Hey, Bug Doctor!: The Scoop on Insects in Georgia’s Homes and Gardens

Bugs can sometimes really…bug you. On the flip side, they pollinate crops, provide food for birds and other wildlife, produce honey and other useful things, and serve as bellwether indicators of our environment’s health. That’s to say nothing of aesthetic worth. Iridescent dragonflies weaving patterns of light as they patrol a lakeshore, a ghostly luna moth drifting through the dusk – encounters like these enrich our lives enormously. That’s what “”Hey, Bug Doctor!”” is all about: appreciating that the difference between a pesky and a helpful bug often comes down to how, when, and where you find it. Few of us realize that better than entomologist Jim Howell, who is known to readers of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution through his helpful, humorous columns on getting along with bugs. Gathered here are Howell’s profiles of over sixty crawling and flying (and yes, biting and stinging) bugs commonly found in homes, gardens, and yards in Georgia and around the Southeast. Each illustrated profile describes the bug’s appearance, diet, behavior, and impact on the natural and built environments. Like Howell’s widely read newspaper columns, the profiles offer unusual facts, popular myths, and stories of real-life encounters. A single square yard of your lawn or garden can contain hundreds, even thousands, of bugs. Here is proven, practical guidance on those beautiful, ugly, harmless, toxic, and ultimately amazing creatures with which you share your home and yard.