Bugs?? (Fort Worth, Arlington: apartment, new house, scorpion)

[nervousnexcited4change]

Hey I'm from Michigan.. what kind of bugs and creepy crawlers are there in Texas that wouldn't be in MI?? Any ones that are in the homes??
We are possibly moving and bugs freak me out so I was just curious what to expect? THanKS

[mysterymachinebl]

well, besides basic mosquitoes, i think the main thing will be fire ants. but, these can be controlled with poison if you have a yard. i don't think there will be too much in the way of crazy bugs if you are living in the city. just keep your house sprayed for bugs, and you probably won't have a problem

some areas of the state have scorpions, but that is mainly south of the DFW area. i have lived in northern texas all of my life and have only seen one scorpion and that was out in the woods. however, my sister moved to central texas/hill country area and her house was full of them when she first moved in.

[beowulf7]

My friends tease me about this but I swear by it: get Raid! I have Raid cans in the garage and in the kitchen. Anytime I see an insect, I don't squash it and get blood everywhere. I feed it some Raid!

About fire ants, there are effective treatments available from Home Depot and similar stores.

[blueskies49]

It will depend on what part of which city you live in. I wouldn't rule out north Texas. You might get roaches and waterbugs but you have to be consistent with spraying. Fire ants like others said. I saw one scorpion when I lived in a new house in south Arlington. Mosquitos, too, lots!

[elizabeth_cali]

Since I've been in Fort Worth from living in other cities, I have found the huge flying cockroaches here to be the worst! In the evenings, you can walk outstide on your patio or to the pool and cockroaches the size of the palm of your hand can FLY! It's amazing and a little bit scary, especially when they hit you in the face. Apparently they don't have a good sense of vision. Also, there are the fire ants as some other posters have mentioned as well. Fortunately we are approaching the winter months, and many insects are going to hide in until next year. You have to spray and ensure that your plumbing is sealed off at night. Many water bugs will come through your bathtub drains and sinks at night and you will be surprised to find this when you go to hop in the shower the next morning! I pour bleach down the drains each night and close the drains to prevent this. Good luck with critters!

[nervousnexcited4change]

Wow this all really freaks me out!!!
We don't have the kind of stuff here.
Mostly mosquiotos or ants, sometimes boxelder bugs (which come from the tree) and lady bugs. WATER BUGS AND COCKROACHES GIVE ME CHILLS!!!!

[blueskies49]

Then there are the years when you literally cannot find a place to put your feet while walking outside due to some areas having a sudden infestation of crickets or june bugs and they are lying hundreds dead on the sidewalk and street. All those dead crickets stink, too. You don't see it all the time or in the same place every year, though. And the cicadas (sp?) or locusts as some call them. Actually, I love the sound of them in the trees in the hot summer, it's kind of comforting. Unless you get one that lodges in your window screen from a nearby tree on an upper floor. Scared the crap out of me once, it sounded like it was inside the apartment with me! I remember a couple of years finding grasshoppers all around outside to greet me when I came home from work.

Now most of this stuff, like I said, doesn't happen every year and in the same place. But if you live here long enough, you'll probably come across these bugs.

[Roma]

There are lots of spiders here too. Webs everywhere!!!! Lots of Red Ants. Mud Dobblers galore. Wasps and we have a few bees (I've even seen a huge swarm of them once since I have been here) pretty scary. I just sat real still.

[beowulf7]

Maybe a good house cat will take care of bugs.

[blueskies49]

My cats always just dismember the crickets, they don't eat them. I find cricket parts all over the house!