquitoes capable of transmitting diseases such as West Nile virus. That doesn’t mean every mosquito is carrying disease. Far from it. But it does mean mosquito control is about more than avoiding an itchy welt. It is about making your yard, patio, pool area and outdoor living spaces more enjoyable. And it is about helping reduce unnecessary exposure. Baron Services helps make this possible.
Ants may be small, but anyone who has discovered an ant trail marching across the kitchen counter knows what an infestation looks like. Once ants establish a food source, simply wiping away the visible trail doesn’t necessarily solve the problem. Professional pest control such as that provided by Baron Services focuses on identifying where pests are coming from, what is attracting them and how to interrupt the cycle. And that brings us to an important distinction:
Good pest control isn’t simply about killing bugs. It’s about understanding bugs. That means identifying the species, understanding its habits and targeting the conditions that allow it to thrive.
Termites
In the desert scorpions get the publicity. But termites are the ones that can quietly cause expensive trouble. Unlike a scorpion wandering across the garage floor, termites represent an unseen threat. They can remain hidden while feeding on cellulose-based materials and potentially causing structural damage. That’s why inspections matter, particularly when buying or selling a home.
Professional termite inspections and treatments can identify problems before they become much larger problems. Baron provides termite inspections and treatment services throughout the Tri-State area.
Now comes the fun part. The next time you find yourself unnerved about a scorpion in the garage or an ant invasion in the pantry, remember this, it could be worse. You could live in the Amazon region of Brazil. Tropical forests are among the greatest insect habitats on Earth. Smithsonian researchers note that ants are particularly abundant in tropical forests, where they can make up a remarkable proportion of the insect population. And then there are army ants.
Big Bugs
Smithsonian researchers studying tropical forests have documented army-ant swarms that can number in the hundreds of thousands. These highly organized columns move through the forest hunting insects and other small creatures.
The Amazon also has enormous cockroaches, leaf-cutter ants, giant beetles and a bewildering variety of other arthropods. Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History even features giant tropical cockroaches among its rainforest specimens.
Australia has a reputation for producing creatures that seem specifically designed to make discourage residency. The Australian Museum documents thousands of spider species in Australia, including funnel-webs and redbacks that are medically significant. Australia also has hundreds of species of wasps, ranging from tiny species to enormous spider wasps. And some Australian ants deliver extremely painful stings, with certain species posing serious health concerns for people who are sensitive to their venom.
In parts of sub-Saharan Africa, insects can represent a far more serious public-health issue. The tsetse fly, for example, can transmit African sleeping sickness, also known as human African trypanosomiasis. The CDC notes that the disease occurs in rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa and is transmitted through the bite of infected tsetse flies.
Points to Ponder
That is a good reminder that pest control isn’t simply about eliminating things that creep, crawl or buzz. Insects are an important part of ecosystems, and most are harmless or even beneficial. But a relatively small number of species can cause significant problems for people, property and public health.
The goal of professional pest control isn’t to eliminate every insect. Insects are essential pollinators, decomposers and members of the food chain. Spiders, for example, are important natural predators of insects. Even many species we regard as pests play useful ecological roles. The goal is responsible and knowledgeable pest management. That means keeping unwanted pests out of homes and businesses, protecting property, reducing potential health risks and making outdoor spaces more comfortable while using appropriate control methods.
The Colorado River Valley is a wonderful place to live. We have sunshine, spectacular desert scenery, the Colorado River, beautiful sunsets and plenty of opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors. We also have ants, mosquitoes, scorpions, termites, and cockroaches. Our local bugs may be persistent, but they aren’t an excuse to surrender the backyard. Professional pest control can help homeowners and businesses identify problems, prevent infestations and deal with unwanted visitors before they create bigger headaches.
So, enjoy the river. Enjoy the desert. Enjoy the sunshine. And let Baron Service worry about the pests and insects.
Written by Jim Hinckley of Jim Hinckley’s America