Pest Control Community

State (US Department of State’s monthly periodical) authors an article on the return of bedbugs. Our own W. Jay Nixon co-authors.  Read the full article here.

Tags: State Department, US State Department, Bedbugs in the news, bedbugs, bed bugs in dc, return of the bedbug

A recent study released by local & regional scientists has linked high pathogen levels to Colony Colapse Disorder (CCD) in declining honey bee populations, but still does not prove whether the high levels were cause for CCD or a result of it.

The study released data compiled from more than 91 individual colonies across the country, of which the researchers tested for 171 pesticides, Nosema, bacteria, Varroa mites, nutritional status, and several other viruses.

CCD, also sometimes referred to as HBDS (honey bee depopulation syndrome) is a phenomenon in which worker bees abruptly disappear from the hive, oftentimes leaving behind developing brood, honey, and pollen. There have been no known causes for the significant rise in CCD in recent years, but speculation suggests that various factors could be contributing - biotic factors such as Varroa mites, malnutrition/drought, and pathogens like Nosema apis.

You can read the full article here.

Before you plan out next year’s perennial beds, consider planting some strong-smelling herbs in and around other tender plants that would otherwise be targeted or destroyed by damaging pests.  While it is known that many perennial and annual plants attract beneficial insects to the garden, some are just as useful in planting to prevent other, less desireable pests. 

Natural repellant plants such as peppermint, thyme, rosemary and lavender posses strong oils that many insects don’t like.  Catnip (akin to the mint family) is also known in the gardening world to repel mosquitoes, ants, and japanese beetles - but beware of furry, 4-legged visitors.

Encourage beneficial insects in the garden by incorporating sunflowers, mint and aster families (coneflowers, daisies, coreopsis, yarrow) - of which may attract predatory wasps and parasitoid flies such as hover flies.  Hover flies (or syrphid flies) are one of only a few insects known to feed primarily upon nectar and digest pollen but will also feed on the honeydew of aphids. 

TAGS: beneficial insects, repel mosquitoes, pests, natural repellant plants, predatory wasps

honeybees,bees,epa

06/22/2009: EPA Launches Protection Team to Explore Widespread Bee Deaths

June 19 — Learn about the bug that carries its own light. Hear a firefly story, play a game and see the bugs dance in the night with their lights all a glow. Firefly Friday - McKeldin area, 8:20 p.m. - 9 p.m. Meet at the McKeldin area Parking Lot near the contact station. For ages 5 and up. 11676 Marriottsville Rd., Marriottsville MD 21104. Cost: $2 per person. Details: 410-750-0674 or 410-461-5005.

The McKeldin Area is located in the southeastern corner of Carroll County, approximately 12 miles from the Baltimore Beltway. From the Baltimore Beltway (I-695), take I-70 west for nine miles. Exit north on Marriottsville Road and travel three miles. The park entrance will be on your right. From Columbia Pike (MD Route 29), go north to I-70. Go west on I-70 for four miles and follow directions above.

Printable map of McKeldin area.

TAGS: firefly, beneficial garden insects, McKeldin, Patapsco Valley State Park

 I guess it’s the luck of the draw that I have Acrobat ants.  Fortunately, for the ants (and not so much for me) they do actually balance quite well on a tight wire - in my case, the cable wire that passes through the leafy foliage of the Dogwood tree in my front yard.

Although I don’t plan on leading a team of circus ants anytime soon, I do take a serious interest in knowing what insect pests I have harboring this spring.  Some of them can stick around, like the praying mantis’ and lacewings in my garden and the assassin bugs (cool names huh?) in my Bee Balm - these are definitely one of many “good” bugs to have on  my side of the fence - others, well, I can really do without.  And so can you.

Recent client questions posed quite a bit of interest in the identification of the most common household ant species,  I put together a couple of quick ant identification guides on two species we find often enough here in Maryland.  Please comment if you find this type of information useful - and I’ll post more like it.  And if you’re really geeky about bugs, you can also go here for a more technical look at some of our indigenous invaders.

Odorous House Ant

vs

Carpenter Ant

TAGS: Acrobat ants, Prince George’s County, Maryland, Pest Control, Inspection, Montgomery County,  american pest management, MD, pests, bee, npma, insect identification, carpenter ant, odorous house ant,

NPMA - National Pest Management Association, urges homeowners to take action against mosquitoes.  Read the full article below:

In Wake of Foreclosures, Mosquitoes Pose Serious Issues | RISMedia

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TAGS: mosquitoes, Prince George’s County, Maryland, Pest Control, Inspection, Montgomery County,  american pest management, MD, pests, bee, npma, treat for mosquitoes, treat pool for mosquitoes

Pardon the language but “Bed Bugs Suck” 

I was reminded of that particular entomological fact last week at the EPA Bed Bug Summit…a governmental meeting sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency that brought together Government  bureaucrats, university researchers and Pest Management Industry leaders to discuss the growing ‘bed bug problem’.   At the Sheraton Hotel in Crystal City, VA, over three hundred stakeholders assembled for a day and a half to develop recommendations geared towards finding a solution to the ever-increasing pandemic of bed bugs that is sweeping through the country’s urban centers.   Bed bugs have become such a topic of conversation that even Jay Leno paid homage to the scourge that now plagues many of our hotels, apartments and even private homes, after having disappeared for nearly fifty years. 

