woodlouse
24 August 2004, 09:24 PM
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woodlouse
...in my kitchen.
every day I find 1 lone woodlouse on the tiles near my kitchen sink. (no, its not the same louse, I kill it every day, so unless its a ghost, its a different one)
I have poured bleach down the drains and overflow of the sink, so will see if there is one tomorrow, but what else attracts them? damp maybe? Is it likely they are coming in through the extractor fan in the wall?
every day I find 1 lone woodlouse on the tiles near my kitchen sink. (no, its not the same louse, I kill it every day, so unless its a ghost, its a different one)
I have poured bleach down the drains and overflow of the sink, so will see if there is one tomorrow, but what else attracts them? damp maybe? Is it likely they are coming in through the extractor fan in the wall?
25 August 2004, 12:13 AM
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flick it round the floor, and they roll up big style...
maybe its a big tribe of them lurking, but only send one at a time on a reccie of the area....
They will get you in the end....
BB
maybe its a big tribe of them lurking, but only send one at a time on a reccie of the area....
They will get you in the end....
BB
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25 August 2004, 12:28 AM
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They are delightful crustaceans, very common round my area. They are not coming up the drains, they will come in under doors, through air vents and down chimneys.
They are largely nocturnal creatures and hate sunlight or overly dry conditions hence they will head for indoors during the summer. They also hate overly wet conditions contrary to popular opinion. I have given up trying to keep them out, they always seem to be able to find a way in. Ant powder kills them very effectively and if you dust around the base of walls in your garden etc you will kill a lot of them.
The best bit about woodlice prevalance, for me, is the presence of the UK's only spider able to painfully bite humans, the woodlouse spider
I have a spot in my house I am nearly always able to find one, and tonight (true to the "never working with animals" addage) they are playing hard to get, hence here is a googlised one:
Mandibles perfectly designed for cracking those crunchy crusts!!!
They are largely nocturnal creatures and hate sunlight or overly dry conditions hence they will head for indoors during the summer. They also hate overly wet conditions contrary to popular opinion. I have given up trying to keep them out, they always seem to be able to find a way in. Ant powder kills them very effectively and if you dust around the base of walls in your garden etc you will kill a lot of them.
The best bit about woodlice prevalance, for me, is the presence of the UK's only spider able to painfully bite humans, the woodlouse spider
I have a spot in my house I am nearly always able to find one, and tonight (true to the "never working with animals" addage) they are playing hard to get, hence here is a googlised one:
Mandibles perfectly designed for cracking those crunchy crusts!!!
25 August 2004, 12:38 AM
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LOL!
The fact you never knew they existed is testament to the fact that they really don't want to meet you as much as you don't want to meet them! Unlike house spiders they are very recluse and you won't see them unless you look for them. I look upon them as an ally rather than a foe!
The fact you never knew they existed is testament to the fact that they really don't want to meet you as much as you don't want to meet them! Unlike house spiders they are very recluse and you won't see them unless you look for them. I look upon them as an ally rather than a foe!
25 August 2004, 12:42 AM
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hahaah nice one. i gonna make it my duty to find one of these wiley critters before long. (at a safe distance, of course).
I'll bid you a goodnight and leave you with your arachnid amigos.
BB
I'll bid you a goodnight and leave you with your arachnid amigos.
BB
25 August 2004, 07:47 PM
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yikes, if you think I am willingly bringing a spider into my house, you are sadly mistaken! Id rather have the odd woodlouse.
Well, another one appeared today, I let it roam around for a bit, to see if it would lead me back to the nest or whatever way they are coming in, but no...its just wandered aimlessly around the edge of the sink for a while, then stopped in the corner and appeared to go to sleep.
I squished it.
No doubt there will be another tomorrrow.
Well, another one appeared today, I let it roam around for a bit, to see if it would lead me back to the nest or whatever way they are coming in, but no...its just wandered aimlessly around the edge of the sink for a while, then stopped in the corner and appeared to go to sleep.
I squished it.
No doubt there will be another tomorrrow.
25 August 2004, 07:59 PM
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Originally Posted by ajm
They are delightful crustaceans, very common round my area. They are not coming up the drains, they will come in under doors, through air vents and down chimneys.
They are largely nocturnal creatures and hate sunlight or overly dry conditions hence they will head for indoors during the summer. They also hate overly wet conditions contrary to popular opinion. I have given up trying to keep them out, they always seem to be able to find a way in. Ant powder kills them very effectively and if you dust around the base of walls in your garden etc you will kill a lot of them.
The best bit about woodlice prevalance, for me, is the presence of the UK's only spider able to painfully bite humans, the woodlouse spider
I have a spot in my house I am nearly always able to find one, and tonight (true to the "never working with animals" addage) they are playing hard to get, hence here is a googlised one:
Mandibles perfectly designed for cracking those crunchy crusts!!!
They are largely nocturnal creatures and hate sunlight or overly dry conditions hence they will head for indoors during the summer. They also hate overly wet conditions contrary to popular opinion. I have given up trying to keep them out, they always seem to be able to find a way in. Ant powder kills them very effectively and if you dust around the base of walls in your garden etc you will kill a lot of them.
