Search terms reveal bug problems

New data suggests that selling mosquito-mitigation products in Virginia or selling fly swatters in Nebraska make good business sense. And across the board, any product that fights bed bugs has a head start toward the cash register.

Tracking and tallying internet search terms and social media content, Terminex -- the termite and pest control services company – has determined that the 2017 “Pest of the Year” is the bed bug. This announcement is accompanied by the release of the first edition of the Entomologists’ Almanac, which also features the top pests mentioned in social media posts.

“At Terminix, we have seen a steady increase in bed bug infestations since the 1990s, so we are not surprised bed bugs are the most-searched pest of 2017,” said Paul Curtis, director, technical services at Terminix. “We are excited to release the first Entomologists’ Almanac because this data shows something we see every day at Terminix: People are searching for information about pests online.”

The pest of the year was determined by Terminix based on its research of the highest per capita online search volume of any pest this year. Americans searched for information about bed bugs more than 7.3 million times during 2017. 

Terminix dug into social media data to uncover a regional view of pest problems. Here are the top pests by state, based on the overview of social media:

• Virginia, mosquitoes;

• Idaho, beg bugs;

• Nebraska, flies;

• Washington, spiders;

• Connceticut, rats;

• Arizona, termites;

• Hawaii, cockroaches;

• D.C., mice;

• Oregon, ants;

• Massachusetts, hornets.