Honeybee problems are rare, but they happen. There are over 400 species of bees local to the Kansas City area, with 3 invasive European honeybee species also present. Bees can create colonies within soffits, as well as within or behind brick or stone chimneys. Any cavity within a natural or manmade structure can be used by the bees to create a hive.

This particular job was in Raymore, MO. Bees had gotten inside a brick chimney through loose mortar, and, over the course of several years, had built a good-sized hive. The bricks had to be removed so we could safely remove and relocate the hive. What!? We removed and relocated the hive? We didn't just blast the bees?! Remember, we have a biologist on staff here at Catch-It and we've said that we care about our ecosystem -- those words are not just meaningless "marketing talk". The fact is that bees are an important part of our environment and ecology --- bees are so important that life as we know it would not be the same without them. We try to preserve honeybees anytime we can. While, frankly, it is not always practical or feasible to preserve them, we do try.

Back to our story... After removing and relocating the bees our next focus was on cleanup. All remaining pieces of the hive, as well as honey, has to be removed to prevent other insects from creating more problems in the future.

Once the clean up was complete we used a special sealant to block the odor to prevent any future infestation (photo below).

The final step (not pictured, and we're kicking ourselves for not getting a photo as it looked so good!) is to seal any vulnerable points of entry to prevent a future bee infestation and repair anything necessary related to the project. One of the benefits of choosing Catch-It is that we provide repair services - which saves you the hassle of locating a contractor to handle a repair project. In this case, we reinstalled the brick to repair and seal the chimney.

Cluster Flies tend to be in rural areas throughout the Kansas City region. The fly looks like a house fly, but if you look closely (first photo) at the markings on the abdomen/back of the fly you will see a light and dark grey checkered pattern. Cluster Flies overwinter (hibernate) in houses while seeking warmth. On warm days, commonly spring but can be later in the summer or fall, they will suddenly become active and try to escape the house. While attempting to escape the house they are often found clustering around windows and doors (second photo).

Every year we receive a number of calls relating to cluster fly infestations. While cluster flies themselves are harmless, they are a nuisance: it’s not pleasant to have these hordes of these flies buzzing around your home. Our treatment plan for cluster flies involves treating indoors and outdoors. Sealing interior access points is important – vinyl siding that isn’t sealed well is a common culprit.

If you suddenly have hordes of flies in your home -- give us a call or send us a message. We’re happy to help resolve your pest problem.

An Overland Park, Kansas, homeowner contacted us regarding a beetle infestation. She had literally hundreds of beetles in her window and wasn't sure what was going on. She had already cleaned most of them up when we took our photo (1st photo)

The beetles were carpet beetles -- dermestidae beetles to be exact. These little beetles are only about 1/8th of an inch long when full size (the 2nd photo shows the beetles a bit closer, although the focus was slightly off), and tend to feed on dry organic material.

This story is a good example of why pest control isn't about simply spraying chemicals all over the place (please DON'T ever hire a pest control company that simply sprays everywhere!)  - it's more often about understanding insect behavior and habitat, combined with a solid and careful inspection, and from that comes a treatment plan.

The window the beetles were in was the warmest, most sun-exposed window of the house --- they were trying to get out of the house. Without finding any signs of beetles upstairs or downstairs we knew the source was the main floor. During the course of the inspection, our technician spotted a single beetle under the sink (3rd photo) and knew he was on to something. We soon had solved the puzzle.

About a year previously, the homeowner had a problem with mice and had purchased several DIY mouse bait stations. These bait stations are sealed. However, we handle professional mouse and pest removal and know what is inside of DIY mouse bait stations: dry organic food to attract mice. We opened the mouse bait station and instantly found the source of the beetle infestation. We removed all of the DIY mouse bait stations and did some limited spraying. Problem solved with no recurrence.

These photos are from a call we had in Waldo. These bugs were inside the house.

The particular bugs are Western Conifer Seed Bugs, a type of Leaf Footed Bug. These bugs only live near conifer trees, and guess what was growing right next to the foundation of this particular home? Yes, a large blue spruce tree. These particular bugs will get into a house, but are not a significant concern because they do not generally overwinter in homes. Meaning, these bugs will accidentally get into your home but they are not typically looking to move in and live within your home. On the other hand, bugs such as Asian Ladybugs (a non-native species introduced to address aphids), Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs (which have only been a problem in the Kansas City region since about 2018 when they were accidentally introduced into the are), or Box Elder Bugs (a non-native species) -- these types of bugs will overwinter/live in your home.

For this particular house we provided a small treatment to the location and educated the homeowners about the bugs. When they found out more about the bugs they were not so concerned as they had been at first.