The little bugs that look like woodlice...

The small crustaceans have disappeared!

Image via woodlice.co.uk.

     In my last post, I mentioned that when I returned from a week-long vacation, the gnats in my apartment had been taken care of by a small and friendly spider. He is doing well, going from this corner to that, keeping the apartment free from gnats and getting woodlice trapped in his webs (but they just die there and wait for me to vacuum them up, so they are obviously not part of his diet like the gnats). But back to the woodlice (or what I assume must be woodlice or something closely related to woodlice) who began their subtle invasion during my time away and first appeared to me on the floor in the living room the very night I arrived back home. I saw them crawling in every room but the kitchen, mostly near inside doorways and near (and even IN my bed - not cool, and I'm still paranoid though I've only ever seen one there). I couldn't figure out where they were coming from, why, or how, but my best evolved guess was that they were somehow coming through the a/c and heater vents.

     I've recently replaced my vacuum bag, which was overflowing and stopping up the vacuum's suction, lit the gas fireplace a few times, and officially switched from a/c to heat. Surrounding one of these incidents, the woodlice have dramatically retreated. My guess is the source from which they were coming was either gassed or burned. Yay for the forces greater than our understanding!

Pesky Gnats
How the Gnats in My Apartment Disappeared

     I tried a few things: vinegar, cider vinegar with a hint of vanilla, bleach down the drains, a scented diversion, covering the thought-to-be source of the gnats with masking tape. These things did not work. The gnats were drawn to light sources, which killed many of them, the water coming from the faucet and not going down the drain, and occasionally the carbon dioxide me, my husband, and any guests breathed from our noses and mouths. They continued to come, live, and thrive despite my meticulous cleaning and our 4-5 smashings upon every entry to the bathroom. 

Image via orkin.com .

      However, I went on vacation recently, and when I returned after more than a week gone, the gnats in the bathroom, where their main hangout was, were nearly nonexistent. Rather than search for the source of this change, I merely accepted it, busy with catching up on my cleaning, unpacking, and getting all my photos sorted out and posted on Facebook. During my shower one day though, I noticed my accomplice. I'm not a big fan of the little guy, but as long as they stay in his/her corner and leave me alone, I am grateful for nature taking its course. I'm not sure how or where this creature came from, but it was probably the same hole the gnats constantly crawled through, and I hope he doesn't get burnt out on the reason he's allowed to live where he's set up his camp. 
      Every time I look up into his web, I see at least one gnat. For the record, I'm pretty sure the spider is harmless to humans, but if he strays too far from this corner, I might just smash him anyway... Well, maybe only if the gnats are completely taken care of, or if he has babies.

For a free USA spider-identification poster, visit http://www.termite.com/spider-identification.html.

Now, about those little bugs that look like woodlice...