- Author: Belinda J. Messenger-Sikes
- Author: Karey Windbiel-Rojas
![Head lice adults, nymphs, and eggs (nits). [Credit: Dr. Shujuan (Lucy) Li]](https://ucanr.edu/blogs/UCIPMurbanpests/blogfiles/72443small.jpg)
Most people are practicing social distancing due to the current pandemic, so contracting head lice might not be a top concern right now.
However, many families with young children have at least one encounter with head lice at some time or another. Finding effective ways to manage these pests can be difficult, but it is possible. And remember, anyone can get head lice.
In the newly updated Pest Notes: Head Lice, authors Victoria Leonard and Dawn Gouge bring their public health and pest management expertise to the topic of head lice management, providing easy, safe, and effective...
- Author: Siavash Taravati
- Posted by: Elaine Lander

Western drywood termites (Incisitermes minor, Figure 1) are an important pest of structural wood in California, causing millions of dollars in damage annually. These termites are very cryptic, hidden in their galleries within wood members (pieces of wood), and only emerge during swarming. As a result, wood damage usually goes unnoticed for a long time.
Control options are generally categorized as either whole-structure treatment (heat treatment and fumigation) or local treatments (insecticide injection into the wood, high-power microwaves, electrocution, and other techniques).
Despite...
- Author: Elaine Lander

It's often easier to prevent pests before they become a problem than to try and get rid of them once they infest a home. While some pests can be active year-round, cooler temperatures trigger some pests to find shelter indoors.
Creatures such as rats or insects are typically looking for food, water, and shelter. Eliminate or reduce access to these resources to deter pests. There are a variety of tools that are readily available which can help block or limit a pest's entrance into the home. Here are a few suggestions to prevent creatures from stirring in your home this season.
Rats,

Cockroaches, or roaches, are probably some of the least welcome insects people encounter in their homes, kitchens, offices, restaurants, or landscapes. Indoor cockroaches can create significant public health problems by contaminating food and producing allergens.
To help manage both indoor and outdoor cockroaches, UC Cooperative Extension IPM Advisor Andrew Sutherland and UC Riverside entomologists Dong-Hwan Choe and Michael Rust tackle the challenge of cockroach management in the newly revised Pest Notes: Cockroaches.
What's new in this version?
Since it's critical to first identify...
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Spotting a small moth fluttering around your closet then discovering damaged fabric or other items can be shocking. Upon further inspection, you may even see the silken webs spun by the larvae, or the droppings they leave behind.
Clothes moth larvae attack wool clothing, carpets, rugs, upholstered furniture, furs, and much more. They will even feed on synthetic or cotton blends of fabric if they also contain wool.
Sometimes people mistake clothes moths for pantry pests (food and grain-infesting moths). Clothes moths are small, about ¼ long, and only flutter about the area they have infested, typically around around bedrooms and where...