Cockroaches & Scorpions (Austin, Round Rock, Spring: apartment, renting, house)

[BikramYogaGirl]

I'm relocating from the cold MN to Austin. I'm TERRIFIED of cockroaches and scorpions. I was told these insects are very common in Austin. If I ever found one in my house I'd freak out. Any advice? How often do you see these critters? [SIZE=3][/SIZE]

[Moonlady]

There have been lots of threads on this subject. Here's a search on scorpions:

https://www.city-data.com/forum/searc...rchid=18048329

[JayBrown80]

Originally Posted by BikramYogaGirl

I'm relocating from the cold MN to Austin. I'm TERRIFIED of cockroaches and scorpions. I was told these insects are very common in Austin. If I ever found one in my house I'd freak out. Any advice? How often do you see these critters? [SIZE=3][/SIZE]

Never. Scorpions are more common out in the country and then you usually only see them in areas where there has been a lot of construction recently.

Cockroaches are 100% avoidable, and it's unlikely you will have them in your house unless you currently have or adopt very poor cleaning habits. I know that both of these creatures exist, but I have never seen any myself. Maybe walking around downtown you see a dead bug in a grate and you are like "is that a roach????" but I don't get close enough to investigate. There is usually only one type of "roach" downtown anyway.

If you are truly worried about roaches, when you move ask the home inspector of the house you buy to specifically check for infestations, or hire someone who can. If you are renting an apartment, I wouldn't worry to much because management will take care of infestation issues.

Keep in mind though, roaches live EVERYWHERE there are humans beings, even in cold old Minnesota. If you didn't see a bunch of roaches in MN, don't expect to see them here in Austin. Whomever told you to worry about these things was pulling your leg or misinformed.

[Runemaster]

Worried about scorpions, get a cat. To a cat, a scorpion is just a self propelled toy. We saw them periodically in Phoenix, but in all but one occasion, it was after one of our cats had beaten the thing into five or six pieces. The one time we saw a live on, it was backed into a corner with the cat "waiting it out" about six inches away.

[OneJackson]

If you're a pack rat and have roaches in Minnesota, chances are you will have roaches in Texas. some will have hitched a ride from Minnesota in your luggage.

No worries on scorpions though.

[ATX Wahine]

We have quite a few scorpions out here in the semi-rural SW part of Austin. By "quite a few" I mean I've found an average of 3-4 in my house each year and I see a couple more outside on outbuildings or (yay!) once, in the mailbox, when I reached in for the mail. He almost nailed me. I use Bulwark and I think it's kept their numbers down a good bit.

[mark311]

Originally Posted by JayBrown80

Never. Scorpions are more common out in the country and then you usually only see them in areas where there has been a lot of construction recently.

Cockroaches are 100% avoidable, and it's unlikely you will have them in your house unless you currently have or adopt very poor cleaning habits. I know that both of these creatures exist, but I have never seen any myself.

Scorpions do exist in newer neighborhoods. I've never seen them in my Round Rock neighborhood as it's a bit older, but my parents had tons of scorpions in their Georgetown neighborhood where homes are still being built. The scorpions here are not like the big ones that you see on television. They're very small and the stings are more like getting stung by a bumble-bee or a wasp.

I also disagree that cockroaches are 100% avoidable. This is Texas so you will see tree roaches (they look just like big cockroaches) outside your home in some neighborhoods. Occasionally a tree roach makes it into my house somehow. They don't hide from light and look for food like normal cockroaches do. I normally find about 4 or 5 per year in my garage, on my porch, or on my stairs.

[Runemaster]

Originally Posted by mark311

This is Texas so you will see tree roaches (they look just like big cockroaches) outside your home in some neighborhoods. Occasionally a tree roach makes it into my house somehow. They don't hide from light and look for food like normal cockroaches do. I normally find about 4 or 5 per year in my garage, on my porch, or on my stairs.

Are you allowed to shoot 'em?

[hoffdano]

Originally Posted by Runemaster

Worried about scorpions, get a cat. To a cat, a scorpion is just a self propelled toy. We saw them periodically in Phoenix, but in all but one occasion, it was after one of our cats had beaten the thing into five or six pieces. The one time we saw a live on, it was backed into a corner with the cat "waiting it out" about six inches away.

We have three cats and they have no impact as far as I can tell on our scorpion sightings. We see several a year in the house, and a few more outside.

[CarnivalGal]

Scorpions - depends on where you live. In the western outskirts, for example, you'll see more than downtown. We live in Steiner Ranch and in the summer will see an average of one a month in the house. I have a friend who lies in Dripping Springs and sees more than that.

Cockroaches - they freak me out too. The previous poster mentioned that they are everywhere. Well, yes and no. THe German roaches are everywhere and are the ones associated with home infestations. However, here in Austin we have tree roaches or Palmetto bugs (I've heard both names). They usually live outside, but like any insect, they find their way inside. The good news is that they don't infest your house or anything. The bad news is, they are freakin' huge (way bigger than the smaller German roaches). Some also fly. They are not found in the northern, colder climates.

Unfortunately, there's not a whole heck of a lot you can do. If you live closer to downtown, you'll see a lot less, if any, of them. If you live more in the suburban areas with more greenspace, you'll see more of them. We have a pest control company come out every three months and that helps, but you can't prevent them completely.

Just wait until you see your first tarantula.