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Crickets crickets everywhere
We are being overrun by the Miller Moths in New Mexico.
I don't know how they keep getting into the house. I guess that I am going to have to start checking the bathroom vent fans to see if the flapper valves are closing when they are turned off. I found one door that needed weatherstripping, and that has been taken care of, but they still come in.
Watching the bug zapper in the back yard is better than the TV reruns.
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Crickets crickets everywhere
They say that they are not native here and were blown in on the wind. I do not know if they are laying eggs or are just off course. I am also not sure if they can survive here. They have been a problem for over a month.
I picked up a piece of wood and there were dozens of moths that were parked on the under side. I have seen them do the wedging behavior that you describe. I have started shaking the doors before fully opening them to scare off any moths in the corners that might fly in when the door is opened.
I have what looks like a small tennis racket that has a bug zapper power supply built in. You press a little button and it charges up. If you get a good solid hit on a moth you get a satisfying electical snap and the dazed moth hits the floor. That does not kill them, but it sure stuns them and you can dispose of the body.
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Crickets crickets everywhere
It looks like the moths may have subsided somewhat. We have a central vacuum in the house which is like a shop vac with the plumbing in the walls. We have been sucking up moths and every week or so I need to empty out the canister. About half of them are still alive.
On Sunday we got our first centipede in the house. They can also squeeze through about any crack and can force their way under weatherstripping. This one was about four inches long, and they do have a nasty bite. I sucked that guy up in the central vac also.
I think that centipedes eat other bugs, so this guy should have a feast in the canister with all those moths. I just hope that it is not the size of a king snake when I empty it out this weekend.
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Crickets crickets everywhere
The central vac is like a whole house shop vac, so the critters don't go through the motor/blower. I am sure that the moths get banged up a bit during the trip, but they can still move. Centipedes on the other hand are tough sons-a-guns. I lay down those sticky traps for mice, centipedes and other vermen. I have seen centipedes get caught on these and drag them around with the legs that are still able to grab the floor.
I have a long set of medical forceps to grab them and they will attack the metal, so I know they would do the same thing to your hand.
As far as the vacuum is concerned, most shop vacs and this central vac are going to be able to sustain a vacuum of less than 1/2 atm. That is equivalent to 15,000 ft in altitude or less, so the vacuum "event" should be survivable for most animals. The 40 MPH right angle turns and abrupt stops are another thing, but I will bet that the centipede is still alive. I guess that I am going to have to empty the canister tonight just to see.
I do know for a fact that centipedes are not very durable in the average garbage disposal unit.
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Crickets crickets everywhere
We have a lot of wild birds that fly up next to the house and pick the bugs off of the stucco. Perhaps the moths think that they are hidden, but they stand out like sore thumbs on the tan stucco.
The moth plague seems to have ended. We have started to have some small rains. I don't know if that did it, but they are thankfully gone for this year.
Some parts of NM have had crickets and grasshoppers, but not directly where I live. I drove into work one day, and there were grasshoppers/locusts in about every square foot of the parking lot at work. They parted in a wave like water when you drove or walked through the area. Thankfully that was a one day event and they have not returned.
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06-16-2003, 10:04 
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