Pest Control & Extermination in Keansburg, NJ

To reach the wood in your home, termites often build mud tubes. These networks of tunnels, often found criss-crossing a home’s concrete foundation, provide protection for termites as they move to and from their nest to their food source, the wood in your home. The tubing, constructed from wood pulp and their saliva and feces, protects these soft-bodied insects from drying out and from predators.

I was dispatched to a home in Keansburg for a termite treatment. Unlike most other insects that either die or become inactive during the cold winter months, subterranean termites are open for business all year round. These guys stay all nice and warm by setting up shop underneath your garage or other areas that give them unrestricted access to your home’s wooden structures. 

Here, during my inspection, I found active termite mud tubing on this home in early winter. Just because it’s December and the ground is starting to freeze, don’t make the mistake of thinking that termites can no longer cause any property damage. No self-respecting termite would even think of letting a little cold weather stop him from invading your home!

During a termite treatment at a home in Keansburg, a beautiful Praying Mantis appeared as if to help us get rid of the termites. Mantises are special insects. In fact, their name “mantis” means prophet or seer, and many ancient civilizations that believed this insect was bestowed with spiritual or mystic powers. A mantis is one insect that commands respect. One of my favorite movies is the Deadly Mantis, a 1957 horror film where a giant praying mantis freed from the Arctic Ice terrorizes our cities. 

The “praying” part of their name comes from its prominent front legs, which are bent together at an angle that makes them look like they are praying. Unlike any other insect, a mantis has the ability to turn its triangular head, which is poised on a stem-like thorax, from side to side a full 180 degrees. A mantis is both the hunter and the hunted on the food chain. A mantis scans for prey and for animals like bats and spiders who eat them. And these insects can see! They not only do they have two large compound eyes, but they also have three simple eyes located between them.  

As a pest control technician, I admire these unusual insects and, to me, they are  kindred spirits. Just like me, a praying mantis is a formidable predator. These efficient and deadly hunters are naturally well-camouflaged, with coloring and a shape that make them look like leaves or branches, seamlessly blending in with their surroundings. A mantis will lie in ambush or patiently stalk their quarry, and when ready, will pounce on its prey with lightening-fast reflexes, snaring its victim with its front legs that come equipped with sharp grabbing spikes. A mantis is a carnivore that eats a wide variety of insects and small animals like frogs, lizards, and even small birds. And they don’t waste any time, usually gobbling down their prey head first. 

These beneficial insects are welcomed addition to the backyard, helping to reduce populations of a variety of insects that damage vegetation. Their only possible negative trait is only a concern to the male mantis. The adult female often eats her partner just after, or even during, mating. Surprisingly, the males don’t seem to mind and appear happy to reproduce — even if it means that they have to pay the ultimate price! 

I carefully picked up this mantis and relocated her to a nearby rosebush where she could continue ambushing unsuspecting insects. The lesson here is that a good pest control technician should have an eye for detail, even noticing the lone praying mantis. Also, when treating a home, we focus only on the harmful insects and leave the beneficial ones like the praying mantis alone. Not all insects are “bad.” Some support us in knocking down harmful pest populations, and we should encourage them to thrive.