Heatwave: Those NH critters that “like it hot”

New Hampshire is right smack dab in the midst of a good ol’ New England heatwave, and with highs expected to reach 94 degrees today, I figured what better topic to discuss than, well - the heat.

More specifically, the critters in our daily lives that actually thrive in hot conditions.

While most of us are metaphorically melting, some creatures who call the Granite State home are no strangers to hot & humid.

Insects, for example, are essentially cold-blooded, meaning they don’t make their own heat and instead rely on the environment to warm the systems allowing them to function. In fact, many ectothermal arthropods thrive in hot weather, with the heat and humidity allowing them to produce more offspring in less time.

Particularly in urban settings like Manchester and Nashua, which can be as much as 18 degrees warmer than surrounding suburbs and natural areas due to their heat island effect, insect processes will inevitably accelerate thus enabling populations of some city-driven pests to explode in these heat islands.

So before the ice cream melts in the shopping bag on the way home, settle into some AC climate control and read all about some New Hampshire critters that can definitely take the heat.

Stinging Insects

Insects - such as wasps. Extreme heat can make yellowjackets, paper wasps and hornets more desperate for moisture and in turn, more aggressive and more likely to sting (kinda just like me on a really hot day).

Paper wasps tend to be attracted to the sunny warm sides of homes in the spring and fall, in a behavior known as solarization. Yellowjackets thrive and multiply in hot and dry weather. In extreme heat (say, over 90 degrees Fahrenheit) can take as little as one week for active nests to double in size. That means a nest that has 100+ individuals in mid-to-late July may bear totals in the thousands by the end of August if the weather stays above 90 long enough. Luckily, our heatwaves are fairly short-lived - much like a yellowjacket colony at a Monadnock Pest account!

Flies

Under normal conditions, house fly eggs take around 20 hours to hatch into maggots. However, if temperatures crest into the high 90’s, those eggs can hatch in as little as 8 hours. Those eggs also mature from larvae to pupae to adult flies quicker in heat as well. With each female having the capacity to lay up to 900 eggs during this short time, one can imagine how quickly fly activity can become exacerbated in hot weather. Most flies, such as filth flies and house flies, are food-source-driven pests - meaning containing and removing decaying matter, such as trash and pet waste, is paramount to reducing fly presence in and around the home.

Firebrats

As the name implies, firebrats are drawn to moist warm places. The firebrat is a small hexapod, in the grouping of bristle-tails. Firebrats prefer higher temperatures and varied humidity. They can be commonly found in bakeries and near heat sources like boilers or furnaces. Similar to their “cooler” cousins, the silverfish, they feed on a wide variety of carbohydrates and starches ranging from dog food, to flour, to book binding and wallpaper glue.

Spider Mites

Those teeny-tiny red dots you often see scampering along stone surfaces - yeah, they have a name. Spider mites generally live on the undersides of leaves of plants, where they may spin protective silk webs, and can cause damage by puncturing the plant cells to feed. Although often found on patios and windowsills, these mites are known more so as an agricultural pest. Spider mites prefer hot and dry conditions. The mite’s feeding and reproduction depends on body temperature, and the body temperature of the mite depends on air temperature - meaning the hotter the air, the more potential for mites. According to entomologists, spider mites may complete five times more generations at temperatures in the 90s compared to temperatures in the 50s. Prolonged periods of heat and locations that are hotter may have even higher populations of spider mites. When the temperature rises to 90, new mite generations are produced as much as every seven days.

Bats

Its not just arthropods that love the heat - bats, which are a common household invader, prefer the hotter areas of our roof systems that bake in the sun. Female bats often use house attics as nursery sites for young because these areas maintain warm temperatures - from 80 to 104 degrees, which is cited as needed for raising young. The heat speeds the development of the fetus before birth and growth of pups after birth. Those pups are born in late May, June and July, and are raised right at the peak of New Hampshire’s “dog days” of summer - July/August. New Hampshire bats need and seek a home that bakes in the sun – a nice warm place to raise their young – and one that lets them decrease their metabolic needs during roosting. So if you’re looking to keep bats on your property, choose a bat house painted with multiple coats of flat black exterior latex and place the house where it will receive full sun.

Some other critters that will be active during heat waves include thrips, aphids, select species of ants, and mosquitoes (provided its hot and humid/moist).

So stay cool in the heat - but know that some critters in our steamy state are settling in to this Northeast heatwave just fine!

Need assistance with a hot pest issue? Drop us a line and let Monadnock Pest & Wildlife Services chill things out. Read more: Insect Pest Control Services