Warm weather is nearly upon us. This is the time of year that we begin to see those pesky moths that come from birdseed. The moth is the Indian Meal Moth. They are found in nearly every grain product. They infest the food during its storage and lay their eggs. When they are warm enough the eggs hatch, the larvae eat the grain, pupate, and eventually develop into the adult moth. The adult moth then chews its way out of the bag and you see them flying around inside your home. These moths do not destroy fabric, but they are a nuisance and they can infest other foods in the home including flour, pasta, and other grain products.

Preventing them is easy. You should freeze all birdseed that you bring into your home for at least 24-36 hours. This will kill any eggs and larvae that are in the bag.

Controlling them if they are established in your home can be more challenging. This is a multi-step process and involves killing the eggs and larvae, and getting rid of the adults. If you have these moths in your home, you need to first locate the source. This could be a bag of birdseed, especially wild bird seed. You will need to freeze this for 24-36 hours to kill everything in the container. Look closely in the pantry and around your home for pupae. Adult moths will lay eggs in the cracks and corners, especially along the ceiling. They appear as yellowish casings inside of a thin web structure. You need to sweep away all of these pupae so they do not hatch. Finally, you need to trap and kill the adults. The most effective way to do this is by using pheromone traps. The traps are designed to attract the adult male and trap him. This removes the males from the population and the moths cannot reproduce. The free females soon die off. This process takes approximately 6 weeks.

By following these recommendations, you can rid your home of these pesky moths in less than 8 weeks.

In summary:
1 Freeze all seed that you bring into your home for 24-36 hours.
2 Sweep and vacuum away all pupae.
3 Use pheromone traps to eliminate the adult male moths and prevent breeding and egg laying.

The use of Moth Traps with lures throughout the year can prevent infestation and also may be used when you see the first occurance of moths.