A roly-poly is rounded, heavily segmented and has 14 walking legs, while a bed bug is a flat, oval insect with six legs. Roly-polies favor damp areas near soil and […]
What Do Roly-Polies Eat?
Roly-polies mainly eat dead and decaying plant material, especially leaf litter already softened and colonized by microorganisms. They can also consume fungi, algae, fecal material, seeds, dead animal matter and, […]
Where Do Roly-Polies Live?
Roly-polies live mainly in moist, sheltered places on or near the soil surface, including leaf litter, beneath logs and stones, under loose bark, around decaying vegetation, and in gardens, forests, […]
Roly-Poly Life Cycle Explained
A roly-poly develops through egg, manca, juvenile and adult stages. The eggs and earliest manca stage are protected inside the female’s fluid-filled brood pouch. After emerging, the young molt repeatedly, […]
Are Cockroaches in A Compost Pile Bad News?
Finding cockroaches beneath the lid of a compost bin can be unsettling, especially when dozens scatter as you turn the pile. However, their presence does not automatically indicate a composting […]
Roly-Poly vs. Millipede: How to Tell Them Apart
A roly-poly has seven pairs of walking legs and broad overlapping body plates, while a millipede has many more legs, with most adult trunk rings carrying two pairs. Ordinary millipedes […]
Roly-Poly vs Potato Bug
A roly-poly and a potato bug can be the same animal, but the name potato bug also refers to two completely different insects. In some regions, people use potato bug […]
Roly-Poly vs Cockroach: How to Tell Them Apart
Roly-polies and cockroaches are different arthropods that can sometimes be mistaken for each other, particularly when small, dark-colored individuals appear in damp areas of a home. A roly-poly is a […]
Permethrin vs Cypermethrin for Bed Bugs
Permethrin and cypermethrin can both kill susceptible bed bugs, but cypermethrin generally has the stronger toxic profile of the two. That advantage can disappear when the infestation is pyrethroid-resistant. Because […]
Bed Bug Bites vs Gnat Bites
Bed bug bites and gnat bites can look extremely similar on skin, so the circumstances around the exposure are often more useful than the bumps themselves. Biting gnats usually attack […]