There's Hope! A Potential Cure for the Stinkbug Scourge

Note:  This is the first post by Parkesburg Today's newest intern, Magdalena Stuehrmann.  Magdalena, or Maggie as she's known to her friends, is 17 years old and graduated just a few weeks ago from Octorara Area High School. In the Fall she plans to attend George Washington University and major in archaeology.

Parkesburg Today is not Maggie's first writing experience.  While in high school she wrote articles and editorials for the school newspaper, The Octorara Outlook. This spring she had the opportunity to write an article for the Philadelphia Inquirer as part of an internship for that newspaper.  

Writing and reading are two of her strongest passions.

Welcome aboard Maggie!  I know Parkesburg Today's readers will appreciate your contribution to our community.

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By Magdalena Stuehrmann

Everyone knows what a stinkbug is - the creepy insect with the boxy shape and annoying habit of buzzing around rooms in the middle of the night like a demented helicopter, seemingly intent on crashing into every wall of the room. 

These odious insects have become the scourge of the northeastern United States, including the Parkesburg area.

Aside from the fact that they are annoying pests to have in the house, there are some worries that they may cause a dramatic decrease in the productivity of some farmers, especially those who work with fruits. 

The insect has a long, needle-like mouthpart that it uses to suck the juices out of plants, bruising and ruining them. This would not be such a problem if the insects were controllable through regular pesticides or native predators.

However, the insects, which were accidentally introduced to the United States in Allentown, PA as recently as the 1990’s, are relatively unaffected by either.

As a result, researchers at a U.S. Department of Agriculture insect lab have turned to the stinkbug’s natural predator from Asia, a parasitic wasp (Trissolcus) that lays its eggs inside the eggs of stinkbugs. The immature wasp then hatches inside the stinkbug egg, eats the inside of the stinkbug egg, and emerges as an adult. The wasps are tiny, and pose little harm to humans, because they don’t bite or sting. 

Researchers are performing extensive experiments using the wasps to make sure that they won’t compound the problem by introducing another harmful invasive species. One of the main concerns is that the wasps might harm useful, native species of stinkbugs that prey on other insect pests. 

It may take several more years of testing before the scientists are satisfied that the wasps can cause no harm to the native environment and can be released.

Until then, researchers are looking for alternatives that we can use now, such as pheromones and traps. The little wasps, however, seem like the best bet to control the stinkbug invasion.

In the meantime, the stinkbug sufferers in our area can try to avoid the little pests in several ways.

First, by checking screens for holes the insects can sneak in through.

Once they are in the house, flushing them down a drain or vacuuming them are the ways of disposal that are least likely to result in the trademark stinkbug stench permeating the house.

There is also a simple trap that can be made for them. According to USA Today, a homemade stinkbug trap works like this –“Use a wide-mouth can. Fill with an inch of water, sweet-scented dish soap, and a little cooking oil on top. Make sure that pets cannot lick this trap. The sweet smell lures the bugs; the oil smothers their discharge; the soapy water smothers them as they sink.”

These are all good ways to keep the insects out of the house, until the wasps are released to begin their work.

For more info on the Stink Bug scourge check the links here and here.