It’s Stinkbug Season In Michigan – Here’s How To Keep Them Out

Stinkbugs stink. Literally and figuratively.

Spring is a beautiful time of year; everything from the trees blooming to the birds singing. But annoyingly this little bug also reemerges in spring. If you're like me and hate waking up in the middle of the night to hear one flying around your room, there are a few easy tricks you can do to keep the stinkbugs out.

Stink Bugs Are Invasive

The most common stink bug we see around here is the brown marmorated stink bug and if you don't remember this little bug ever being as big of a problem as it is now, that's because they weren't until the last couple of years. This timelapse shows the spread of the bugs since the 2000s. In the early 2010s, southwest Michigan started seeing stink bugs in large numbers.

The stink bug invasion
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Stink bugs are actually an invasive species from China believed to have come to the US from shipping containers. The bugs are more of a nuisance than anything since they don't bite, sting, or pose any real health risks. The bad smell associated with the bug only happens when it feels threatened or is injured (in other words, don't squash it when you see it if you want to avoid an unpleasant odor).

Keeping Them Out

Keeping the bug out of your house is a bit of an uphill battle. Even though we're seeing the bugs now, the best time to keep them out of your house is during the fall since what we're seeing now is critters waking up and leaving their hiding places from the winter months.

These are the best ways to keep stink bugs out of your house.