Pests are organisms that damage or spoil crops, livestock, and property. They can also spread disease. Control efforts usually focus on prevention and suppression. Eradication is rare for outdoor pests but may be possible in enclosed environments.
Preventative measures include removing food and water sources and closing off entry points. Clutter provides hiding places for pests. Keep weeds and grasses trimmed, and seal cracks in foundations and baseboards. Contact Bakersfield Pest Control now!
A pest infestation can be a major problem. It can cause or aggravate asthma and allergies, damage furniture and personal items, stain surfaces, spread bacteria and viruses (fungi, cockroaches, rats, fleas, and mosquitoes), and even start fires by chewing through wires. Pests can also have a frightening or unpleasant appearance (spiders, silverfish, and earwigs), bite or sting (bees, wasps, hornets and yellow jackets), and smell or taste bad (rodent urine, mold, cat feces, and fruit rot).
Often, pests enter a museum through unprotected doors and windows, sewer lines, open vents, and holes left by their burrowing activity. Infestations can be reduced by site sanitation, artifact cleaning, low—or high-temperature exposure, and controlled atmosphere fumigation.
Preventing pests requires a commitment to regular inspection and treatment. Infestations should be treated promptly when they are first detected to reduce the number of pests and their damage. In addition, good museum practice includes monitoring pests to anticipate problems, allowing for early intervention.
Pests thrive in moist conditions and can be attracted to museums by food, water and shelter. The most effective preventive measures include eliminating food sources by properly storing food and removing trash regularly, preventing moisture build-up through leaky plumbing or by draining standing water, and modifying the building environment to reduce humidity (through air conditioning, ventilation and dehumidification).
Sealing entry points and preventing unprotected openings can help to eliminate pest problems. Regular interior and exterior inspections should be made to identify and repair cracks, gaps, and openings in walls and foundation. Trash cans should be tightly sealed and waste removed regularly. Regular trimming of trees, bushes, and shrubs around buildings can help to eliminate potential pest pathways.
Suppression
The purpose of pest control is to limit the number of damaging organisms to a level that can be tolerated or prevented. This requires preventive controls and judicious application of suppressive tactics, which are used when the pest population or damage crosses thresholds established for economic or aesthetic reasons. The choice of suppression tactics depends on a knowledge of the pest’s biology and behavior, limitations placed on the area where it occurs, tolerance for injury, and costs and impacts of the control measures themselves (see Assessment within the Monitoring page).
Physical barriers and cultural practices restrict the movement of pests. Netting over small fruits and screening in greenhouses deprive pest insects from reaching their targets; mulches inhibit weed growth; and electric, radiation, and chemical barriers such as fences and sprayers prevent vertebrate pests or pathogens from entering areas where they are not wanted. Physical or mechanical controls can also be used to alter the environment in which pests thrive, such as by adjusting the amount of water and air and the temperature of soil.
Many plants, animals, and structures are naturally resistant to some pests. The use of resistant varieties when available helps keep populations below harmful levels. Chemicals in the host plant repel or prevent the pest from completing its life cycle, and some hosts have physical characteristics that make them harder to attack than others.
Natural enemies of pests can also reduce pest numbers. Predator mites that feed on or parasitize specific pest species, such as the greenhouse whitefly or thrips in orchards, and predatory nematodes, such as the roach-eating Steinernema carpocapsae, can kill harmful soil grubs. Biological control agents can be conserved or purchased and released as needed.
When preventive and physical controls are ineffective, pesticides may be used to reduce populations below damaging thresholds. Careful timing of applications and the use of spot rather than broadcast treatments minimizes the impact on natural enemies. Chemicals may also be incorporated into cultural practices, such as applying a fungicide to soil before planting strawberries to suppress diseases, or in the feeding habits of pests, such as by releasing sterile ants that feed on ant-like larvae of certain caterpillars.
Eradication
Pests are often undesirable because they damage plants, disturb habitat or spread diseases. They also contaminate food and can cause physical damage to facilities or equipment. Pests may carry harmful bacteria, viruses or fungi that can make people sick. They can contaminate foodstuffs by droppings, urine or saliva, and they can deteriorate or spoil products. In addition, pests can spread plant diseases by transmitting pathogens on their bodies or through their waste products.
Typically, outdoor pest control goals are prevention and suppression rather than eradication. However, eradication is possible in enclosed environments, such as homes, schools, hospitals, and food processing areas. Eradication of specific pests is also the goal in some regional insect management programs, such as those for the Mediterranean fruit fly and gypsy moth.
Research has shown that the public prefers natural methods of pest control, such as trapping or killing with baits, over chemical-based pesticides. They also prefer pest control techniques that are considered to be humane, which include avoiding harming or killing healthy organisms and minimizing the use of toxic chemicals.
Pesticides are a necessary part of many pest control strategies. They are available in solid, liquid, aerosol or powder forms and come in a variety of strengths and concentrations. Each pesticide has a specific label that lists the conditions under which it can be used safely, its toxicity to humans and other animals, and any health hazards. Pesticides must be stored, applied and disposed of according to state and federal laws.
The most common pesticides are herbicides and insecticides. Herbicides kill or inhibit the growth of weeds or other unwanted vegetation, while insecticides are designed to kill or control insects. The type of pesticide that is needed will depend on the type of problem being solved.
Homeowners can reduce the need for pesticides by eliminating food sources, making the home unattractive to pests, and sealing cracks and holes where they might enter. They can also drain puddles that might attract mosquitoes, keep birds and pets away from lawns, and run swimming pools and birdbaths regularly to remove potential breeding sites.
Monitoring
If pests are present in your home, office, or other commercial property, they can cause damage and pose health risks. Attempting to control them on your own can be time consuming and frustrating, but hiring a professional pest control company is the best way to get rid of them quickly and effectively. Whether you need help with rodents, insects, or weeds, a good pest control company will be familiar with the proper methods for each type of problem and will be able to provide specific solutions for your situation.
When choosing a pest control company, look for one with a proven track record. Look for tenured legacies, which indicate that the company has been in business a long time and has refined its techniques over the years; licensure, which indicates that the company is legally allowed to apply pesticides; and a money-back guarantee, which demonstrates that the company stands by its work. Some companies offer a 30-day guarantee for anything less than complete satisfaction; others, like Orkin and Terminix, extend this period to a year or more.
Pests are organisms that are detrimental to human or animal health, agriculture, food supplies, property, or the environment. They can be bacteria or viruses that cause diseases, such as rabies, plague, and salmonella; invertebrates that chew or damage plants, such as aphids, mites, and caterpillars; or vertebrates that harm humans, such as rats and mice, fleas, ticks, and mosquitoes. Pests may also be unsightly or irritating, such as earwigs, silverfish, and ants; or they can disrupt natural ecosystems by competing with or degrading native species.
A pest control program begins with accurate identification of the organism in question. This helps determine basic information about the pest, such as its life cycle and population numbers. It also allows the creation of a pest management strategy that takes into account its habits, vulnerabilities, and needs.
Once a pest control program has been established, monitoring is necessary to ensure that the pests remain in check. This can be done through inspections, the use of traps or baits, and other tactics. Monitoring also includes identifying thresholds, which are the levels of pests that cause unacceptable damage. If a threshold is reached, pesticides can be used to reduce the number of pests to an acceptable level.