Know the pest. Control the problem.

Our research

A reference built on species research

Every species in the index has two layers. A plain-language profile explains what the pest is, where it lives and how to spot it. A research layer covers morphology, diagnostics, life cycle, ecology, resistance and integrated pest management, with the published sources listed alongside.

  • 143

    species profiled

  • 18

    pest groups

  • 190

    cited references

  • 15

    research fields available per species

Featured species

  • Bed bug (Cimex lectularius)Bed bug

    Cimex lectularius

    Bed bug

    The apple-seed-sized night feeder, hiding in mattress seams by day, feeding on sleeping people by night.

  • German cockroach (Blattella germanica)German cockroach

    Blattella germanica

    German cockroach

    A small, fast-breeding indoor cockroach, the most common cockroach found in Ontario homes and restaurants.

  • Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus)Norway rat

    Rattus norvegicus

    Norway rat

    The burrowing city rat, heavy, wary, and built for sewers and foundations.

  • Black-legged tick (Ixodes scapularis)Black-legged tick

    Ixodes scapularis

    Black-legged tick

    The sesame-seed-sized tick behind Lyme disease, check yourself after the woods, not your basement.

Browse all species

Profiles draw on published literature and are revised as new evidence appears.

The problem

Pest pressure is rising in Ontario, and Toronto is at the centre

Dense housing, major construction, warmer winters and global travel give pests more places to live and more ways in. The figures below come from public health agencies, government reports and industry data.

Health

  • Reported Lyme disease cases in Canada grew from 144 in 2009 to 5,809 in 2024, with a preliminary 7,105 in 2025.4
  • Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia together accounted for 94.7% of the Lyme disease cases reported in 2022.5
  • Cockroach allergens are a recognized risk factor for allergic rhinitis and asthma in children, especially in low-income urban homes.6
  • West Nile virus reached Ontario in 2001 and has since spread through most of the province.7

Economic loss

  • Invasive species are estimated to cost the Canadian economy between $13.3 billion and $34.5 billion every year.8
  • In 2011 the Ontario government gave Toronto Public Health more than $1.2 million in one-time funding for bed bug control alone.10
  • Treating and preventing infestations falls on property owners, landlords and tenants, which makes pest control a recurring cost for housing and for food businesses.

Homes and communities

  • Toronto was named Canada's rattiest city for a fourth year in a row in Orkin Canada's 2025 ranking, which counts rodent treatments.1
  • Toronto's 2025 rat response plan points to major construction projects and climate change as drivers of the growing problem.2
  • Toronto topped Orkin Canada's list of bed bug cities for seven years running, as of the 2024 ranking.3
  • The Asian tiger mosquito, a species of public health concern, was detected in Windsor-Essex every year from 2018 to 2023 and is now established there.11
  • Canada's first spotted lanternfly detection was confirmed in Windsor on September 15, 2026, and movement restrictions are now in place.9

Best practice

The PestStudy approach to pest control

Good pest control is a process, not a product. Our best practice framework guides an exterminator from the first call to long-term maintenance, with the least risk to people, pets and wildlife.

  1. Identify

    Confirm the species before choosing any method. The wrong identification leads to the wrong treatment.

  2. Inspect

    Find the source, the harbourage and the conditions that let the pest stay.

  3. Prevent

    Remove food, water and entry points. Exclusion comes before chemicals.

  4. Treat

    Choose the lowest-risk effective method, follow the label and protect non-target animals.

  5. Monitor

    Check results with traps and follow-up visits, not assumptions.

  6. Record

    Document findings and actions so the next visit starts from the facts.

Read the Best Practice guide

Why training matters

Poorly applied pesticides harm people, pets and wildlife

Pesticides are tools that need knowledge. Ontario regulates their use through education, licensing and permit requirements under the Pesticides Act and Ontario Regulation 63/09.16 When products are misapplied, the harm reaches well beyond the pest.

