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Potato bugs, also known as Jerusalem crickets, are part of the same group of insects that include house crickets, grasshoppers, and katydids. Potato bugs are usually found in burrows, which they make in the soil under wood piles, boards, leaf litter, rocks, and piles of trash.
I have talked to a wild life specialist with the University of California who has done considerable research on wild rabbits. He indicated to me that rabbit-immune plants are hard to find.
The Red Gum Lerp Psyllid is a native of Australia, and it was introduced to southern California several years ago. Since that time, it has gradually made its way north to Santa Barbara County, and we are now seeing an invasion of north county.
Roof rats are small rats and may be confused with adult mice at times. The tail of an adult roof rat is longer than its body. This is one characteristic that helps identify it as a roof rat and not a mouse.
Rose slugs are small 1/2 to 5/8-inch long, green worm-like insect and usually feeds on the underside of the leaf causing the damage. The adult is a sawfly which is a member of the bee family (hows that for confusing?).
A scale insect, known as San Jose scale, is a common pest of roses, apples, plums, nectarines, apricots, alder, almond, arborvitae, ash, beech, birch, blackberry, ceanothus, cherry, chestnut, elm, fig, eucalyptus, grape, hibiscus, orange, peach, persimmon, raspberry, walnut, willow, and the list goe...
There are three species of scorpions found in the southern part of California and throughout the southwestern US. From the descriptions of these species given, the stripedtail scorpion is the most common.
Skunks do not hibernate in California. However, during colder periods of the year, they will den up for periods of time. Skunks do not like to dig any more than absolutely necessary, so they prefer to den in abandoned burrows made by squirrels, foxes or coyotes.
Even though you may not like the process handpicking is an excellent way to start controlling snails and slugs. I was able to reduce the snail population by 85-90% (my estimate) by going on snail patrol at night. A flashlight and an empty milk carton are all that is needed.
Fall is spider season on the Central Coast and in many other areas of California as well. The most obviously active spiders during this season are the garden spiders, which weave large circular webs between bushes, trees, and vines to catch insects. Orb-weavers and Araneus spp.
