Archive for April, 2012

Apr 1, 2012 – Take Away The Food Resources??

QUESTION:

I have an old dog food plant that has several holes and openings and we are helping with the exclusion methods to get rid of the rodent problem that they have had for a number of years. We do fumigate the plant and the mice count is down for 1-2 months and then it spikes back up. I am planning on trying the Detex Blox with Lumitrack to see how it will work for me. Do you have any tips as to how to start up the program with this? Maybe start at 1 corner of the building and over a period of a month check the entire building? What are your thoughts on this product and a strategy to get rid of the mice at this plant?



ANSWER:

I will admit that I cringed at the words “old” and “dog food plant” in your question Randy. Pet food plants that I have visited are not necessarily maintained at the same standards of manufacturing plants for human foods. Spillage is higher, profit margins may be less so less money is spent on building maintenance, etc. And, if it’s an older building the image in my mind is one that could be pretty porous on the outside, with plenty of openings to allow mice to enter. I think though, that in the long run the exclusion will always have to be the long term goal. Every opening on the exterior that you are able to close permanently means less opportunities for the mice to enter easily, and if you limit the number of entry points you can then focus more attention on these for capturing mice either outside or inside. If all the attention focuses on the inside and the kill of the mice after they enter, it could be akin to holding back the ocean. Those killed just mean more can come on in and find resources. 

You are highly unlikely to limit their foods indoors, so this could be one stumbling block using any kind of rodent bait. Getting them interested in the bait so they eat it may be difficult. The tasty, high protein nature of dry pet foods makes them great foods for rodents. Perhaps using a liquid rodenticide on the interior could get more attention than other kinds of baits. The point behind the Detex Blox with Biomarker is that the poop of rodents that have eaten this non-toxic bait will fluoresce under UV light, so in theory you can more quickly move around the interior with a portable UV light and spot the glowing pellets. This can help direct you to where the activity is current and even perhaps point out a path back to where the rodents may be harboring. It certainly is worth a try, and again the possible downfall would be all that competing food. 
Since you already are making the effort at exclusion I would continue the focus on this. Since this is clearly a well established population of mice living in and around this building they are accustomed to coming and going as needed. Each little change you make puts the mice a bit more under stress, and when they are stressed they move about more and may encounter the control materials you put in place. Along with the Detex I think I would use a LOT of traps, perhaps within stations so they stay clean. Glue traps in particular could get a layer of dust on them in a plant like this. The results of the trapping could also indicate where the mice may be coming from. 

View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.

Pest QuestionsApril 03, 2012

No Comment

Ask Angie: Preventing and eliminating mouse problem

However, many companies have seen an increase in calls this year to treat for mice, rodents and other pests, primarily due to the mild winter and early warm spring. You normally need a solid month of freezing to see an effect on …

View complete article

Pests in the NewsApril 02, 2012

No Comment

Whole Room Heat Treatment Controls Bedbugs

Penn State University, teamed with Parks and Orkin, is using whole room heat to the bedbug infestations in dorm rooms. When bedbugs are present in a dorm room, a whole room heat treatment machine is brought in by John Parks of Park’s .

View complete article

Pests in the NewsApril 02, 2012

No Comment

This fear of may be extreme

My four year old is terrified of things that fly — bees, flies, mosquitos, and camel flies. Whenever she goes out on the playground at pre-school, she screams and hollers because she is terrified of the bees,etc..I have to go to the school and …

View complete article

Pests in the NewsApril 02, 2012

No Comment

Ticks, mosquitoes showing up early

Without any significant cold snap over the winter, the have a better chance at surviving into summer. “It’s not good for the trees, but I would like to see a good freeze just for the bugs,” Hane said. To make matters worse …

View complete article

Pests in the NewsApril 02, 2012

No Comment

Animal pests are destroying New Zealand’s biodiversity – Scoop.co.nz (press release)

Animal pests are destroying New Zealand's biodiversity
Scoop.co.nz (press release)
“Scientific research into the control of these animals has progressed since then but this has often operated in isolation from the communities directly affected by the decisions being made by pest managers. “Our kaumatua have long understood that …

and more »

View complete article

Pests in the NewsApril 02, 2012

No Comment

Native plants are a virtue – Philadelphia Inquirer

Native plants are a virtue
Philadelphia Inquirer
After hearing a talk by Doug Tallamy – and realizing how little my nonnative hydrangeas do for the insects and birds in my yard – I regret the ample real estate I gave them. Tallamy, a University of Delaware entomologist, has become almost a phenomenon …

and more »

View complete article

Pests in the NewsApril 02, 2012

No Comment

Apr 2, 2012 – Japanese Beetles Forever

QUESTION:

What is the best chemical to control Japanese beetles?

ANSWER:

I spoke with one of our long time sales representatives in the upper Northeast, and one thing is a fact here. Once these beetles settle in they are there to stay, and the Japanese Beetle is never going to be eradicated from the U.S. It was accidentally introduced into the U.S. about 100 years ago and found the Northeast states to its liking. It also has been found now and then in California, Texas, and a few other more western states, but successfully eradicated. As far as I know it is not currently an issue in Arizona, where you are, so hopefully you don’t believe you are dealing with Japanese Beetles there at this time. If you really believe you have them you absolutely need to confirm it and report it to the AZ Dept. of Agriculture. 

This beetle is a two-fold problem. The larvae are white grubs that can cause serious damage to turf, feeding on the roots, and the adults feed on the foliage and fruits of a great many agricultural and ornamental plants. They may feed in large accumulations of dozens of beetles on the same area of that plant, causing great damage by skeletonizing the leaves and leading to defoliation. 
There are insecticides that will successfully kill the adults or larvae, but never to the point that you can consider them to be 100% gone in those areas where they are well established. Adult beetles can be killed with contact insecticides applied to them and the foliage they are feeding on, and products like cyfluthrin, bifenthrin, and carbaryl work well to kill them. This at least limits the damage done to the plants. Larvae likewise are unlikely to be eradicated in turf, but applications of insecticides like imidacloprid do work well to reduce their numbers to a tolerable level. There also are traps for these beetles that will capture large numbers of the adults, but whether or not this actually reduces the numbers of the beetles in an area is difficult to say. 

View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.

Pest QuestionsApril 02, 2012

No Comment

April is Awareness Month

ATLANTA, Ga., (March 29, 2012) – Spring has sprung in Georgia. This season is always a busy time for insects and pests in Georgia, but it is especially the case after such a mild winter. In honor of National Awareness Month in April …

View complete article

Pests in the NewsApril 01, 2012

No Comment

Fire ant colonies seem to be down dramatically – Kansas City Star

Fire ant colonies seem to be down dramatically
Kansas City Star
Pest control companies in South Florida report fewer calls and scientists say the number of colonies has dropped sharply. It's a rare piece of good news for a region that has seen infestations of Burmese pythons, Muscovy ducks and feral hogs.

and more »

View complete article

Pests in the NewsApril 01, 2012

No Comment

« Older Entries Newer Entries »