BugBlog | Green Shield Pest

Roof Rats vs. House Mice: Tucson Rodent ID Guide

Roof rats and house mice look similar at a glance, but size and location usually give them away. A roof rat runs 13 to 18 inches from nose to tail with a long, hairless tail, while a house mouse tops out around 7 inches including its shorter, thin tail. Roof rats climb and nest up…

Why Mice and Rats Move Into Tucson Homes in Fall

Mice and rats start moving into Tucson homes in early fall as nights cool off and outdoor food becomes harder to find. A house holds onto warmth, water, and crumbs in a way the desert stops offering once monsoon season winds down. Rodents look for a way in through gaps around vents, garage doors, and…

centipedes August 18, 2026

Why Centipedes Move Indoors in August

A quick flash of legs across the bathroom tile at 2 a.m. is the first real sign a centipede found its way in, and August is when we hear about it the most. Tucson's monsoon rain has kept the ground outside wet for weeks, and centipedes in AZ don't need much of it to stay…

Wasp August 4, 2026

Wasps Nesting Near Your Tucson Home?

A papery gray nest the size of a fist showed up under the patio eave sometime between watering the plants on Tuesday and grilling out on Friday. Monsoon season is when we get the most calls about paper wasps in Tucson, and the timing tracks closely with the rain. That's not a coincidence. Humidity and…

crickets July 14, 2026

Why Pests Get Worse in Tucson Monsoon Season

The first monsoon rain of July doesn't just cool things down. It triggers a wave of biological activity that builds for the next ten weeks. Insects that stayed dormant or suppressed through the dry heat suddenly have the moisture they need to move, breed, and spread. Monsoon pests in Tucson follow predictable patterns year after…