Ants are some of the most common pests seen around homes and businesses. There are many species of ants with lots of different characteristics. One of the reasons hiring a professional pest management company is so important is that a professional will better be able to identify the particular ant species that is bothering you, and knowing its particular biology and customary habits, will be able to more easily eliminate the infestation.

Ants are social insects which live in family groups called colonies. They communicate through special smells called pheromones, as well as through antenna movements and grooming activities. An ant's diet consists of seeds, nectar, other insects, meats, greases, and sugars, including aphid "honeydew". During different times of the year and depending on the species, ants may focus on sweets or proteins.

Some ant species are winged, and many a homeowner has confused swarming winged termites with winged ants, or vice versa. Making a mistake on something like this could cost you BIG TIME ($$$)-for example, thinking that some flying insects are only ants, when in fact your home is infested with destructive termites. Count on your pest professional to make a correct diagnosis of what's bugging you!

Ants are very resilient and can pose a remarkably difficult challenge to homeowners. One reason why ants can be so difficult to eliminate is because often the ant nest (or nests, as is often the case!) need to be located and directly treated. Oftentimes these nests are tricky to find, and or can be located in hard-to-reach or even inaccessible void areas such as behind insulation in a crawlspace under the home, or in a wall hollow. A professional pest control technician is familiar with the tricks that ants play, and has a few tricks of his own!

Depending on how your home or business is built, your Accurate Pest Control Service Technician may use one or more control techniques including direct treatment of nest(s), perimeter treatments, and or even granular or liquid baits, along with non-chemical control methods such as habitat modification (trimming ivy, shrubs, and bushes around home, and tree limbs that touch the home) and indirect control efforts such as moisture reduction under the home.

Tick Biology
Ticks are a fact of life for anyone lucky enough to live in or near the country-woods, forests, or fields. Ticks feed on blood and are often carriers of diseases such as Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and Typhus. Ticks crawl, and as they do not jump or fly, they climb onto an appropriate high object (think trees, tall grasses or weeds, even fences) and wait for a suitable target to pass by and then they drop on him! Opportunistic little rascals, aren't they?

Ticks have 8 legs and swell in size after a blood meal. Ticks start outside, but will of course hitch a ride on hosts and prospects to try their luck indoors also. Ticks can be observed almost anywhere once they get indoors.

Tick Treatment
Your Accurate Pest Control Service Technician is going to reduce the population of ticks around your home by thoroughly treating the yard, shrubberies, and other landscape features around the home with a general-purpose insecticide labeled for tick eradication. He or she may also recommend trimming grasses, weeds, and bushes around the home as well as implementing some specific individual protection for your family members (tick repellents to be put on before playing outside, tick repellents approved by your veterinarian for your cat or dog, etc.)

Because ticks can carry diseases, effective pest control of ticks is vitally important for the safety and health of you and your family!

Bed Bugs Biology
Having risen in prominence over the last decade to become America's # 1 pest problem, Bedbugs are small, flat, reddish bugs that vaguely resemble ticks. In their younger molting forms, they can be clear, almost translucent. Bedbugs are excellent climbers and hitchhikers who can hide almost anywhere due to their flat bodies, and their exclusive food source is the blood of warm bodies of both humans and animals!

Their name itself can be misleading, as bedbugs do not confine themselves to beds! They migrate, hitchhike, climb, and travel to couches, book bags, suitcases, blankets, behind pictures on walls, behind headboards or baseboard trim pieces, upholsteried chairs, behind electrical outlet covers, basically anywhere!

Besides their great hiding and climbing abilities, bedbugs turn around a population fast! They have offspring very quickly and spread easily. They can reproduce very quickly and so in just a short amount of time, what started as a "small" infestation can reach epic proportions!

