It’s summer and time to head outside to take advantage of warm weather and long days. But it’s also time to brace for the insects that buzz, fly and creepy-crawl their uninvited way into our picnics, pool parties and outdoor activities.

Although the first impulse might be to stomp or swat or exterminate, it’s usually not a good option, said Matt Daugherty, assistant Extension specialist in entomology.

“The vast majority of insects that we encounter in our everyday lives are harmless to us and many are actually beneficial,” he said.

Here’s a list of common insects, their benefits and ways to safely control them:

Bees
The most common bees are honey and bumblebees. Even though they can sting when provoked, they should be left alone to do their job.

“We need to conserve them as much as possible,” said Daugherty. “Their role as plant pollinators makes them essential to our ecosystems.”

In the event that honeybees establish a hive near your home it is recommended that a professional beekeeper or removal specialist be contacted. Frequently, rather than destroying them, these professionals will add collected hives to their own commercial pollination and honey operations.

Ants
Those lines of ants that snake through the kitchen might be an annoyance, but don’t get the ant spray out just yet.

“Spraying the hundred or so ants you see in front of you will get rid of them but not the rest of the colony,” said Daugherty.

Most ants are not aggressive, excluding the red imported fire ant, which, when disturbed, will swarm and inflict a painful bite. Ants are beneficial decomposers and eat other pests like fleas and termites.

Prevent in-house infestations by keeping living spaces clean, free of food or water sources, and caulking any cracks or unsealed spaces where ants might have access to, said Daugherty.

Moths
There are several varieties of moth, some of which will cause damage. These include food- and grain-infesting moths, and clothes moths, which do their damage when they are in the larva stage.

Many moths are pollinators. As nocturnal insects, they have the ability to
pollinate different varieties of plants than bees or flies, coming out to the flowers that only bloom at night.

As with ants, sanitation is important for controlling moths in the home. Infested materials should be discarded to limit further damage.

Earwigs
Another relatively harmless insect is the earwig. The forceps attached to the abdomen are used primarily for holding prey and in reproduction. There is no evidence that they harm humans with their pincers.

As a matter of fact, earwigs can be fairly beneficial in eating other insects in the garden. They prefer cool, damp spaces and can feed on plant material. Placing a newspaper in earwig high-traffic areas is a good way of collecting them.

Spiders
The spiders that we see during the day — out on the porch or darting across the bathroom floor — are unlikely to harm us, said Daugherty. The most common harmful spider is the black widow, but only the female — identifiable by a red spot or hourglass-shaped mark on its round abdomen — has the ability to break the skin.

Spiders eat other offending pests, like ants, aphids and beetles. If you catch a spider crawling around the house, take it back outside, where it can tend to the garden.

Mosquitoes
These blood-sucking pests are more than just an annoyance. They can carry an array of deadly diseases, such as encephalitis, West Nile Virus and malaria. Eliminate breeding sources, including standing water, piles of cut grass and fallen leaves, tall grasses and weeds. Keep rain gutters free of leaf litter and other vegetation. Repellents may be used, but will need to be applied frequently and their efficacy is questionable, said Daugherty.

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UC Riverside’s Department of Entomology
With more than 20 research groups, and nearly 100 faculty and staff who specialize in the study of all things insect, experts from UCR’s Department of Entomology study the positive and negative roles of insects within the ecosystem and develop environmentally safe alternatives for pest management. Areas of research include biological control, insect behavior, ecology, morphology, pathology, pest management, physiology, insect-plant interactions, systematics, toxicology, insecticide resistance, medical/veterinary entomology, molecular entomology, neuroscience and urban entomology.

Useful UCR Web sites:
Department of Entomology
Urban Entomology
Entomology Museum
Center for Invasive Species Research
Cooperative Extension
Master Gardeners: (951) 683-6491 ext 0, ask for master gardeners