An Ohioan took to Reddit to express their distaste for a critter that was raising a literal stink in their home. They had lived in the Buckeye State for 30 years, but this smelly phenomenon was new.
"Over the past five years, I have noticed the increasing presence of stink bugs. In my home, at the office in urban Toledo, and other random places about town. I found it curious, because I frankly don't recall ever seeing a stink bug in person until at least 2015," the Redditor posted in r/toledo. "These bugs are stinking up our house all day every day."
The poster took to the internet to find answers.
"Turns out, I was not imagining things," they said. "This is an invasive species that has increased in prevalence locally. According to some research, they love to live on corn and soybeans. Since I live north of Bowling Green near several such fields, it makes sense that our house is constantly bombarded by these creatures."
There is mounting evidence that climate change will impact the activity of pests in a plethora of ways, according to the Department of Agriculture. And one way that insects will adapt to environmental changes is by shifting their range. According to a study in Pest Management Science, future climate scenarios could contribute to a 70% increase in suitable habitat for the brown marmorated stink bug, a common stink bug.
Native to Asia, the brown marmorated stink bug was introduced to the United States in the 1990s, having potentially stowed away in a shipping container. The spread of invasive pest species, including the stink bug, is a serious threat to biodiversity and agriculture.
In the Reddit thread, others commiserated with the original poster about their pest problem.
"I get them on my raspberries and they leave their stink behind," one user commented. "I'll go out to pick and snack on raspberries only to have the occasional taste like a stink bug. It makes me hesitant to make jam or matting for fear of contaminating a whole batch with stink."
Others offered helpful, if gruesome, advice, which is considered OK when dealing with invasive species such as these stink bugs or spotted lanternflies.
"If you're not aware, a simple solution of water and Dawn in a spray bottle will kill them," one Redditor advised — though the creator of the thread said they opted for the toilet-flushing method.
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