We humans aren’t the only species that loves boating: Insects, spiders and even rodents do, too—and once they invite themselves aboard, getting rid of them can be a real challenge. Most bugs breed like rabbits: A few sneak aboard, and before you know it there’s a million of them crawling around in your boat’s deepest, darkest recesses. Mice and, in extreme invasions, rats are just as bad. And cockroaches have been around since the dinosaurs, so getting rid of them is never easy.
All these critters, like the rest of us, like being warm, wellfed and safe—and there are plenty of nooks on board that offer all three, spots so far beyond our reach in the bilge, the galley, behind joinery and in the engine room that we can only imagine what’s living there. Rousting out four-, six-or eight-legged squatters requires expertise, determination, and sometimes exotic weaponry. Last century’s toxic bug killers don’t make it; today there are better, safer, more environmentally friendly methods. If you’re lucky, you can DIY pest remove using off-the-shelf products, but in most cases a faster, surer path to a bug-free future is hiring a specialist who’s experienced with marine extermination.
If you want to find bugs, boats and people involved with both, where better to look than Florida? The Sunshine State has critters of all
