One way to combat the stink bug menace to our society is to take the fight to their home territory, which means you have to arm yourself with the knowledge of where do stink bugs live, what are the attributes of the type of place they are most apt to take up domicile and what are the places they would absolutely avoid. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, as the saying goes.
In other words, if you want to combat the stink bug problem at its core, you have to attack the problem at its roots. You have to do whatever it takes to make its current habitat inhospitable or unfavorable for their species to perpetuate their occupation of your home.
And this can very often mean taking measures that have more far-reaching and long-term effects to fend of these bugs, as opposed to simply opting for some one-time “quick fix” job that will kill, exterminate, or shoo away any stink bugs that are currently in your home or on your property on a temporary basis, only to have them return again.
So let’s take an in-depth look into where do stink bugs live.
Being that this species of insect happens to be native to the localized nations of southeast Asia, concentrated predominantly in the Koreas, Japan and Taiwan, and were brought here half way across the world to North America seemingly by accident (at least that is the prevailing theory – that they were inadvertently brought here aboard luggage in an airplane or cargo aboard a freight ship) it follows that stink bugs will instinctively seek out environmental conditions that most closely resemble those of their native habitat.
As for where do stink bugs live now that they have come ashore to the United States, there have been confirmed reports of stink bug sightings in at least 38 of the 48 contiguous states.
Based on extensive research that has been conducted by entomologists, here is what we know for sure about stink bugs:
- They actively seek out sources of light. Therefore, even at night, you will find that any stink bugs that happen to be flying around at night will be apt to gravitate toward the windows of houses where the lights are on. And as for those who are already indoors, they will seek out sources of light within the house and gravitate toward it as well.
- They actively seek out sources of heat. Stink bugs hate the cold weather and will actively look for places to go where they can escape the cold and stay warm. This is precisely the reason why you will find that there is always an annual surge in reported occurrences of stink bugs clinging to your window screens or actively seeking to get into your house, during the autumn. They are looking to escape from the cold weather and have found your house to be a good source of heat. As for those stink bugs who are unable to seek shelter from the cold, they will typically go into a state of hibernation to ride out the cold winter months.
- During the temperate months of the spring and summer seasons, stink bugs will most typically be found outdoors in orchards, gardens, and on agricultural properties such as farms.
- Stink bugs lay eggs on the underside of trees, so it follows that most typically the mother and the babies will linger near the tree in question.
- Stink bugs feed on fruits and vegetables, and so therefore it will be very common for you to find them in gardens and on cultivated farmland where fresh produce is being grown.
Armed with this knowledge of where do stink bugs live, you can plan for how to deal with them accordingly:
- The threat of stink bugs entering your house reaches its peak during the onset of autumn since they are seeking out warm places to settle in to escape from the cold weather. As for the summer months, the threat of stink bugs entering your house diminishes significantly since they will instinctively seek to be outdoors where they can feed on fruits and vegetables (unless they can find sources of these within your house to feed on) and where they can mate and reproduce (they lay their eggs on the underside of tree leaves, and so unless you have any live plants in your house, they would not be able to reproduce inside your home).
- Being that stink bugs feed on fruits and vegetables, you need to be extremely vigilant particularly if you happen to maintain a a fruit / vegetable garden in your front / back yard of your home. And if you have any open fruits and vegetables inside your house, you should make sure these are covered at all times (unless you are intentionally leaving them out as bait, a means to lure the bugs out and you intend to entrap or to kill them once they reach it.
- If you have a lot of trees near on your property, you need to be extremely vigilant in that your house will pose as an easy target for them to flock towards come the onset of the autumn season.
Dealing with stink bugs requires a plan. Obviously if you only encounter a stink bug here and there, inside your house once in a while, it might be a simple matter of vacuuming them up… or outside your house you might try to shoo them away. But if you are dealing with stink bugs on a more frequent basis or in much larger numbers, then you will need to focus on a more long term plan for how to ward them off.
Your plan should include a means for cleanly and efficiently luring them out from their hiding places and entrapping them or exterminating on them on the spot. It should be done in such a way so as not to cause them to emit that trademark cilantro-like stench of theirs, which is their typical response to when they are attacked or frightened.
Your plan should also include a means of deterrence: This means sealing off your home so that stink bugs cannot gain access inside. It also means repelling stink bugs from coming near your property, your garden, or your crops.
Understanding where do stink bugs live is one piece of the puzzle to help you devise that plan.