Bed Bug Treatment
With the possible exception of termites, no pest so greatly manifests an obvious need for professional help than the Bedbug! Homeowners and business owners often invest a lot of time and money in bedbug self-treatments with various and assorted methods (including throwing out expensive furniture and bedding pieces, and yet not resolving the infestation because it had spread already!) before throwing up their hands in frustration and contacting a professional. Remember, it is NOT a sign of weakness to get some help, and in the case of bedbugs, getting professional help is a sign of wisdom!

At Accurate Pest Control, we bring many resources to bear on the bedbugs bothering your family or disrupting your business. We use a full battery of both chemical (insect growth regulators, neurotoxins, etc.) and non-chemical control methods (heat and steam, as well as mattress encasements) in our powerful assault on these little beasties! You may be asked to do some preparatory work before our visit-this will help us do the most thorough treatment for you.

Another advantage in contacting Accurate Pest Control for Bedbug Elimination is that we treat the entire home, not just a room or two. This is because bedbugs migrate (move around) so easily, that an incomplete treatment will not yield the results you desire, the results you deserve. We will stop at nothing to rid your home or business of bedbugs! Get the relief you deserve by contacting us TODAY!

Termite Biology
Termites outweigh humans on earth, and cause more than $ 5 billion dollars in damage to homes and structures every single year. Termites are social insects that live in family groups called colonies. They communicate with each other by means of smells called pheromones. Termites can be loosely categorized by nesting area, namely Drywood, Dampwood, and Subterranean. Here on Delmarva, we have the Subterranean Termite exclusively. Termites have a caste system where the labor is divided into soldiers, workers, and reproductives, with the main reproductive being called a queen.

Termites are soft-bodied insects, generally whitish or cream-colored, and during the swarming (mating) season they appear as brownish or black winged insects vaguely resembling flying ants. Romans called termites "woodworms." In nature, termites are very helpful and necessary, as they recycle fallen wood and stumps, as well as aerate the soil.

Termite Treatment
Accurate Pest Control uses exclusively the Sentricon Colony Elimination baiting system for the prevention and treatment of subterranean termites. Sentricon is the number one brand in termite protection, and its effectiveness has been repeatedly and consistently demonstrated by multiple university and collegiate-level independent scientific studies.

The Sentricon system uses an integrated pest management (IPM) approach to eliminate termites. Our team of certified Sentricon Specialists will inspect your home and install a series of green plastic pods around your home or business. Each pod will contain an insect growth regulator (IGR) called Noviflumuron. He or she may also place some above-ground station boxes (AG's) in or around your home or business.
As the termites eat the bait and share it with their colony-mates, they spread the IGR around. When they go to molt their shells, they are unable to make their new shell, and they perish. As more and more of the worker caste perish, the rest of the colony starves.

Another wonderful feature about the Sentricon system is that it is non-toxic to humans and pets, as well as plants.

Tree Health Biology
Nothing destroys the pristine natural beauty of a Leland Cypress tree like seeing it covered with disgusting bagworms! Other affected tree types may be Spruce, Pine, Juniper, and other evergreen species. These little worms will over time kill a tree, and Accurate Pest Control wants to help you in battling them! While there are hundreds of species of bagworm moths, we have ability to treat any and all of them that may be on your trees!

Bagworms are cousins to Butterflies and are sometimes called Case Moths.

Tree Health Treatment
As in Real Estate, the most important thing is "Location, Location, Location," the most important thing in Bagworms is "Prevention, Prevention, Prevention!"

Your trees will most benefit by being sprayed every June.

The reason that the timing of the treatment is so important is because of the life cycle of the Bagworm-you want to kill as many of them as you can before they go into their protective developmental cocoons.

Treatments later or earlier than June will still be of some help, but the prime time to do Bagworm treatments is in June. Please call us today to schedule your treatment!

Wood Destroying Fungi
Wood destroying fungi is bad news if it is manifesting in your crawlspace or basement. Wood destroying fungi is moisture related, and can contribute to structural damage to your home or business, as well as potential breathing problems for your family or customers.

Because fungus is a plant that has no cholorphyll, it cannot make food by itself-to obtain its sustenance it has to go to other materials (like wet wood!).

