Spiders, Snakes & Scorpions
Pest Control Excellence
Providing the best in the Pest Control industry - since 2006
About Spiders
Spiders are arachnids with eight legs varying in size from very small to intimidatingly big. The majority of people have a healthy fear of these creatures, mainly because of their scary appearance. Most spiders are not poisonous or harmful, but it is better to be careful especially where children and elderly people are around. Spiders are more active during summer months and are seeking warm and dry places where they can survive – big or small, harmless or dangerous. They actually have an important role in controlling flies, mosquitoes and other flying insects. Dangerous spiders you may expect in the Western Cape are the black widow and brown widow (or button). They often live beneath window sills and their bites are very painful and can even kill you. Likewise you may find the violin spider and the sac spider of which the bite is not painful, but their venom can cause considerable tissue damage. Lastly baboon spiders are popular in the Western Cape. These enormous hairy spiders can inflict a very painful bite because of their big fans, but their bite is not deadly. If you suspect that your home has been invaded by spiders, contact Pest Control Excellence to identify the species and properly remove the pests.
About Snakes
These slithering critters invoke the jitters in the majority of people, mostly because of our ignorance about snakes. Being cold-blooded, snakes are usually active in summertime feeding mainly on rodents. They live in holes abandoned by rodents as well as other dark places such as your not so often visited storeroom. In the Western Cape we have five extremely venomous snakes, namely the puff adder and berg adder, the cape cobra (geelslang), the rinkhals and the boomslang. There are many more harmless, non venomous or slightly poisonous snakes in the Western Cape such as the intimidating mole snake. Also the brown house snake, which is often mistaken for a Cape cobra by an unsuspecting person suddenly encountering one. Especially if the person only has a quick glimpse of the reptile as it hastily tries to reach cover to hide itself from the human danger. Most people see a snake and immediately flip into flight mode. This is probably not a bad thing provided that you don't break a leg trying to get away. If you are not an authority on snakes, you should treat any snake as potentially deadly. Get in contact with Pest Control Excellence and speak to one of our highly trained and professional staff.
About Scorpions
Scorpions, like spiders, are arachnids and have eight legs and a long tail with a stinger on the end curling back over the body. The two front legs end in small pincers. Because of their menacing appearance, we instinctively fear them. These creatures hide during the day and lives in shady burrows, under rocks as well as rubble piles. They sleep in winter, but during summer, being nocturnal, they come out in the early evening in search for insects on which they mainly feed. All scorpions are venomous, but not all are deadly. Their poison may cause allergic reactions in some people, which of course aggravates the effect of the sting. Out of 1500 species of scorpions only 30 are deadly, and only one of these is found in South Africa – the Parabuthus Granulatus which grows up to 15 cm long. When hiking in the veld, or walking around at night, rather wear shoes like boots which cover you ankles and lower legs, otherwise you might still be stung. If it is of any consolation – over 95% of all stings countrywide are by less venomous scorpions. Still, a scorpion sting can lead to death, therefore rather contact the highly trained and professional staff at Pest Control Excellence for assistance.