There is nothing new about stink bug invasions. Although stink bugs are not native to North America, they have been infesting people’s homes and even large areas of land ever since they were first discovered in America around two decades ago. Stink bugs are native to southeast Asia, but they were accidentally introduced into America during the 1990s. The year of 1998 saw the first stink bug specimen found and documented within America. Since then, stink bugs have spread to forty eight different American states. When stink bugs do infest structures, they go all out. For example, some time ago several bank employees in West Virginia arrived to work only to find millions upon millions of stink bugs crawling all over the building’s exterior. Stink bugs are unique pests for a variety of reasons, and not just because they congregate in astonishingly high numbers. Unlike the vast majority of insect pests, stink bugs are considered pests to both agricultural crops and human living conditions. Although stink bugs are capable of flight, they have relied on humans for conquering much of the world.

Stink bugs are native to eastern Asia, particularly the countries of China, Taiwan, Japan, and North and South Korea. When stink bugs were first discovered in Allentown, Pennsylvania, researchers assumed that they had been hiding out in America for several years due to their high population numbers at the time. However, stink bugs were actually fairly new to America, but they arrived in large numbers due to their exceptional hitchhiking abilities. Stink bugs have been documented crossing state lines by hiding below automobiles. In fact, stink bugs have been found traveling on just about every type of vehicle that you can imagine. Biologists have even attended conferences on stink bugs only to find their luggage infested with the creatures upon arriving at their hotels.

Stink bugs are stealthy enough to camp out in people’s homes during the winter only to depart for the great outdoors once spring arrives. As many as tens of thousands of stink bugs can infest homes without residents even knowing about their presence. Even more of a threat than the foul odor emitted by stink bugs is there tendency to feed on numerous different plant species. Stink bugs are considered “generalists”, meaning they do not seek out select plants for consumption, but rather consume any plant nearby. So far researchers have documented over two hundred and fifty plant species that are regularly consumed by stink bugs. Many of these plants are different types of agricultural crops.

In addition to smelling the foul odor emitted by stink bugs, have you ever made contact with a stink bugs smelly secretions?

 

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