What To Do About Pill Bugs In Indiana
Pill bugs, sometimes also called roly-poly bugs, may have a preference for your garden, but they can also overrun your Indiana home. Here’s what Indianapolis homeowners should know about identifying pill bugs, whether they’re harmful to you or your property, what attracts them to your home, and what you can do if you’re facing a pill bug infestation.
How To Identify Pill Bugs in Indiana
Growing up to ½-inch long, pill bugs are wingless isopods with an oval shape. Most of their coloring tends to be a slate gray, and their body segments (which are the head, thorax, and abdomen) can resemble armored plates. From a distance, the pill bug’s armored plates can make them look like tiny armadillos, especially if they’re rolled up.
These bugs may enter a rolled-up position if they feel threatened or disturbed by an external threat. Despite having fourteen legs, pill bugs in Indiana don’t move fast and primarily get around by crawling. While they can wander into your home, pill bugs have a preference for eating decaying plant matter – making them a common fixture in gardens.
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Are Pill Bugs In Indiana Harmful?
As unsettling as it may be to find pill bugs in your Indiana home, the good news is that these pests aren’t harmful. Unlike a lot of pests, pill bugs aren’t known to bite, sting, or carry any diseases that could be dangerous to you or your pets.
Since they usually eat decaying plant matter, pill bugs don’t typically contaminate human food or wander near your pantry if they manage to make it inside. More than anything, pill bugs are a nuisance pest. They may not cause any serious damage, although you may find evidence of them nibbling on your plants or items in your garden. Most pill bugs chew on the roots or stems of plants, which is where you may find evidence that they’ve been feasting on your vegetation.
Although pill bugs may prefer to stay outdoors, they can still occasionally wander inside. While most homes are too dry for pill bugs to survive in for long periods of time, infestations can still happen. Pill bugs can breed throughout the year and lay up to 200 eggs per brood.
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What Attracts Pill Bugs To Your Home?
Like many pests, pill bugs tend to be more attracted to some homes than others. Some of the factors that may bring these pests into your home or garden include:
- They’re looking for humidity and moisture: Pill bugs thrive in moist, humid environments. During the warmer months, they may wander inside your home because the outdoors isn’t humid enough for them to survive. Homes with excess moisture or too much humidity can be a big draw for pill bugs.
- They’re looking for food: Not only do pill bugs need moisture and humidity to survive, but they also need dead and decaying plant matter to feed on too. If you’ve got a thriving garden, don’t be surprised if you find these pests hiding under rocks or causing damage to your plants.
Keep in mind that pill bugs can end up in your home in a couple of different ways. They may crawl through tiny gaps under doorways, windows, or even cracks in your wall if they suspect your home has enough moisture for them. Pill bugs can also end up in your home accidentally if you bring in potted plants that already have these pests hiding in the soil.