The long time host of The Tonight Show joked in his monologue on April 15th… ”in Arlington Virginia the EPA is holding something called the National Bed Bug Summit so health officials will offer advice as to how to combat the growing problem with bed bugs and it’s being held at the Crystal City Sheraton Hotel.   See…that’s when you know the economy is bad…when the Sheraton Hotel is thrilled to be hosting the bed bug summit”.  “Hey”, Leno quipped…”Be sure to come back in June for the big head lice symposium…you don’t want to miss that. “ 

But I digress.  Despite the warning that we heard our parents and grandparents say time and time again as we readied for bed, “Sleep tight…don’t let the bed bugs bite”, bed bugs don’t bite…they suck.  Oh sure, I know we all think having an infestation is unfortunate and you might have heard a frustrated tenant or a homeowner at their wits end say that bed bugs ‘suck’.  I think most of us agree that having an infestation of blood sucking ectoparasites invading the innermost sanctum that is our bedroom really stinks.  But I’m speaking very technically about what happens when a bed bug feeds…they don’t bite…THEY SUCK.  Insects of the order Hemiptera to which bedbugs belong have piercing-sucking mouthparts, and inject a straw-like proboscis into our skin through which they suck blood, in contrast to insects with chewing mouthparts that can actually bite. 

Bed bugs are such a current public issue that Rep. G.K. Butterfield, D-N.C., has introduced a bill in Congress to expand grant programs to help public housing authorities cope with infestations. The bill will be called the “Don’t Let the Bedbugs Bite Act” but I think more correctly it should be called the “Don’t Let the Bedbugs Suck Act”.   

So the next time you tuck your little ones into bed, remember that a bed bug does not truly bite…it sucks…but if you are technically correct, the bedtime rhyme will never be the same.  “Oh yuck…don’t let the bed bugs suck”…just doesn’t have same ring to it. 

TAGS: Bed Bugs, EPA Bed Bug Summit, American Pest Management

          Did you know that the residue left behind by rodents can cause diseases and in some cases death? Well just in case you didn’t here is some very important information that you must know. Rodents are known to leave behind droppings and urine after parading through those areas you frequent the most such as, your home, yard and work place. The traces these rodents leave behind are not only annoying, but they are very dangerous.

         According to the Center of Disease Control & Prevention, Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome is a disease caused by infected rodents through urine, droppings or saliva. This disease is transferred by the cleaning up of contaminated dust after disturbing or cleaning rodent droppings, or simply by living or working in rodent infested areas.  This disease can make a person become very ill and in some cases it can be fatal. If you have been exposed to rodents or rodent infested buildings and have symptoms of fever, muscle aches, and severe shortness of breath, see your health care provider immediately. Inform your health care provider of possible rodent exposure so that he/she is alerted to the possibility of rodent-borne diseases, such as HPS. If you are currently being exposed to rodents and are not experiencing any of these symptoms, it is vital that you get the area professionally treated as soon as possible.  Waiting too long could end up being a matter of life and death. 

TAGS: American Pest Management, Pest Control, Mice, Rats

            Spring is definitely my favorite season of the year.  The weather is getting warmer.  The trees are beginning to blossom.  The days are getting longer.  What a wonderful time to enjoy the great outdoors.  But, there is just one thing about the spring that many people, particularly home and property owners are not too fond of, …distinguishing the difference between swarming ants and swarming termites, also known as alates.

            Before I get into differences between swarming ants and swarming termites, let me tell you a little something about termites.  Reticulitermes flavipes (in laymen’s terms, Eastern subterranean termites) are the most common form of termites in our area.  Termites are the #1 cause of wood damage to homes in the United States.  They are social insects that use a caste system in their colony, consisting of worker termites up to the king and queen.  The king and queen are the primary reproductives that start a colony.  The workers are the ones that go out looking for food, feed the colony members, and may eventually grow into the reproductive termites, the alates.  Typically when the weather goes from cold to warm, i.e. spring, the swarmers emerge from the nest.  Many times, you may see tunnels of mud on wood in your home with holes broken into them.  These exit holes are often where swarming termites emerge.  After they land on the ground, the wings break off, and they search for a mate.  These two alates become the king and queen of the new termite colony.

            Swarming ants are very similar in activity to swarming termites, but your average person wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between the two, especially since swarming ants and termites are the same size.  But it is possible to distinguish the difference between them with the naked eye.  Let’s start from the top.  The antennae of swarming ants and termites are noticeably different.  Termites have straight antennae, while ants have bent (or elbowed) antennae.  Still not sure what you have flying around your home?  No problem, let’s work our way to the wings.  Termites and ants have 2 pairs of wings.  While termites’ wings are equal in size, ants’ wings are not the same size with obvious venation.  If you still aren’t sure, there is one more major difference between the two insects.  The difference in abdomen size in a key indicator.  A termite’s waist is broad and straight.  An ant’s waist is pinched and thin, similar to that of a wasp.  So let’s recap: antennae, wing size, and waist size are the three major differences in swarming termites vs. swarming ants.  The next time you see a swarm on your property, take the time to capture a sample of the insect and study its shape.  When you make that phone call to American Pest Management to solve your tough pest problem, you will be able to provide a detail explanation of what pest problem you are dealing with.

TAGS: American Pest Management,  Termites, Pest Control, Ants, Swarming