Lee County, Florida

Cape Coral Pests From the Canal Bank to the Attic

More than 400 miles of canals run through Cape Coral, so most yards here sit close to water. That water shapes the pest list: iguanas on the bank, mosquitoes off the marsh, ants in the palms and termites in the framing.

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Cape Coral fills a peninsula in Lee County between the Caloosahatchee River and Matlacha Pass, and the 2020 census counted 194,016 residents. Two Baltimore brothers, Leonard and Jack Rosen, bought the tract in 1957, and their Gulf American Land Corporation master-planned it into lots and dug the canals. The city sits about 10 feet above sea level and gets roughly 56 inches of rain a year, most of it from June to September.

That layout explains a lot of our service calls. A canal lot with Gulf access, a lot on a canal farther north and a dry lot beside open ground each draw something different. Cape Coral also holds the largest population of burrowing owls in Florida, a state-designated threatened bird that nests in the ground, so we look for owl burrows before any yard treatment begins.

Pests in Cape Coral

Green iguanas

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission names Lee County as one of two Gulf Coast counties with established green iguana populations, and man-made canals give the lizards easy routes to spread. The burrows they dig can undermine a canal bank, a seawall, a sidewalk or a foundation until it caves in, and the animals foul docks, boats and pool decks. University of Florida guidance is to fill vacant burrows, clear dense thickets and fit sheet-metal collars on tree trunks and dock pilings.

Salt marsh mosquitoes and no-see-ums

Lee County holds 56,000 acres of salt marsh, and the Lee County Mosquito Control District says that marsh turns out mosquitoes in every month. The black salt marsh mosquito lays its eggs on damp soil, the eggs hatch when the ground floods, and the adults fly long distances to feed, mostly after dark. No-see-ums are biting midges from coastal marsh and mangroves, about a millimeter long, which lets them pass straight through ordinary window screen.

Ghost ants and white-footed ants

Two small ants trail into kitchens and bathrooms all over South Florida. The ghost ant has a dark head and a pale, almost clear abdomen; it nests in wall voids, potted plants and the bases of palm fronds and heads for anything sweet. The white-footed ant, confirmed in Lee County by 2002, does not bite or sting but nests under palm boots, in gutters and in attics. UF found baits to be the only method that works on it, along with trimming every branch that touches the house.

Formosan and drywood termites

UF's statewide termite map shows Formosan subterranean termites collected in southeast Cape Coral as early as 2004 and as recently as 2024. A Formosan colony can reach several million termites. Native eastern subterranean termites are here too and fly on warm afternoons from January to April. West Indian drywood termites, found along Florida's coasts, never touch soil; they live inside dry wood and push six-sided pellets out of holes a millimeter or two wide.

Palmetto bugs

Ask what a palmetto bug is and you get two answers. One is the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana, about an inch and a half long, which lives in sewers, hollow trees and mulch and reaches houses through the plumbing or along branches that overhang the roof. The second, Eurycotis floridana, is the Florida woods cockroach: slow, unable to fly, fond of palm bases and woodpiles, and armed with a foul-smelling spray.

The pest year in Cape Coral

Dry season, November to April
Rain is sporadic and the days are pleasantly warm. Eastern subterranean termites swarm on sunny afternoons from January into April, usually after a shower. This is the comfortable time to clear gutters, thin old palm boots and have the attic and foundation checked before the heat returns.
Swarm season, April to June
Once the sun is down, Formosan subterranean termite swarms leave the colony on evenings from early April through late June, with May the busiest month, and lights pull them toward houses and boats. West Indian drywood termites fly in the same window. Keep a few specimens in a sealed bag so the species can be confirmed.
Wet season, June to September
Most of the year's rain arrives in brief, heavy afternoon storms. Flooded ground hatches salt marsh mosquitoes, fire ant colonies shift to higher ground or indoors when soil saturates, and southern chinch bug damage in St. Augustine lawns peaks in early July. Empty buckets, birdbaths, gutters and bromeliads every week.

On the water in Cape Coral: banks, wet wood and owl burrows

If your lot backs onto a canal, walk the bank and the ground behind it a few times a year. A hole or sinking soil there can be an iguana burrow, and UF warns that a seawall with burrows alongside it can erode and, in time, give way. Damp wood matters too: fence posts set in soil, siding hit by sprinklers and framing under a roof leak are where termites start.

On dry lots the ground itself needs a look. Burrowing owls dig their nests in open ground, and the state wildlife commission gives their usual breeding season as February 15 to July 10. They eat mostly insects but also rodents, so we plan rodent work and lawn treatments around any burrow on or beside your property.

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Where we work around Cape Coral

Yacht Club area
Redfish Point
Four Mile Cove
Matlacha
Pine Island
St. James City
Burnt Store Marina
North Fort Myers
Fort Myers

Cape Coral pest questions

Are iguanas a problem in Cape Coral?

Yes. State wildlife officials report established green iguana populations in Lee County, and Cape Coral's canals suit them well. They eat flowers and landscape plants and dig under seawalls and sidewalks. Florida law protects green iguanas only through its anti-cruelty rules, so a property owner may have them humanely removed.

What is biting me near the canal in Cape Coral at dusk?

Usually no-see-ums or salt marsh mosquitoes. No-see-ums bite mostly around dusk, overnight and in the morning, and standard screen does not stop them. The county mosquito district sprays only when mosquito counts reach state thresholds, not because midges are out. At home, fans on the lanai, finer no-see-um screening and repellent help most.

Do Formosan termites live in Cape Coral?

They do. University of Florida records include Formosan subterranean termite collections in Cape Coral from 2004 through 2024, and UF describes the species as spread across the state in densely populated areas. Winged termites around lights on a spring evening, mud tubes on the foundation or blistered trim are reasons to ask for an inspection.

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