Introduction
- Scientific name is: Halyomorpha halys
- Named for its defense mechanism of spraying an odorous liquid when threatened
- Originally from China, Taiwan, Korea, and Japan.
- Has become a season long pest in the United States as it invades homes and feeds on crops.
Identification
- Grow up to three to four inches long.
- Have up to fifteen pairs of legs.
- Yellowish gray in color with striped bands around the legs.
Mannerisms of House Centipedes
- Run at speeds of one foot per second.
- Has developed auto-mimicry in its back legs making them have the same movements as their antennae.
- Have well developed faceted eyes.
- Females lay eggs in the spring.
- Lay between sixty-three and one hundred and fifty-one eggs.
- Feed on spiders, bed bugs, termites, ants, silverfish, and cockroaches.
- Inject venom into prey with modified legs.
- Can detach any of its legs to escape predators.
- Prefer to live in cool damp places such as basements.
- Can bite humans and they are painful, but not dangerous.
Prevention
- Drying up areas they live forces them to find another habitat.
- Eliminating other household pests that the centipedes eat has proven to be an effective centipede pest control method.
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