The best bit about woodlice prevalance, for me, is the presence of the UK's only spider able to painfully bite humans, the woodlouse spider
I have a spot in my house I am nearly always able to find one, and tonight (true to the "never working with animals" addage) they are playing hard to get, hence here is a googlised one:
Mandibles perfectly designed for cracking those crunchy crusts!!!
Is this you in real life
25 August 2004, 10:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Buzzer
ajm
Is this you in real life
Is this you in real life
I do admire Sir David's work, but with the British public's penchant for shows featuring a different sort of animal (read trisha trash reality tv) I fear the wildlife presenter job market is somewhat flooded, even for talented individuals such as myself!
26 August 2004, 10:09 AM
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We live in an old cottage and have hundreds of the bloody things. As harmless as they seem they are gradually munching there way through numerous wooden items in the house - beams, window frames, etc. 
Have found that household flea spray kills them very effectively. Especially if you spray it around skirting boards where they generally scurry. Even months after spraying it still kills them when they come into contact with it. Find new curled up dead ones every morning!!
* Apologies to any woodlouse-lovers*
PS: When aged about 4 my older sister apparently used to *cough* take handfuls of woodlice to bed with her. She called them 'mammy-wams' and 'daddy-wams', and adored them. Quite clearly she should have have been sectioned at an early age
Have found that household flea spray kills them very effectively. Especially if you spray it around skirting boards where they generally scurry. Even months after spraying it still kills them when they come into contact with it. Find new curled up dead ones every morning!!
* Apologies to any woodlouse-lovers*
PS: When aged about 4 my older sister apparently used to *cough* take handfuls of woodlice to bed with her. She called them 'mammy-wams' and 'daddy-wams', and adored them. Quite clearly she should have have been sectioned at an early age
26 August 2004, 02:12 PM
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Woodlouse are the bain of my evening. We seem to get loads in our house, I wander round with a dustpan and brush and sweep them up. I used to put them outside but now I'm beyond caring and drop them into the toilet to flush them. It's not funny when you can sweep up 12 or 15 creatures a night. They come out in the dining room after the light has been off for a while, and when you turn the light on they stop what they're doing and sit still as though they're invisible.
After reading this thread I'm now going to try chemical warfare and put some ant powder down on their skirting-board running track. If that fails I'm going to get real dirty and hunt for one of those woodlouse spiders in the shed/garden and introduce it to the house.
After reading this thread I'm now going to try chemical warfare and put some ant powder down on their skirting-board running track. If that fails I'm going to get real dirty and hunt for one of those woodlouse spiders in the shed/garden and introduce it to the house.
17 July 2005, 12:44 AM
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Just rolled in the front door and what should I see but a perfect male specimen of the above spider sitting on the carpet wondering which way to run!
I picked the little fella up and he promptly excreted all over my hand!
Yes they can bite... but like all british species of spider, 99% of the time they are not agressive enough to try....
anyway, here he is....
I picked the little fella up and he promptly excreted all over my hand!
Yes they can bite... but like all british species of spider, 99% of the time they are not agressive enough to try....
anyway, here he is....
17 July 2005, 01:51 AM
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Originally Posted by wwp8
i can't decide what was more wierd,
picking it up.
picking it up.
(p.s... weird)
putting it on his hand,
taking a photo
or searching for this old post nearly a year old
It's a good specimen though, no?
17 July 2005, 07:08 AM
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17 July 2005, 07:45 AM
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Originally Posted by slickrick
http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/sirrobh...t/at/img40.gif
thought this was a woodlice ?
thought this was a woodlice ?
17 July 2005, 08:27 AM
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IIRC the Woodlouse, or "Slater" as they are called in the area I live, is the UK's only native terrestrial crustacean.
They are saprophytes ie. eat dead and decaying matter but can be a nuisance.
Don't just treat the area where you see the buggers, look to the point of ingress : ventilators, loose floorboards etc. Dose them well with powder.
Just because they are seen in certain areas doesn't mean they originated there. Like spiders who are stuck in the drain hole of a sink or bath : they don't come up the plumbing, they just get stuck in the enamel.
BTW Arachnids give me the Heebies.
My main pests right now are Magpies (tried to get in my window the other night, might have been after the Galileo Themometer baubles) and seagulls, who love to crap on the car after I've washed it. Any tips, apart from a .22?
K.
They are saprophytes ie. eat dead and decaying matter but can be a nuisance.
Don't just treat the area where you see the buggers, look to the point of ingress : ventilators, loose floorboards etc. Dose them well with powder.
Just because they are seen in certain areas doesn't mean they originated there. Like spiders who are stuck in the drain hole of a sink or bath : they don't come up the plumbing, they just get stuck in the enamel.
BTW Arachnids give me the Heebies.
My main pests right now are Magpies (tried to get in my window the other night, might have been after the Galileo Themometer baubles) and seagulls, who love to crap on the car after I've washed it. Any tips, apart from a .22?
K.
Last edited by Ken 275; 17 July 2005 at 08:31 AM.
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