Page 29 - SEASONAL PEST GUIDE OKEENA

Boxelder Bugs
• Boxelder bugs enter structures in the fall months and "overwinter" in protected areas. They seek shelter in protected places such as houses and other buildings, cracks or crevices in walls, wall voids, attics, doors, under windows and around foundations, particularly on the south and west exposures.
• Box elder bugs feed principally by sucking juices from the box elder tree, but are sometimes found on other plants (especially maple trees). They do very little damage to the trees they attack, but at certain times of the year, they can become a nuisance.
• When box elder bugs build up to large populations and invade a home they are usually pests only by their presence, although their piercing-sucking mouthparts can sometimes puncture the skin, causing slight irritation. Sometimes, they leave fecal material that may stain resting sites such as curtains. They may be seen to gather around the foundations, bases of trees, along foundational walls and fence rows during the fall months.