In addition to weakening the wood itself, the moisture that grows, fungi, can rust out ("oxidize") HVAC equipment in crawlspaces, as well as ruin insulation.

Moisture Control
Accurate Pest Control has had excellent results with our Moisture Control efforts, which have been refined over 20 years of practical work drying out crawlspaces and basements all over Delmarva. We have many tried-and-tested tools and techniques with which we will help you to dry out those moist areas!

We have effectively used professional-grade dehumidifiers, as well as sump pumps and custom-designed drainage systems. Our comprehensive moisture team is ready to tackle your moisture problem!

Mosquito's Biology
Aaahhh....the nice summer day, a delightful barbecue with the neighbors, a pool party in the afternoon, so many wonderful things to attend to in the summer. Bzzzzztttt....smack! Another mosquito! Mosquitoes are found from the tropics to the arctic, and they are definitely active here in Delmarva!

Female Mosquitoes feed on blood, and can carry diseases such as West Nile Virus, Zika Virus, Malaria, Yellow Jack, Dengue, Encephalitis, and for your dog, Canine Heartworm. Mosquitoes are a big time problem in many areas during the summer months.

Mosquitoes lay their eggs in areas of standing or stagnant water, and there are several species in our area.

Mosquitos Treatment
Accurate Pest Control has had excellent results with our Mosquito, Flea, and Tick program, which consists of seasonal monthly misting treatments from May to September. Our trained and certified technician will load an insecticide into his or her backpack mister, fire up the engine, and then walk around your home or business as the backpack mister places the treatment along the yard, shrubberies, and other landscape fixtures. The advantage of our specialized equipment is that our backpack mister breaks up the insecticidally-laced water into tiny droplet molecules that provide excellent coating of bushes and grasses, giving a much more complete and lasting residual treatment.

These monthly exterior treatments will help to break the life cycle of the mosquito as it rests in the treated shrubberies, bushes, and yard. If additional or stronger control is in order, we have special larvicidal tablets with which we can treat areas of standing water around your home or business at an additional cost.

Sliverfish Biology
Silverfish are from ½ inch to ¾ inch long, and have flattened, long and slender bodies, broad at the front, smaller at the back. Silverfish, are well, generally silver in color (!), and can run very quickly. They are generally found close to their food source of any of a number of different foods containing proteins and carbohydrates-such as paper, starch, casein, glue, oats, beef, cotton, sugar, dead insects, or linens. Even with such a diverse and special diet, Silverfish manifest a capability to live for a long time without any food-which capability makes them marvelously resilient to control and eradication efforts!

Silverfish are more a nuisance than a dangerous pest, but they can eat small amounts of human food and contaminate it with their droppings.

Sliverfish Treatment
Clutter reduction and removal, as well as moisture reduction and control must typically be combined with insecticidal application to eliminate a silverfish infestation. Insecticidal dusts and or space treatments may be in order, as well as crack-and-crevice efforts. Your Accurate Pest Control Service Technician will know just what to do to maximize his or her treatment of your home or business!

Cockroaches Biology
With an estimated 3,500 species worldwide, Cockroaches are very common insect pests which species come in assorted sizes, usually brownish or black in color. Disease-producing organisms and bacteria have been found on cockroaches, and they are definitely a threat to human health and well-being, primarily through the spoilage of food and the vectoring of gastroenteritis, but also due to the causation of asthma in humans who live amongst high roach populations.

Cockroaches are remarkably resilient to efforts to exterminate them, and have earned a place in the pest professionals' Hall of Fame for "Hard-to-Treat Insect Pests!" One of the reasons why is because they can develop pesticide resistance. Another reason is their ability to hide in difficult-to-access harborages, as well as their ability to reproduce quickly.

Cockroaches Treatment
Whether residential or commercial, Accurate Pest Control has the tools and the talent to get rid of these little beasties! Our professional service technician may use a "cocktail" mixture of insecticides to fry these roaches, as well as insect-growth-regulators (IGR's) to hinder the reproductive ability of those surviving stragglers that withstand the chemical onslaught. Additional corrective sanitation recommendations may be made, and further trapping, monitoring, or baiting may be recommended.

