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Continuous pests like ants and squirrels cause damage by chewing woodwork, stripping insulation from wires, and damaging water pipes. They also spread diseases such as leptospirosis, rat-bite fever, and salmonella. Contact Pest Control Richardson TX now!
A preventive approach to pest control focuses on denying pests access to food, water, and shelter. This includes examining property for possible entry points, sealing cracks, removing debris, and cleaning and sanitation practices. It also includes defining what the client and the pest management professional are responsible for so that everyone involved knows their duties. This may include determining who on staff is responsible for inspecting incoming shipments, establishing a clean locker room protocol, or identifying that area where moisture accumulates should be wet-washed rather than dry-washed to reduce the attraction of certain pests.
Many indoor environments are suitable for pests, including offices, warehouses, schools, and hospitals. Eradication of pests in these settings is much more challenging than for outdoor pests. In some situations, the goal is prevention and suppression while eradication is attempted only in cases where the threat of pests poses serious health or safety risks.
Often, pests thrive only as long as they can find a food source and a place to overwinter. Natural barriers, such as mountains and large bodies of water, can restrict the movement of pest populations. Devices that alter the environment — such as traps, screens, fences, nets and radiation — can also help to control pests.
Pests are opportunistic, and the more available a food source is, the more likely they are to invade a home or workplace. That’s why it’s important to keep garbage and compost out of sight and reach, keep counters clear and organize or discard clutter, and use odor-blocking trash bags. And don’t forget that pets and children can be carriers of pests, too. By following these simple steps, homeowners can drastically decrease their risk of pest infestation and protect the value of their homes.
Suppression
Keeping pest populations below damaging levels is one of the most important goals in any pest control strategy. This can be accomplished in many ways. Using varieties that are more vigorous or tolerant of pests, avoiding excessive plant population, preserving habitat, and removing crop debris all can help keep the number of pests below harmful thresholds.
The use of pest-specific predators, parasitoids, or pathogens can also suppress pest numbers by reducing the availability of their food sources. In some cases, this is the only way to achieve significant pest control without affecting other species in an ecosystem. These natural enemies can be obtained and released in a variety of ways, including conservation, mass rearing and periodic release on a seasonal or inundative basis, and direct inoculation of crops.
Natural enemies that can be manipulated to reduce pests in crop fields include birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, mammals, and other vertebrates that feed on insects; spiders that prey on insects; and many insect-like predators (lady beetles, ground beetles, rove beetles, flower bugs and other beneficial true bugs, lacewings, and hover flies) that have specialized diets or life cycles that allow them to exploit certain pest species.
In addition, landscape features such as mountains, lakes, and rivers restrict the movement of some pests, while overwintering sites and places for hiding can reduce their numbers.
Some pests are more sensitive to weather conditions than others, which can lead to changes in the timing and intensity of pest attacks. For example, an increase in the number of rainy days can decrease the density of crop-feeding bees and increase the density of fruit rot beetles. Weather-sensitive pests may also be affected by wind direction and velocity, which can spread pest spores or carry pollen and other materials into new areas.
Eradication
An organism that reduces the availability, quality, or value of a resource to humans can be classified as a pest. In some cases, pests can be controlled by removing them from the landscape and possibly excluding them from the environment. In other cases, the goal of management is to control them to an extent that causes less harm than would be incurred without intervention. This goal may be achieved through prevention, suppression, eradication or containment (Food and Agriculture Organization, 2005).
In general, organisms that are not natural enemies rise to pest status when they escape normal controls on population growth. This can occur due to direct introduction of a species to a new area, or through human activities that reduce or eliminate the efficiency of their natural enemies in an existing area.
Organisms that cause economic or aesthetic injury should be controlled, but the amount of damage is the determining factor for what action is taken. Monitoring and scouting help to identify pest species, determine populations, and establish thresholds. This information can be used to develop a treatment strategy. Treatments include cultural, biological and chemical methods.
The most effective methods of reducing pest populations are those that involve the use of natural predators and parasitoids, such as tachinid flies and wasps, sparrows, finches, and serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis). Planting beneficial plants such as flowers and fruiting shrubs also helps to attract and support these natural enemies.
Biological controls are most effective when they can be applied at the proper time, or “mood,” of the pests’ life cycle. This is often difficult or impossible, especially when the pests are at their most vulnerable stages. When chemical pesticides are applied, they must be carefully calibrated to the target pest population and time of year. Failure to do so can result in a rapid rebound in the target pest population, removal of its natural enemies, and evolution of resistance to the insecticide (UF/IFAS Basic Pesticide Training manual).
Threshold-Based Decision-Making
A threshold in pest control is a point where action must be taken to prevent unacceptable damage or loss. Threshold-based decision making relies on an understanding of the relationships between damage and pest population size, as well as cost and benefit of control actions. This information is incorporated into pay-off matrices to make informed decisions about the appropriate timing of various management tactics.
The basic threshold rule is called the Economic Injury Level (EIL). This value defines the highest pest population density that will cause economic damage in a specific crop. A number of factors must be considered in establishing the EIL, including crop species and cultivar, growth stage, and time until harvest or sale. Tolerance levels of pests also need to be established and taken into consideration.
Once the EIL is established, an action threshold can be set. The action threshold is the minimum pest population density below which a school will take management action to prevent EIL. Setting action thresholds involves a complex balancing act between economics, crop quality, and the potential for resistance development from repeated pesticide applications.
In general, schools need to establish action thresholds that work for them. A number of factors can influence the appropriate action threshold for a particular school, such as the size and complexity of the grounds, available staffing, and facilities. A threshold that works in one school may be too high for a different facility, and vice versa.
A wide variety of methods can be used to reduce or eliminate the problem of unwanted pests. These include prevention, suppression, and eradication. Prevention is avoiding the presence of a pest; suppression is reducing pest numbers below an acceptable level; and eradication is destroying the pest. Some methods are mechanical, using traps, barriers, screens, and other devices; some alter the environment by introducing natural enemies; while others use chemical sprays or baits to kill or repel pests.
Implementation
Pests, such as rodents and insects, can wreck havoc on properties, farms and commercial areas. They not only spoil food, they also carry diseases that pose health risks for humans and animals. There are several pest control methods to choose from, and each has its pros and cons. The best way to tackle pest infestations is by using integrated pest management (IPM).
This involves both physical and chemical measures to prevent the occurrence of pests. The IPM approach includes all aspects of the production system, including pre-harvest inspections and cleaning, plant hygiene, soil biology and ecology, and crop rotation and cover crops.
Biological pest control uses natural predators and parasitoids to manage pest populations. It can range from releasing predatory organisms, such as ladybugs that eat aphids, to more complex approaches like introducing nematodes that destroy pests’ roots. These approaches can be used in conjunction with other pest control methods or as a replacement for them.
Pest control is a vital part of food manufacturing, particularly for businesses that deal with raw materials and/or storage of finished products. Failure to implement adequate pest control can result in fines from governing bodies and health and safety issues for the public.
In addition to regular inspections from a pest control company, it is important that companies employ their own employees to be aware of and to report any signs of pest infestation. Ideally, a pest sighting logbook is kept, listing date, type of pest and location. This should be reviewed regularly by the food manufacturer and pest control company. This can be an effective method to avoid re-infestation and ensure that the problem is resolved as quickly as possible.