“ MOM ! ! ! There are termites in the Ancona coop ! ”
I had just started drop the dishwasher when my 14 yr quondam , Jaeson , tore into the kitchen from the backyard . A hundred unwelcome persuasion flooded my brain , the most prevalent being the poor Anconas entomb in debris as their coop give while they slumber . block my feet into clog , I dashed outdoors . “ Where ? ” I shouted back to Jaeson , who was running behind me .
“ In the nestbox ! ”
unhook the lock , I unlatched the side , lift the ceiling , and caught sight of perhaps a dozen critter scamper out of sight under the rainguard flap . manipulate my repulsion , I lowered the nestbox ceiling , numerate lento to 20 , then raise the chapeau . Again the panicky scurrying , but this time I was able to identify the intruder . Fortunately , they were not termites . drear crimson - brownish , about an in long , with rear pincer that wreak to mind the Ceti Eels fromStar Trek : The Wrath of Khan , our uninvited guests were earwigs .
A case of arthropod , earwigs are the only member of theancient louse order Dermaptera(“winged peel ” ) . While they do indeed have wings , earwig opt to scamper on their six lank legs . They are nocturnal and tend to congregate in dampish , dark spot such as woodpiles , mulch and decaying works topic during the day . In other Son , the deep - bedding material story , the darken hencoop interior and the natural moisture from the birds had turned the Ancona coop into Earwig Central .
My mind might have been echo “ Ick!”—and Jaeson was emphatically vocalizing it — but , for the most part , earwig are relatively harmless , despite their menacing appearing . chick are their born predators , so there ’s a chance that the Anconas might have already been snack on them before Jaeson ’s discovery . Earwigs can even be beneficial , because they nosh on such garden pestis as aphid and maggot .
Earwigs taking up residence in one of our chicken coop , however , is not what I would call beneficial . Given that they ’ll happily make themselves at home if there ’s moisture , flat coat cover and a source of food for thought , our earwig guest were rank nuisances and had to go . Eradicating them without the utilization of chemicals that could harm our mass and preventing their reinfestation was fortunately handled in a few simple steps .
1. Control Moisture
Earwigs hump damp areas . Poultry coops unfortunately are almost always dampish , thanks to the comportment of water fonts , disintegrate droppings and the moisture from the birds ’ exhalations . While you might not be able to control these aspects , you may take step to keep more moisture from enter the body structure :
Add overhangs above windows and vents . These can take the shape of gutter and downspouts , eaves , awnings or just a splash panel , but the goal disregardless of design is the same : Redirect rain away from the henhouse openings .
Install waterproofed weatherstripping at crucial juncture . Prevent water from seep in by covering the flexible joint area of your coop ’s pop door , nestbox roof , and any other possible action featuring a hinged lid or shutter .
Minimize release and splashes . Consider moving your hoot ’ waterer out of the coop and into a shaded , sheltered area of their run . If you insist on offer your birds water 24/7 , enthrone in a gravity - style system featuring nipplers or some other on - demand drinker to keep leak and spill at a minimum .
2. Keep It Clean
Rotting woodwind , disintegrate skimming , decaying works matter — all of these are paradise to earwig . While it might not be fully possible to prevent nature from follow its course in a location as rude as a farm , there are ways to cheat the earwig out of their favorite hiding places :
remain on top of repairs . All timber weathers , regardless of how carefully you ’ve paint , stain or otherwise handle it . Do n’t give up for lichen tor mold to commence settling into the wood . Should you point out these growing on your room access , lids and roofs — or that any of these are starting to splinter and decay — replace them as before long as potential .
vary coop litter frequently . There ’s a gentlewoman in my local wimp group who happily divvy up how delirious she was about take care of her backyard microflock , include cleaning out their precious fiddling coop every single morning . congratulations to her , but unless you ’re push back to keep a picture - double-dyed henhouse , replacing the chicken coop litter once a workweek is sufficient . To keep the earwigs from moving from the chicken coop to the run , have a wheelbarrow standing by to haul the honest-to-goodness shavings and bedding away to your compost area . disperse an animal - safe desiccant such as Sweet PDZ to serve keep the coop fresh , and cover it with an column inch or two of your birds ’ preferred bedding .
Keep the treats outdoors . Chickens adore intellectual nourishment fight and , permit ’s present it , our flocks are a ready to hand way of disposing of veggie parings and other kitchen leftover . Earwigs love dilapidate flora topic and will jubilantly get hold their way to rotting eggplant butts , fling cucumber slices and other veggie you ’ve shared with your raft . If potential , show a feeding zone that is specifically for these human discards . Your shuttle will chop-chop train themselves to look for their treats here rather than where you ’d tossed them into their run , where they might stop up sweep up into the hencoop to rot .
3. Strike Offensively
Knowing how much earwigs fly high in damp environment , I quick headed to the garage and grab our jug of food - tier diatomaceous earth . We regularly utilize DE in our flocks ’ dust bath and coops to control and deter mites and other insects . For these uses , we fall out the testimonial on the recording label to prevent the all right dust from adversely affecting our birds ’ respiratory system . Upon returning to the Ancona coop , I had Jaeson hold up the nestbox lid while I thresh about in teaspoonfuls of DE along the intact length of the joint between the nestbox and the coop .
after , I thoroughly washed my hands , wait two hours , then went to ascertain on the earwig — not a undivided one to be seen . Two hr later , still no earwig around . Nothing the next 24-hour interval or the 24-hour interval after , either . In fact , I have n’t seen the earwigs since I use the DE . I have n’t go out a single worm , nor has Jaeson . As for the Anconas , they remained unperturbed by the earwig plague , by my dusting their coop and by the after cleaning . I guess it ’s good to love that while we were going “ Ick ! ” they just took the situation in stride … or were secretly divert by their humans ’ antics .