Rats & Mice Biology
Rats and mice have been around a long time, and with the possible exception of ants, are the most common household and commercial pest. Rats and mice are called commensal rodents, which means "they share the table!" Through the loss and spoilage of food, as well as damage formed by their incessant gnawing (the name "rodent" itself means "to gnaw"), rats and mice cause damage which runs into the millions of dollars. They can also carry some nasty diseases, including typhoid, dysentery, hantaviruses, trichinosis, rat-bite fever, plague, salmonellosis, and murine typhus, among others.

Rats & Mice come in different colors, though browns and greys are most prominent, even black. Because rodents can readily adapt themselves to so many different situations and environments, their behavior can greatly vary from one infestation to the next. Rats & mice do not see very well, but their senses of touch, smell, taste, and hearing are excellent.

A female mouse is able to give birth approximately every 24 to 28 days, so call us right away!

Rats & Mice Treatment
Accurate Pest Control has been successful time and again in many rodent infestations, and we will bring that experience and training to bear on freeing your home from this nasty and potentially very dangerous problem. The bulk of our rodent treatment program consists in using baits, which baits are the least toxic available to non-target animals. Our baits are much less dangerous to you, your children, and your pets than are the ones typically available at the grocery store or hardware store. In addition, our baits are locked in tamper-resistant stations to keep pets and kids out of them. We will place the baits in the areas where they will do the most good, which areas we know from years of experience.

We may also assist you with exclusion modifications to your home and business, as well as any sanitation tips that may be in order.

Bees & Wasps Biology
Bees & Wasps come from a family called Hymenoptera (Greek for "membranous wing"), and there are thousands of species of them in North America alone, let alone worldwide. Most bees (and some wasps) are social insects, and wasps can be solitary. Most bees and wasps can and do have a painful sting.

Bees & Wasps are flying and stinging insects which can really ruin an individual's day-particularly if that individual is allergic to their stings. This type of allergic, called anaphylactic, is of a rapid onset and can be life-threatening! The venom from bee and wasp stings can otherwise tend to be most upsetting to infants and the elderly.

Some of the known species are Bald-Faced Hornets, Paper Wasps, Mud Daubers, Cicada Killers, Yellow Jackets, Honey Bees, Bumble Bees, Carpenter Bees, and the Africanized Killer Honey Bee.

Bees & Wasps Treatment
Treatment of Bees & Wasps is best left to a pest management professional not only because homeowners are often unsuccessful in getting rid of the infestation, but because much collateral damage and related problems can occur. For example, many times the nest itself is an aerial nest, high off the ground, and must be completely removed-so sometimes this involves working on ladders or cutting into walls to access the nest. Oftentimes, a homeowner will not know the best time of day to treat the bees or wasps, and will not have the proper protective equipment. Your Accurate Pest Control Service Technician will do a safe and thorough treatment of your bees and wasps.

Spiders Biology
Though differentiated from insects proper due to a different number of legs and lacking wings, most people do not much care to have spiders sharing their living spaces. In addition, certain spiders like the Brown Recluse and Black Widow can be downright dangerous to both humans and pets. Spiders eat insects who come to be trapped in their webs. Most (but not all) spiders have eight eyes.

Besides the two most commonly feared species mentioned above, some of the other types of spiders are Wolf Spiders, Crab Spiders, Jumping Spiders, Harvestmen ("Daddy Long Legs"), Tarantulas, Hobo Spiders, Funnel Weavers, Jumping Spiders, Cellar Spiders, Cobweb Spiders, and Sac Weavers.

Spiders Treatment
One of the things that makes spiders tricky to treat is that they don't often or easily come into direct contact with an insecticidally-treated surface area because they spend so much time in and on their web. To get the victory over a persistent spider problem may require some extreme measures, and your Accurate Pest Control Service Technician knows just what to do!

