Ricardo Cano

Be prepared. As the temperature rises so does the amount of pests on the ground and in the air.

Honey bees, moths and butterflies, however, are declining in numbers in the desert because of the California drought and increased temperatures in the valley, but have also become more attracted to urban areas for finding nourishment, said Jim Cornett, a local desert ecologist.

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"There isn't a single species of insect that is native to the desert that isn't being affected by the drought," he said.

Flying insects, dependent on plant life that has become increasingly sterile, are flocking to residential areas – back yards and public landscapes – in search of flowers, plants and water.

Some, like the Painting Lady butterfly, are migrating to more back yards or out of the area entirely to find plants to lay their eggs, said Cameron Barrows, a UC Riverside researcher for the Palm Desert-based Center for Conservation Biology.

Others, like the honey bee, have moved to more urban locations for flowers and pollen. Honey bees, hostile only if their hive or queen is threatened, can be prevalent around sprinkler heads in house yards.

Cicadas, which have the reputation of being among the noisiest of insects and buzz only in the summer as adults, are becoming less frequent in the desert.

Because of the lack of bodies of water in the area, mosquitoes, most active in the summer, seek to breed inside storm drains and neglected pools – damp, secluded, wet areas with standing water that suit their breeding needs.

Mosquito numbers this summer are "a little bit" below the average over the last five years, but have an increased presence in urban areas, said Gregory White, a vector ecologist with the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District.

"There will be a lot fewer number" of them because of the increased temperatures, Cornett said.

But mosquitoes still persist in residential areas because of the abundance of possible nesting places.

They choose storm drains due to excessive water usage, or "urban drool," that trickles down and forms standing water, and neglected swimming pools in foreclosed homes – a problem that White said persisted more in 2008 and 2009, during the Great Recession's most potent years.

The control district has partnered up with Palm Desert and Cathedral City to launch "pilot projects" aimed to help prevent garbage and mosquitoes from entering drains that have been regular breeding grounds for mosquito larvae.

Four storm drain gates made of stainless steel were installed in Palm Desert last year. Cathedral City has just finished installing permeable pavers – a pebble-looking buffer that's held together with strong glue and only allows air and water through. The installation costs were covered by the control district.

The conenose bug – which resembles a "small beetle" and feeds on lymph fluids that can be found in people's skin – is also migrating toward urban areas.

Woodrats, common desert rodents and the conenose bug's primary source of food, are declining in numbers as a result of hotter temperatures, forcing the conenose to move to the edges of the desert's residential areas in search of a new source: people.

Also, expect to see more roaches, black widows and ants during the summer, when they are most active, according to David Wilcox, owner of the Yucca Valley-based Sahara Pest Control that services the Coachella Valley.

Wilcox said "nobody should be shocked" to see at least one big roach this summer. Though that doesn't make seeing them any easier for some residents.

"It's overwhelming. It isn't something that we're used to," Barry Ballman of Palm Springs said of the roaches he's seen so far this summer. "The size of them is pretty intense."