Common Indoor Bugs in Florida

Flies

• Houseflies are gray with four black bands along the thorax. They measure less than 1/4 of an inch in length. These flying bugs eat a variety of foods including trash, carcasses, human food and animal food. In addition, house flies like to sit on ceilings, wall and floors indoors, and they sit on anything outdoors such as flowers, grass, trash cans or rocks during the daytime. However, houseflies prefer being near a place close to food in the nighttime. Another common fly in Florida is the fruit fly. It measures approximately 1/8 of an inch in length and its abdomen is gray on the bottom and black on top with a tan thorax. These flies can live indoor or outdoors. They like to hang around vegetables and fruit inside a house.

Ants

• Ants crawl throughout the entire state of Florida. These bugs may nest in numerous places such as grass, buildings and houses. The carpenter ant spans from 1/4to 3/8 inches in length. The most common carpenter ant is normally black, though these ants may appear yellow or red. Carpenter ants live indoors or outdoor throughout the year and will eat any type of food, especially sweets.

  Another ant common in Florida is the bigheaded ant, a member of the pheidole family. This type of ant creates trails from its water sources, food and nest. Additionally, these ants may eat trash, fruit trees, aphids and honeydew when dwelling outdoors, and high protein food when living indoors. It measures from 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch in length.

Crickets

• You are likely to see plenty of crickets in Florida. The northern mole cricket is a part of the hexadactyla species. Another name for this cricket is mole cricket. This insect is brown and measures approximately ¾ of an inch. The Northern mole cricket has strong back legs, wings, front feelers and four mouth mandibles. Additionally, you mostly will see this type of cricket during the nighttime indoors and outdoors, and it burrows itself in the daytime. The house cricket is another kind of cricket in Florida. It belongs to the domestica species and measures from 0.59 to 0.82 inches in length. The female is plumper than the male. Additionally, a house cricket may appear yellow to dark brown. It looks similar to a green grasshopper and it makes a high pitch chirping noise.

Cockroaches

• A variety of cockroaches live in Florida. One of the most common cockroaches in Florida is the American cockroach that is a member of the blattidae family. The American cockroach is a shiny, reddish-brown bug with wings that measures from 1.06 to 1.57 inches in length. This insect likes areas near sewage pipes and may hide in cervices and cracks in houses. Additionally, it typically eats practically anything such as paper, foods, leather and bookbinding. Another type of roach in Florida is the Asian cockroach. It is about a 1/2 an inch in length with a pale brown body and slender wings. This bug also has the ability to fly. You may find this cockroach indoors, but it prefers to stay outdoors. In addition, the Asian cockroach will eat anything similar to the American cockroach.