One of the keys to victory over spiders is to use IPM, Integrated Pest Management. This means not only chemical control methods, but non-chemical control methods also. IPM means not only using direct approaches, but indirect also. Perimeter treatments, space treatments, crack-and-crevice treatments, are all examples of chemical efforts, and some non-chemical could include harborage reduction (habitat modification-clutter reduction), exclusion, and vacuuming of webs, eggsacs, and even of the spiders themselves!

Crickets Biology
Crickets are cousins to grasshoppers and katydids. The name "cricket" comes from the French language and approximates the chirping sound that they are so well known for emitting. Crickets are somewhat related to cockroaches, and likewise are omnivorous, eating all sorts of different foods including paper and even rubber. Crickets in a crawlspace or basement are typically a symptom of a moisture problem.

Some species of crickets are House Crickets, Field Crickets, Mole Crickets, Camel or Cave Crickets, as well as the Jerusalem Cricket.

Crickets Treatment
Crickets are treatable both by insecticides and moisture reduction / habitat modification. Clutter in the affected area should be removed or minimized, and direct treatments combined with perimeter treatments will likely yield the best results. Your Accurate Pest Control Service Technician will also show how moisture can be controlled with a dehumidifier and or sump pump and drain system, if needed. Sometimes baits can also be effective in cricket control.

Sometimes problem infestations are addressed by other indirect methods such as adjusting the number or type of electric lights left on around a building at night. Crickets are drawn to light, and this characteristic should not be lightly dismissed as a solution plan is drawn up.

Stored Product pests Biology
Remember when you saw that awesome deal at the grocery store for pasta noodles, or maybe it was even dog biscuits? You couldn't believe your luck, and after you patted yourself on the back and texted your spouse, you went ahead and bought like four boxes of the stuff? And then some time after, you started noticing little moths flying around your cupboards and the kitchen?

Congratulations-you have a stored product pest! Off-brand, store brand, expired and second-hand food products occasionally contain tiny little insects or insect eggs which tend to develop into moths or worms once you get them home. They can be tricky to locate, and a pest management professional may be needed to isolate exactly what is going on and where it is coming from.

Weevils, beetles, various worms, and Indian Meal Moths are all examples of some common stored product pests.

Stored Product pests Treatment
Whether residential or commercial, Accurate Pest Control has the tools and the talent to get rid of these little critters! Our professional service technician will seek first to locate which product or box is the offender and remove it, then he or she may use a compressed-air sprayer or aerosol can to treat the area. Additional corrective sanitation recommendations may be made, and further trapping, monitoring, or baiting may be recommended.

Fleas Biology
Fleas are cousins to lice, and both are from a family of bugs called ectoparasites. A parasite lives on another organism, called the host, and obtains nourishment from it. Fleas are pests of both humans and animals.

Their amazingly strong legs can give them a 7 to 8 inch vertical jump, or a 14 to 16 inch horizontal leap. For a critter only a tiny fraction of an inch long, that is miraculous! If only fleas could play basketball! Fleas are small, wingless insects which can transmit diseases such as murine typhus and bubonic plague. Fleas feed on the host's blood. Yuck!

Fleas Treatment
Your Accurate Pest Control Service Technician is going to need your help to secure a solid victory over the fleas that are bugging you and your family. Our treatment will involve spraying insecticides to kill adult fleas, and will include a residual effect which will last after we leave, but we will need you to vacuum every day following our treatment. This is because fleas are bugs that have a life cycle where when they are young they build these super hard cocoons called pupae, and at the time of our treatment for you, a decent number of the young fleas yet to be born are in these pupae and cannot be killed until they come out of their cocoon. Your daily vacuuming vibrates the rugs and carpets and encourages these little rascals to come out of their cocoons and get some of that residual insecticide on them, causing them to die soon after. It is normal to see spikes in the apparent flea population following a flea treatment. This is the pupae guys coming out onto the scene. It is not a sign that the treatment did not work-keep up with your daily vacuuming and these guys will be gone soon.

