Insect infestation

[dddave]

In the last month, my 9th floor Bangkok apartment has become infested with very small (about 1 to 2mm) black bugs...kind of the shape of an old VW Bug.

At first I thought they were some kind of a grain weevil but I went through all rice, cereal and flour containers and couldn't find evidence of them inside.

I have a large studio and they are everywhere: floor, cabinets, food prep surfaces, bedding.  

A few days ago, I cleared out all my kitchen cabinets, washed them down and sprayed with standard insecticide but within days, they were back inside.

 

Is anybody else currently having this problem?   I'm wondering if they are some kind of seasonal bug that appears irregularly because in my 10+ years here, I've never had them before. 

Sorry, they are too small for my phone camera to take a useful picture.

Forgot to add: they don't seem to bite and they move very slowly.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 25, 2018 by dddave

[DGS1244]

Sounds like you have a Tick infestation. You are doing the right things but they are very difficult to get rid of. Normally they come with pets, dogs Cats etc. unusual when you are on the 9th floor.

[Mrjlh]

Maybe Bed Bugs? Then you have a problem that's hard to get rid of.

[Tagaa]

Hard to say what the bug is, but most insects have a life cycle of egg, larvae and adult...or something to that effect. I am not an entomologist so I may have left out a stage.

 

Anyway, my point is killing the adults will not eliminate the infestation. You have to keep killing the adults before they reach maturity & lay more eggs. The eggs and larvae you don't see will turn into adults & then you kill them. So on & so on. You will need to determine what they are (use the www) then determine the life cycle & keep killing the adults. You will have to keep this up until they are gone. The important point is you have to kill the adults before they mature & lay more eggs.

 

In the absence of determining what they are & what their life cycle is, you might just spray every 5 to 7 days until they are gone.

 

I had bugs in my coconut palms. I identified the bug and determined the life cycle...sprayed every 10 days for about 2 months. No more bugs, but I still have to spray at least once a month to kill any other bugs that may take up residence.

 

[maximillian]

29 minutes ago, Mrjlh said:

Maybe Bed Bugs? Then you have a problem that's hard to get rid of.

 

OP said: "Forgot to add: they don't seem to bite and they move very slowly."

 

Bed bugs do bite.

 

[maximillian]

39 minutes ago, DGS1244 said:

Sounds like you have a Tick infestation. You are doing the right things but they are very difficult to get rid of. Normally they come with pets, dogs Cats etc. unusual when you are on the 9th floor.

 

Ticks bit and they don't look like beetles.

[tandor]

2 hours ago, Tagaa said:

Hard to say what the bug is, but most insects have a life cycle of egg, larvae and adult...or something to that effect. I am not an entomologist so I may have left out a stage.

 

Anyway, my point is killing the adults will not eliminate the infestation. You have to keep killing the adults before they reach maturity & lay more eggs. The eggs and larvae you don't see will turn into adults & then you kill them. So on & so on. You will need to determine what they are (use the www) then determine the life cycle & keep killing the adults. You will have to keep this up until they are gone. The important point is you have to kill the adults before they mature & lay more eggs.

 

In the absence of determining what they are & what their life cycle is, you might just spray every 5 to 7 days until they are gone.

 

I had bugs in my coconut palms. I identified the bug and determined the life cycle...sprayed every 10 days for about 2 months. No more bugs, but I still have to spray at least once a month to kill any other bugs that may take up residence.

 

..heat lamp will drive them away.

[natway09]

If you can procure a borer bomb ask your apartment if allowed to use.

If so, close all openings, light, & go away for 24 hours.

 

[whiteman]

Pay the money and get an exterminator to come in and find the nest peace of mind ever time and then let us know what they are?

[Coconut Kidd]

This link might be helpful, or at least somewhat interesting.

 

http://www.pinsdaddy.com/tiny-house-bug-identification_Zdd*0QQcq9CeEMnSDyp5Iaya6IQPwTLktM6xVG8G10Q/

 

Kidd

[DGS1244]

5 hours ago, maximillian said:

 

Ticks bit and they don't look like beetles.

One type of tick looks exactly like a small beetle.

[KBsinter]

Fruit fly is the only one I know that small.................lol but they fly.

[drtreelove]

5 hours ago, Tagaa said:

Hard to say what the bug is, but most insects have a life cycle of egg, larvae and adult...or something to that effect. I am not an entomologist so I may have left out a stage.

 

Anyway, my point is killing the adults will not eliminate the infestation. You have to keep killing the adults before they reach maturity & lay more eggs. The eggs and larvae you don't see will turn into adults & then you kill them. So on & so on. You will need to determine what they are (use the www) then determine the life cycle & keep killing the adults. You will have to keep this up until they are gone. The important point is you have to kill the adults before they mature & lay more eggs.

 

In the absence of determining what they are & what their life cycle is, you might just spray every 5 to 7 days until they are gone.

 

I had bugs in my coconut palms. I identified the bug and determined the life cycle...sprayed every 10 days for about 2 months. No more bugs, but I still have to spray at least once a month to kill any other bugs that may take up residence.

 

You are on the right track and make an important point about life cycle of arthropod pests.  You left out pupa stage, for insects with four stages of complete metamorphosis. But some insects have incomplete metamorphosis, adults, eggs, nymphs. Ticks are incomplete, but have another stage in there, larvae and then a nymph stage. 

You are right that identifying the pest and knowing something about the life cycle is important for effective control.

 

In the case of the OP, if the little critter doesn't bite, isn't in your food or your bed, then maybe it's just a minor nuisance. Consider your tolerance for that nuisance for awhile until the infestation passes, and it probably will pass. An intensive pesticide spray program or bug bomb may not be necessary. 

 

FYI, For coconut palm pests like coconut rhinoceros beetle, red palm weevil or coconut hispid beetle, if you spray hard chemistry pesticide frequently like that, you will wipe out the beneficials, biological controls, natural pest predators like mini-wasps that parasitize the beetle larvae and bring them under control. Frequent pesticide spraying sets up a dependence and ongoing problem. Consider concentrating on sanitation, cleaning up woodwaste debris and netting compost piles. 

[maximillian]

49 minutes ago, DGS1244 said:

One type of tick looks exactly like a small beetle.

 

Really ?   Well, old but can still learn something new every day.

[Tagaa]

49 minutes ago, drtreelove said:

 For coconut palm pests like coconut rhinoceros beetle, red palm weevil or coconut hispid beetle, if you spray hard chemistry pesticide frequently like that, you will wipe out the beneficials, biological controls, natural pest predators like mini-wasps that parasitize the beetle larvae and bring them under control. Frequent pesticide spraying sets up a dependence and ongoing problem. Consider concentrating on sanitation, cleaning up woodwaste debris and netting compost piles. 

I'm advised by the Asia - Pacific Forrest Invasive Species Network that the young palms are more susceptible to the beetle than older mature trees. I only spray the lower section of the spike and throat of the palm. I'm hoping that in a year or so I will be able to stop spraying all together. I believe that we have the sanitation issue under control as all palms are planted in the yard with grass underneath that gets cut every week in the rainy season and is kept debris free throughout the year.

 

To be honest, any new infestation will be due to the neighbors that do nothing to rid their plants of the beetle. Ours look great now & but the neighbors new fronds always appear scorched & damaged. TIT...can't control your neighbors, right?