Tell it where you saw it
Kitchen sink, lanai screen, lawn patch, attic — location cuts the suspect list faster than anything else.
SWFL Pest Identifier
What Bug Is This?
Saw something in the kitchen at 2AM? Filter by where you found it and what it looks like — get the ID and an honest verdict, from harmless neighbor to call-a-pro. Built for Southwest Florida homes.
60
SWFL species, honest verdicts
Including the harmless ones and the helpful ones — not everything deserves a spray.
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Match what it looks like
Ant-like, roach-like, a winged swarm, a caterpillar, lawn damage — pick the closest shape and size.
Get the honest verdict
Some of these are allies you should leave alone. Some need watching. A few are worth a professional look — we tell you which is which.
Identify It
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What does it look like?
How big?
60 of 60 pests match
- Dark head, pale almost-transparent body and legs
- Erratic fast trails to sweets and water
- So small they seem to appear from nowhere
- Sandy soil piles between pavers and along foundation
- Two worker sizes in one trail — a few with visibly oversized heads
- Foraging tubes of loose dirt up walls
- Fluffy dome mounds with no entry hole on top, popping up after rain
- Boil out of the mound in seconds when disturbed
- Sting first burns, then forms a small white pustule next day
- Large — among the biggest ants you’ll see indoors, reddish-and-black
- Most active at night
- Fine sawdust-like piles (frass) under trim or window sills
- Erratic, zigzag "crazy" running — never a neat trail
- Reddish-brown, all one size
- Massive numbers — thousands, not dozens
- Black body with pale feet (look close)
- Long steady trails along fence tops, eaves, and screen frames
- Loves sweets; ignores most baits
- Pencil-width mud tubes climbing foundation, piers, or garage walls
- Swarmers: straight waist, straight antennae, four equal-length wings
- Daytime swarms, typically spring
- Tiny six-sided pellets in neat piles under a pinhole in wood
- No mud tubes — they live entirely inside the wood
- Swarms at dusk, often after warm rain
- Big dusk swarms around lights in late spring
- Swarmers yellowish-brown, slightly larger than native subterraneans
- Carton nest material (looks like packed cardboard) in walls or trees
- Reddish-brown, 1.5–2 inches, yellowish band behind the head
- Can glide-fly — usually from a high spot toward light (or you)
- Mostly wanders in from outside, especially after heavy rain or drought
- Small, tan, two dark racing stripes behind the head
- Found near appliances, under sinks, in cabinet hinges
- Seeing them in daylight = heavy population
- Uniform dark mahogany, no light band
- Strong flier, drawn to porch lights
- Loves gutters, tree holes, and attics
- Bites in DAYTIME, especially ankles and elbows
- Black with white lyre-shaped marks on the back
- Breeds in bottle-cap amounts of standing water
- Single white stripe down the back, striped legs
- Aggressive daytime biter
- Same container-breeding habit as its cousin
- You feel the burn but barely see the bug
- Worst at sunrise and sunset near water
- Gets through standard window screens
- Black flies with red thorax, flying attached in pairs
- Two flights a year: roughly May and September
- Splatter accumulates on car fronts
- Yellowing patches that start in the sunniest, driest spots and spread
- Damage looks exactly like drought but doesn’t green up after watering
- Part the grass at the patch edge: tiny black bugs with white wing marks
- Raised, meandering surface tunnels like mini mole runs
- Spongy turf that peels easily
- The insect itself: velvety, with shovel-shaped front legs
- Small tan moths flush up when you mow
- Grass blades notched and chewed, patches look scalped
- Damage appears fast in late summer
- Lawn browns in patches seemingly overnight
- Caterpillars with an inverted "Y" on the head, feeding in groups
- Birds suddenly very interested in your lawn
- Turf lifts like loose carpet — roots are gone
- C-shaped cream grubs in the top few inches of soil
- Armadillos and raccoons digging at night
- White foam blobs on grass stems (the nymphs’ bubble shelters)
- Adults: black with two orange-red stripes
- Grass tips yellow then brown in patches
- Huge (up to 3"), slow, can barely fly
- Adults yellow-orange-red; young are black with a yellow stripe
- Marches across yards in early summer
- Big yellow-and-silver spider in a huge wheel web across paths
- Web silk has a golden tint in sunlight
- Sits head-down in the web center
- No web — hunts on the ground at speed
- Stout, hairy, brown with darker stripes
- Eyeshine sparkles if you scan the lawn with a flashlight
- Very large, flat, long-legged — fits behind picture frames
- Legs angle forward like a crab
- Explosively fast when startled
- Tan-brown with an orange hourglass underneath
- THE tell: spiky, spherical egg sacs like tiny WWII sea mines
- Web in furniture joints, meter boxes, pool cage corners
- Glossy jet black, red hourglass underneath
- Messy, strong, low web in undisturbed corners
- Hides by day, hangs upside down at night
- Nighttime scurrying in the attic or ceiling
- Hollowed-out citrus on the tree
- Sleek, dark, tail longer than the body; travels power lines and palm fronds
