Many Pest Control Operators brag about being able to “sniff out” certain pests. That is believable because the more you work with different pest infestations, the more tuned in you become with a specific odour of a specific pest. When entering a client’s premises that has a heavy infestation. You will smell the mouse urine, it smells a bit like stale popcorn. Not a bad smell. Some technicians will describe it differently, nevertheless, you know it when you smell it!
It’s a fact that, different people have different sensitivities to smells. Insects give off and odour only if the infestation is high, or if the insect is crushed, or if the insect secrete a defensive fluid, that usually happens if they are threatened. Defensive fluids will have a pungent, offensive odour (which often can’t even be described!) this odour is to discourage birds and other animals from making a meal out of the insect. Not all insects secrete an offensive nasty fluid. The western Conifer Seed Bug, exude essential oils on the food they feed on.
Making scents of your job!
The Pest control literature have documented the following odours. Many people have described and noted specific smells and used it to identify characteristics of certain pests:
Odorous house ants- blue cheese, (when crushed). Blue cheese was the #1 answer in a “crush-and-sniff” smell test by 143 people; rotting coconuts came in second.
Larger yellow ants- citronella or lemon (both defensive & when crushed)
Brown memorated stink bugs- cilantro or ground coriander (both defensive & when crushed)
Western conifer seed bug- turpentine or pine (both defensive & when crushed)
Bed bugs- spoiled raspberries or musty coriander or almond (heavy infestation)
Flour beetles- sickly musty smell (heavy infestation in flour)
Grain mites- sweet minty smell (heavy infestation & when crushed)
German cockroaches- oily, musky, nutty, like rotten maple syrup! (heavy infestation)