Raptors with rodenticide residues

  • Anticoagulant rodenticides were detected in 82 of 133 tested raptors in Ontario (62%), across 12 species.13

Illness after one improper spraying

  • An Ottawa pest control company was fined $130,000 after improperly spraying a pesticide that made several teachers and about 50 children ill at a school.12

Rules exist for a reason

  • Using a pesticide in a way that differs from its label directions is a violation of the federal Pest Control Products Act.14
  • Total release foggers, often called bug bombs, can cause a fire or explosion if misused, and people who stay or return too soon can become ill.15

Demand for trained exterminators is growing

Pest control businesses in Canada

+6.5% in two years

1,285 June 2020 1,320 June 2021 1,368 June 2022

Hover or focus a mark to read its value.

The number of exterminating and pest control businesses in Canada rose from 1,285 in June 2020 to 1,368 in June 2022.17
  • Canadian pest control industry revenue is expected to reach $2.7 billion in 2026.19
  • Ontario employers regularly advertise technician roles and offer to train candidates toward passing the licensing exam.18
  • Together with the rising pest activity described above, these figures point to steady demand for qualified people.

The opportunity

A skilled trade with steady demand

Pest control is practical, local work. Public salary data and industry reports give a picture of what the trade pays in Ontario.

  • $60,195

    average yearly salary for a pest control technician in Ontario, an Indeed estimate.20

  • $17.60 to $24.01

    typical hourly range for pest control technicians in the Greater Toronto Area.21

  • $2.7 billion

    expected revenue of the Canadian pest control industry in 2026.19

  • 1,368

    pest control businesses in Canada in June 2022, up from 1,285 in June 2020.17

  • The work is local and year-round: homes, restaurants, hospitals and offices all need pest control.
  • Experience can lead to inspection, consulting or running your own business.
  • Employers advertise entry roles and offer to train toward the exam.18

Figures are estimates from public salary and market sources. Pay varies by employer, region and experience, and this is not a promise of income.

Start with the exam preparation course

Sources (21)
  1. Orkin Canada, "Rodents on the run: Orkin Canada releases 2025 list of Rattiest Cities", GlobeNewswire, December 9, 2025.
  2. CBC News, "Rats, beware: Toronto outlines new plan to attack its growing rodent problem", July 2025.
  3. Global News, "Most bed bug ridden cities across Canada are in Ontario", March 2024, reporting the Orkin Canada ranking.
  4. Public Health Agency of Canada, "Lyme disease: Monitoring".
  5. Public Health Agency of Canada, "Lyme disease surveillance in Canada: Annual edition 2022".
  6. "Indoor allergens and endotoxins in relation to cockroach infestations in low-income urban homes", PubMed.
  7. "West Nile virus in Ontario, Canada: A twelve-year analysis of human case prevalence, mosquito surveillance, and climate data", PubMed.
  8. Colautti et al., "Characterised and projected costs of nonindigenous species in Canada", Biological Invasions.
  9. Government of Canada, "Spotted lanternfly".
  10. City of Toronto, Medical Officer of Health report to City Council on the bed bug program and provincial funding, 2012.
  11. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, "Scientists and students unite on the hunt for invasive mosquitoes".
  12. CBC News, "Exterminator fined after children fell ill at Ottawa school", 2017.
  13. "Anticoagulant rodenticide exposure in raptors from Ontario, Canada", PubMed.
  14. Health Canada, "Enforcement bulletins", pesticides compliance and enforcement.
  15. United States Environmental Protection Agency, "Safety precautions for total release foggers".
  16. Government of Ontario, "Guide to pesticide licensing".
  17. Statistics Canada, "De-bug these data: the numbers on pest control in Canada's buildings".
  18. Indeed, pest control technician job listings in Ontario, accessed October 2026.
  19. IBISWorld, "Pest Control in Canada Industry Analysis, 2026".
  20. Indeed, "Pest control technician salary in Ontario".
  21. Indeed, "Pest control technician salary in Greater Toronto Area, ON".