Another important thing you can do to help is to invest in a can of PetCor, which we can make available to you. You will use this bottle to spray on your animals and their bedding places after our treatment for additional flea smack-down!

Ground Beetles Biology
Professional Pest Control textbooks affirm the existence of over 2,000 species of ground beetles in the United States and Canada. Wow! Ranging in size from 1/16 to 1 inch long and usually found outdoors, they are generally black in color and of course, they crawl!

Ground beetles may be attracted to moisture and or bright lights on buildings, thus drawing them indoors. They most often become a problem in the warm summer months, congregating around buildings or homes in rather large numbers.

Ground Beetles Treatment
Accurate Pest Control has had excellent results controlling ground beetle populations through our IPM (Integrated Pest Management) approach, utilizing both chemical and non-chemical control methods, harborage reduction, exclusion, habitat modification, moisture remediation, and both direct and in-direct control methodologies. We have the key to your ground beetle problem; call us today!

Carpenter Ants Biology
Carpenter Ants are very large and fast, and generally black to brownish in color, sometimes even appearing two-toned. A Carpenter Ant worker can give a strong bite or pinch. They range from ¼ to ¾ of an inch long.

They are responsible for doing a lot of damage to wood by excavating nesting galleries. Unlike termites, which actually are eating the wood to get the cellulose, Carpenter Ants are just digging the wood out to make nests. These nests can resemble termite damage, but can be distinguished from termite work by their clean and even "sanded" appearance. Carpenter Ants may choose either already decayed or otherwise damaged wood for these galleries, or they may choose structurally sound wood. Carpenter Ants are primarily nocturnal.

Carpenter Ants Treatment
Carpenter Ants are best treated by a professional because the inspection is such an important part of treatment-the person doing the treatment must locate the nests and foraging trails. A pest management professional has hundreds or even thousands of hours of experience looking for bugs, and will notice things that most homeowners will pass over.

Oftentimes certain structural repairs and modifications (for instance, to stop leaks in a home around a vent, skylight, or chimney flashing) are also necessary for a successful control of carpenter ants. Sprays, dusts, and or baits may be a part of the insecticidal portion of the treatment.

Millipedes Biology
Millipedes typically live outdoors in moist areas. They are brownish, from 1 to 1 ½ inches long, and most active in the evenings. Millipedes tend to have round body shapes and move slowly. They feed on damp vegetable matter, even if decayed, or if green and new. Millipedes may protect themselves by secreting a stinky odor. Yuck!

Millipedes are sometimes known as "thousand-leggers" which is what their name literally means! Bug doctors affirm these little guys occasionally will come indoors.

Millipedes Treatment
Millipede treatment will usually involve harborage removal and exclusion, and or insecticidal treatment. Residual sprays and barrier treatments can also be effective. Your Accurate Pest Control Service Technician will know what to do, and will do his or her best to provide an effective treatment, safe for you and your family.

Other Biology
Most people do not like to be around insects, and we at Accurate Pest control understand that and appreciate it. Bugs are yucky and dirty, and who wants to get involved and "down and dirty" in bugs? You may not be able to identify what type or species of bug is bugging you, but please do not let that stop you from contacting us to help resolve the situation.

Beyond the psychological "yuck" factor of insects and rodents, it is definitely true that some situations and infestations are what you would call "counter-intuitive," which is to say, that where the problem seems to be coming from, is not actually correct and the issue is stemming from something else, even something seemingly unrelated.

Whatever may be the trouble, please allow us to help you "get your wires uncrossed," and back in a happy state of mind!

Other Treatment
Accurate Pest Control has been meeting Delmarva's Pest Control needs for over 20 years. We have been successful in both residential and commercial pest infestations. We have been in every imaginable type of situation, under nearly every type of condition or context, and we have the talent and the tools to assist you in whatever may be bugging you!

Please contact us today, and let us help you!