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Bugs in the kitchen

Ants, cockroaches, pantry moths and fruit flies are common kitchen finds. Food, water and warm appliances bring them in, and the fix usually starts with what they are eating.

Found in the kitchen

23 kinds, most dangerous first. Tap one for photos, the danger rating and what to do.

Arizona bark scorpionGet adviceAmerican cockroachBe carefulBrown-banded cockroachBe carefulEastern yellowjacketBe carefulFalse black widowBe carefulGerman cockroachBe carefulHouse flyBe carefulNorthern yellow sac spiderBe carefulOriental cockroachBe carefulPharaoh antBe carefulRed imported fire antBe carefulYellow fever mosquitoBe carefulArgentine antHarmlessBlack carpenter antHarmlessBlack carpet beetleHarmlessDrain flyHarmlessDrugstore beetleHarmlessEuropean earwigHarmlessFirebratHarmlessHouse cricketHarmlessIndianmeal mothHarmlessOdorous house antHarmlessPavement antHarmless

Why bugs end up in the kitchen

Kitchens have everything a small insect needs in one room: crumbs, open food, a drip under the sink and warm spaces behind the stove and fridge. Ants follow scent trails from outside to a single sweet spill. German cockroaches live their whole lives indoors and favor the gaps around sinks and the motor housing of the refrigerator.

Some kitchen bugs arrive in the groceries. Indianmeal moths and drugstore beetles often come home inside flour, cereal, dried fruit, pet food or spices, then spread to other packages in the pantry.

What you can do today

  • Find the source before you spray. A trail of ants, a moth in the pantry or flies over the fruit bowl each point to a specific food.
  • Move dry goods into glass, metal or thick plastic containers with tight lids. Throw out any package with webbing, larvae or small holes.
  • Wipe counters and sweep the floor each night, and don't leave pet food out overnight.
  • Fix drips under the sink and dry the cabinet floor. Cockroaches and silverfish both depend on moisture.
  • Pull the stove and fridge out once and clean behind them. That's where most of the grease and crumbs collect.
  • Rinse bottles and cans before they go in the recycling, and empty the trash often in warm weather.

When it's more than a nuisance

Cockroaches and house flies are rated Be careful because they can carry germs onto food surfaces, and cockroach droppings can trigger asthma and allergies. Fire ants and Pharaoh ants also carry that rating. If you are seeing cockroaches in daylight, the group behind the walls is usually large, and baits placed where they hide tend to work better than surface sprays.