Latest WI Insect: Brown Marmorated Stink Bug

The hits just keep coming, in the form of more unwanted 6-legged visitors whose real home is across the seas.

A tide of invasive insects has washed over our Marengo neighborhood Pewaukee and Wisconsin in the past two decades: the emerald ash borer and gypsy moth to name a few. All are resident to foreign countries. All have caused environmental and economic havoc in the United States, where no natural predators exist to control them.

The most recent invader winging its way here will literally make a smell.

The brown marmorated insect is ¾-inch long, with a wide back side that tapers to a point, and a rectangular head with long antennae. Native to China and east Asia, the insect has been journeying west since being first discovered in Pennsylvania in 2001.

Its name is well-deserved. When disturbed or stepped on, the brown marmorated stink bug emits an awful, pungent you'd invite into your Marengo house, right?

Fortunately, the brown marmorated insect hasn't arrived in large numbers in Marengo or Wisconsin. Stink bug control isn't much of an issue yet. Yet it's only a matter of time.

Farmers hate them for more than their stink. The stink bug feast on tree fruits, vegetables, sweet corn and soybeans. Mid-Atlantic apple growers sustained an estimated $37 million in crop losses in 2010 to marmorated stink bugs.

The Asian invasive has a relative that is native to the United States. The insect looks a lot like the brown marmorated version, except the colors of their undersides are different. We somehow doubt you'll get that far identifying them, though.

Brown marmorated stink bugs like to winter inside Marengo homes. If you smush one, you'll figure it out quickly. The nose knows. If you see more in your Marengo home or yard, don't crush them – contact The Mosquito Guy to address their presence in a safe, non-smelly fashion.  Unlike these insects, we'll never stink up your joint.

Getting Rid of The Unwanted Insect: Brown Marmorated Stink Bug near Marengo, IL