Category Archives: Spiders

News, Pest Control, Pest Eradication, Pest Management, Residential Services, Spiders

Here’s a Baby Shower You Won’t Want to Attend: Spider Babies Come in Spring

Spider with Egg Sac
Spider with Egg Sac

Is it time to add a new nursery to your home? The NJ pest control experts at Stern know the start of spring brings the birth of many new things… Including hordes of baby spiders.

Baby Fever

Hanging around the dark corners, your home’s population of house spiders can bring many babies into your home in the spring. These small, brown or grey spiders, which can be up to 3/8-inch large, aren’t poisonous, but they’re far from endearing. The only thing worse than seeing one hanging above or below you on her web is spotting one surrounded by all her babies. And these spiders can lay hundreds of eggs at a time, rapidly ballooning the number of spiders in your home – and all those sticky, hard-to-clean webs.

Why Don’t They Go Forth to Populate?

House spiders hang out in your home rather than moving outdoors because it’s warmer and more hospitable than the outdoor environment. Some have even been hiding out in your home all winter in the basement, attic, closet, utility room, or other secluded areas, where they hunt nuisance insects and other smaller spiders in the dark while you sleep. 

Chances are, your home or business is crowded enough without all those growing families of house spiders. Prevent and eliminate spiders, keeping the spider population under control with the help of the NJ pest control pros at Stern Environmental today.

Commercial Services, News, Pest Control, Pest News, Residential Services, Spiders

What NJ Businesses Need to Know About the Brown Recluse Spider

What NJ Businesses Need to Know About the Brown Recluse Spider
What NJ Businesses Need to Know About the Brown Recluse Spider

While you have most likely heard of the brown recluse spider, there’s a good chance you haven’t seen one since they tend to live up to their name and remain shy and reclusive.

About the Brown Recluse

Like most spiders, the brown recluse resides in homes, although they prefer remaining tucked away in places receiving little to no activity such as attics, storage spaces, garages, and cluttered closets. They build their webs and nests in out-of-the-way places.

Brown recluse spiders are nocturnal spending the midnight hours in search of food. The spiders are low-key and don’t go out of their way to bite humans, but when it happens their bite can become problematic causing pain, skin ulcers, and secondary infections.

Identification

For novice spider hunters the brown recluse ranges in color from grey to light brown. It has eight slender legs that extend to cover an area the size of a half-dollar. The two most distinguishable characteristics are its six eyes and the distinctive violin-shaped marking on its body.

Brown recluse spiders are most active in the spring when mating occurs, which results in around 50 eggs per egg sac.

For all of your NJ pest control needs, Stern Environmental has the team, talent, and treatments to address your concerns. Call us for an inspection of your home by a professional NJ pest control technician who will target the problem and provide an effective resolution.

Bed Bug Information, Disease Carrying Pests, Pest Control, Spiders, Ticks, Yellow Jackets

“What’s Biting Me?” Tips to Diagnosing Bug Bites

It’s bug season on the east coast, so ask yourself what’s the nearest pest control service near me. Unfortunately, it’s also the time for bug bites. Most everyone at some time, is going to get bitten by a bug, and although we can’t cover every single bug that might bite you, here is what to look for to determine what’s biting you.

• Mosquito Bite — Generally a big red itchy welt. Probably the most common bite of all.

• Tick Bite — You’ll usually find a tick attached to your skin when they bite. After the bite, if you have a big red bulls-eye type of welt, it may be a sign of Lyme’s Disease.

• Wasp/Bee Sting — Swelling in the area with a tiny red dot in the middle.

• Flea Bites — Generally a cluster of little reddened bites.

• Bed Bug Bites — Itchy red bites that don’t usually swell, usually on the shoulders and arms.

• Chigger Bites — Itchy red welts near the feet or ankles. They stay attached for a day or two, so you may catch one in the act.

• Spider Bites — A brown recluse will leave a flattened red mark where it bit, while a black widow will leave fang marks. If bitten by either spider, seek medical assistance immediately.

When asking what’s the best pest control near me, the answer is Stern’s Environmental. For any questions about bug bites, bugs and how to get rid of them, contact Stern’s.

News, Pest Management, Spiders

How to Identify the Hobo Spider – a Potential Future NJ Pest

ID a Hobo Spider
ID a Hobo Spider

Hobo spiders have been making their way to areas outside their usual range in the Pacific Northwest and Southeast. If they continue to spread, they could become a problem in NJ. Since these spiders are known for being aggressive, it’s important to know how to identify them.

Hobo spiders are brown spiders that are typically up to 2 inches in length, including their legs. They rarely grow bigger than this size. You can identify these spiders by the zigzag-shaped lines running along both sides of their abdomen, although this can be hard to see.

Unlike other spider species, hobo spiders have solidly colored legs rather than legs with ring-shaped patterns along them. These spiders can be easily confused with more common spider species, such as wolf spiders and brown recluse spiders.

Their bite was believed to have similar effects to those of brown recluses, which have venom that can make flesh become inflamed and potentially begin to rot without prompt treatment. However, it is now thought that hobo spiders are not venomous.

They can still inflict painful bites, though, and are considered more aggressive than brown recluse spiders. This makes it important for building owners to know how to spot these critters and have them eliminated as soon as possible.

If you’re having a spider problem, contact Stern Environmental Group. We offer effective, nontoxic NJ and NYC commercial pest control services.

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Exterminators Should Always Be Licensed Part II Of II

Continuing from Thursday…

Not only is Josimar Ferreira accused of operating a Massachusetts extermination company without being certified, but it has been reported that he has also allegedly maintained pest control companies in New Jersey and New York as well.  Both New Jersey and New York have cited Ferreira for operating an unlicensed pesticide business.  It makes you wonder how he is able to obtain toxic pesticides, without being properly licensed.  Clearly there was a breakdown…in three states!

Stern Environmental Group has been providing expert bed bug and pest control services in New Jersey and New York for over ten years.  We pride ourselves on providing our customers with the safest pesticide application available, and offer a wide variety of services and products to meet many different types of needs.  We offer professional services to both residential and business customers alike.  Whether you are looking for help with bed bugs, rats, mice, squirrels, raccoons, groundhogs, ants, spiders, cockroaches, or bee control, Stern Environmental Group’s licensed pest control applicators are here to lend a helping hand!