- Burrows along foundations and under slabs
- Heavier build, tail shorter than body
- Grease rub marks along baseboards and pipes
- Rice-grain droppings in drawers and under sinks
- Gnawed food packaging corners
- Fits through a gap the width of a dime
- Pets scratching, bites around human ankles
- Black specks on pet bedding that turn red when wetted (flea dirt)
- Tiny jumpers in carpet, especially shaded rooms
- Ticks crawling up walls or in baseboard gaps (yes, indoors)
- Flat reddish-brown before feeding, gray-blue after
- Dog kennel and bedding hotspots
- Apple-seed-sized, flat, reddish-brown; hides in mattress seams and frame joints
- Pepper-like dark spotting on seams
- Bites in lines or clusters, often on arms
- Open umbrella-shaped comb under eaves, no paper shell
- Long legs dangle in flight
- Calm away from the nest
- Organ-pipe or urn-shaped mud tubes on walls
- Slender wasp with a thread waist
- Solitary — no swarm, no defense
- Ground nest — steady traffic in and out of a hole in the yard
- Compact, bright yellow-and-black, fast
- Aggressive around food and drinks in late summer
- Fuzzy, golden-brown, carries pollen on hind legs
- Beard-shaped cluster of thousands on a branch or fence — calm and temporary
- No nest, no comb — they’re between homes
- Steady bee traffic in and out of one gap in soffit, wall, or meter box
- A low hum in the wall on warm afternoons
- Activity persists for weeks — a swarm would have moved on
- Perfectly round 1/2" holes in fascia, pergolas, unpainted wood
- Big black shiny abdomen (bumble bees are fuzzy)
- Males hover and dive-bomb — but males can’t sting
- Looks like a tiny blonde toupee — completely furry, teardrop shape
- On oaks, elms, citrus; sometimes drops onto railings
- Fall is peak season
- Neon green with a red-and-white racing stripe
- Branched spines all over
- On oaks, hibiscus, and many shrubs
- Carrot-shaped, silvery, wiggles side-to-side as it runs
- Three tail bristles
- In books, boxes, closets — anywhere starchy and still
- Rear pincers (harmless to people)
- Under pots, mats, and mulch — moisture followers
- Wanders in after heavy rain
- Coils into a spiral when touched
- Slow, round-bodied, legs ripple in waves
- Shows up in numbers after soaking rain
- Fifteen pairs of very long legs, moves like a ghost
- Found in tubs and sinks it can’t climb out of
- Fast, but always running away from you
- Rolls into a perfect ball
- Gray, armored, under pots and stepping stones
- Needs damp — dies quickly indoors
- Shield-shaped body
- Gathers on sunny walls and around windows in cooler months
- Releases odor when crushed — hence the name
- Fuzzy, moth-like micro-fly resting on bathroom walls
- Weak, hopping flight near sinks and showers
- Worse after a drain sits unused
- Tiny dark flies hovering around potted plants
- Larvae in constantly-damp potting soil
- Weak fliers that drift rather than dart
- Big warty treefrog (up to 5") around porch lights at night
- Giant toe pads
- Skin secretions irritate eyes — wash hands
- Brown lizard doing push-ups on your walkway
- Orange-red throat fan (dewlap)
- Ground and low-perch dweller
- Pale, almost translucent lizard on walls at night
- Hangs around porch lights
- The chirping you hear at night? Probably him
- Half-moon burrow entrance, sandy apron in front
- Stumpy elephant-like back legs, shovel front feet
- Grazes on grass and low plants by day
- Shallow cone-shaped holes dug overnight
- Armored, cat-sized, terrible eyesight
- Digs where soil is soft and grubs are plentiful
- White waxy spirals on palm frond undersides
- Sticky "honeydew" film on cars, pool decks, furniture below
- Black sooty mold following the sticky film
- White cottony clusters at stem joints and leaf bases
- Sticky leaves below the clusters
- Ants running protection patrols nearby
- Soft green/black/orange specks clustered on new growth
- Curling, sticky leaves
- Ladybugs showing up = nature responding
- White/brown flecking stuck to leaf undersides (camellias, hollies)
- Yellow blotches on the leaf top side
- Doesn’t wipe off easily — they’re glued down
- Chalk-white weevil with a short snout
- Leaf edges notched like pinking shears
- Drops and plays dead when the branch is bumped
Not seeing yours?
Text a photo — free ID from a licensed local tech, no strings attached.
Text (941) 297-5749Identified it and want it handled?
The Pest Library covers signs, risks, and how we treat each pest group — or price your fix online in about 60 seconds, no phone call needed.
Homeowner resources
Observe first. Compare your next steps.
Use these free sheets and guides to prepare for an inspection, compare service choices, and understand what a quote should explain.
Printable worksheet · No form required
Pest Observation Checklist
Record where, when, and how often you see pests. A printable checklist for a clearer identification and a more useful inspection.
Read or downloadPrintable worksheet · No form required
Lawn Observation Worksheet
Document lawn discoloration, irrigation, and recent changes before an assessment. Download a printable Southwest Florida lawn worksheet.
Read or downloadStill Not Sure What It Is?
Text us a photo. A licensed local tech will identify it for free and tell you honestly whether it even needs treatment.