Scorpions, Tarantulas, Snakes, Oh-My (Ross: work, house, moving)

[manbehindthecurtain]

Sydtow's husband here. It didn't move until I got home. It backed itself into a crack behind the front door. I tried to coax it out with some canned air and even a few sprays of bleach but it wouldn't move. Ended up having to kill it with a broom.

I expect to see more, however. They took out 20-30 acres with the school and road construction behind us.

[glheer]

We recently moved into a new house in Round Rock. We've had problems with scorpians. Once we had the attic dusted and the Taexx spray done I've only seen a couple. Every time I have seen a scorpian it has been late at night or early in ghe morning. I guess those nasty bugs are night owls! The bug guy said once the building is done in our neighborhood the scorpian activity should die down a lot. If I would have known about the scorpians I never would have moved to Austin. I got stung the first night we moved in....they aren't poisonous but it was not a pleasant experience. Two days of burning like fire and itching.

[OneDayInSomewhere]

Oh, wow...never thought about the critters out there. Tarantulas, Scorpions and the biga** centipedes are gonna scare me to death. Snakes freak me out but I've learned to stay clear of them here in SE TX. Even though there are a few snakes that I believe have absolutely no purpose, most are very beneficial and slither on their merry little way if you leave them alone.

Look forward to seeing deer, turkeys, coyotes, and the rest of the "big" stuff.

[twange]

This guy was on my sectional today(must have got in through the gap in my door that has insufficient weather stripping)

Looked it up here:
City of Austin - Insects, spiders, other invertebrates

It is a "leptoglossus coriedae", commonly referred to as a leaf-footed bug

I grabbed it with some tissue paper and put it out on the deck where it continued to walk non-stop across my table...half the photos I took were blurred! It was a fairly interesting insect as it has very "woody" features and moved as such. It certainly wasn't aggressive.

[looking2tex]

Wow I read all 16 pages...Thats a lot of bugs...Now I am liking our bug free area, not even the mosquitoes are that bad here!!!

[love roses]

That bug is also known as a stink bug.

[love roses]

That bug is also referred to as a Stink Bug.

[xsloane]

Not funny! I woke up two night ago because I felt something crawling on my leg... Turned on the light... SCORPION!! I don't think I have ever gotten out of bed that fast in my life! My husband jumped off two... It was about 2am and let me tell you: That adrenaline will not let you go to sleep easily after such an episode! We lifted the bed skirt a little so it won't touch the floor anymore. My husband had a hard time going to sleep the night after as well LOL!! We read some about the critters and learned that indeed their "season" goes from Agust to October... Lucky us!

[Driftwood1]

Couple things,,
Firstly, once you get the mindset that these are essentially bees that dont fly, you wont be nearly as startled to happen on them , but of course even a bee crawling around on you in bed would startle most I think!

Next, while it is wise to keep bedding from touching the floor, be sure to check ABOVE you. Recessed lights, or most any light in scorpion territory very often results in them falling down from the attic.. (which if you have access, should be dusted.)

Next... theres more in the house... count on it. they can get in through 1/16"
even fully grown ones. It can take 2-3 seasons to get them all with exterminating..but once they are out, and you keep the perimiter treated, you will rarely see them, especially if you keep your yard tidy.. avoid piles of rocks, wood , etc.

Theres loads of discussion on them , here and elsewhere but try to remeber , these local ones wont kill you... I've been stung 4 times, and its not nearly as bad as a red wasp IHO...

Hope this helps ..
Cheers

( I almost said "sleep tight" )

[DisplacedMidwesterner]

When I first moved here I had scorpions and had to call an exterminator. He also takes care of the fire ant mounds, those tiny ants, spiders(yes I got bitten by one and had to go on steroids -Thank G-d it wasnt a brown recluse) and fleas. If you are moving from up north you need to know that you have to use heartworm treatment year round here for your dogs and that fleas are a major problem if you dont use preventatives.