Author Archives: apc

1. Elevated Wasp Population

   October 13, 2009 12:46 pm Leave a Comment

   A mild winter and early spring is leading to real concern over the growing wasp population in the UK.

   The pest control world is bracing itself for an elevated wasp population this summer. A mild winter and early spring coupled with low winter rainfall has given every opportunity for colonies to flourish.

   Early signs show that an unusually high number of the productive queen wasps survived over winter, finding shelter in sheds and attics. This has lead to an earlier than usual start on nest building and reproduction.

   With more and more people becoming susceptible to allergic reactions after being stung by a wasp, it is important to stay on top of numbers by acting on the source of the problem.

   The threat posed by wasp stings is a point made only more poignant by the increasing number of reported reactions to stings, which is becoming a real problem in terms of public health. An anaphylaxis reaction can be life-threatening, with reactions including breathing difficulties, chest pain and palpitations. Obviously, this is a worst-case scenario, but there are numerous other problems that can also result.

   Day-to-day life can be impeded by neighbouring wasp populations, with a real fear or unease felt by a large amount of people. This can bleed into business productivity, where staff spend a significant portion of the day having to deal with the unwelcome visitors.

   Although tempting, Attack Pest Control strongly advise against attempting to destroy a wasp nest, and to always seek expert help. The danger involved can be greatly reduced when the proper precautions and equipment are implemented.

   Early summer is the calm before the predicted storm, where the worker wasps are busy collecting food to feed the young. It is in the later months of summer where their duties are lessened that they are free to search for sweet substances. It is around this time where the problem is predicted to be felt most, with the high numbers being a real nuisance.

   The effect on the business of public houses could also be large. This has typically been a problem area for wasp infestation, which is likely to be worsened by the elevated wasp population and an increase in the number of patrons outside, due to the smoking ban.

   If you are worried about the effects of a high number of wasps on your business or home, don’t hesitate to contact us – we are always happy to offer advice and real solutions.

2. No Fleas Please

   12:46 pm Leave a Comment

   Thorough treatment of a flea infestation requires cooperation between pest controller and customer to ensure that the problem does not re-occur in the future.

   Fleas are a more difficult opponent to eradicate than most other household pests.

   By using an integrated pest management approach that includes you, the homeowner, as part of the overall, long-term solution, fleas can be effectively controlled and customer relationships strengthened.

   When facing flea infestations, the first and most-important challenge you will encounter is the insects’ biology, which mandates that different control approaches be used at specific stages of fleas’ four-stage lifecycles.

   At their most-resilient, the pupal stage, these parasitic insects are protected by an impenetrable shell and can lay dormant for months. This stage allows them to survive most treatments and return to breed and re-populate.

   To ensure effective, long-term solutions to flea infestations, it is often necessary to solicit your cooperation as part of the pest control strategy. Education is key as this will maximize the success of flea treatments, as well as ensuring that your home will remain flea-free once treatments have concluded.

   Without customer cooperation and pre-treatment preparations, flea management will unfortunately prove to be mere temporary, half-measure fixes to out-of-control problems.

   Pre-Treatment

   • Clean House – homes must be thoroughly cleaned immediately prior to treatments. This includes washing any affected bedding and cleaning up all debris and clutter that could act as harborages to fleas. Treating unprepared homes ensures that unhatched eggs and pupae will remain to feed and repopulate in the future.
   • Vacuum – vacuuming encourages fleas to develop out of their nearly invulnerable cocoon stage.
   • Knowledge – A list of specific areas, both inside and out, the your pets and even nearby wildlife frequent should be composed.

   Post-Treatment

   • Pet Peeve – Treating pets regularly is essential for their own comfort and to kill any errant fleas entering homes.
   • Cleaning and Cooperation – Regular and thorough vacuuming and cleaning of infested ares is needed every two to three days.

3. The Eco-Friendly Garden

   12:45 pm Leave a Comment

   With increased focus and interest on our carbon footprint, we should be turning to more eco-friendly ways to manage our gardens and the pests that are found within them.

   Kermit the Frog is fond of saying "It’s not easy being green", but thanks to concerned companies and people all over the world, going green has risen from obscurity to the mainstream in recent years.

   Gardeners and weekend warriors, along with the products they use, can be some of the biggest offenders in perpetuating a not-so-eco-friendly world.

   But today, more and more green-conscious products and tools are making their way into gardens across the UK, leaving behind a smaller environmental footprint than ever before!

    

   Traditional Views

   Typically, the first things people think about in an eco-friendly garden are compost and organic solutions to dealing with soil amendments and pest and disease control. There’s no denying, compost is king when it comes to an easy, natural way to creating a nutrient-rich soil amendment for your lawn and garden.

   Making compost is eco-friendly for several reasons:

   • It takes common garden and kitchen waste and recycles it into healthy soil
   • It reduces or eliminates the need for additional chemicals
   • It conditions the soil to become less water dependent
   • It improves soil percolation, reducing the chances of runoff and
   • It keeps waste out of landfills and reduces trips there by collection vehicles.

   Organic Pesticides, Herbicides and Fertilizers

   These continue to be the most traditional way to reduce environmental footprints. They are also a highly effective way to produce a healthy, abundant, beautiful garden that’s not only safe for the Earth, but for people, too. Beyond compost, natural products such as blood meal, bone meal, cottonseed meal, fish emulsion, greensand and rock phosphate are common ways to add organic nutrients to your garden.

   Pest Control

   Natural products are available to fight off pests and diseases and kill weeds, too. Traditional synthetic pesticides (a.k.a insecticides) are very effective. In fact, that is the problem: Only about 3% of all insects found in our gardens are actually even considered pests. The others are either neutral or beneficial.

   Most pesticides are non-selective. meaning they will kill any insect. That includes not just the pests but the good bugs too, such as ladybirds and honey bees. A more responsible approach is to select products that are either very specific to the particular pest you are trying to control and / or ones that break down very quickly when exposed to the elements.

   One of the greatest advantages to using organic products for insect control is not that they are less lethal or more selective. Rather, it’s the fact that natural products typically break down very quickly when exposed to ultraviolet light, making the residual impact minimal. However, because these products have little long-term effect, they must make contact with the pest in order to be most effective.

   Active ingredients in natural insect controls often include Neem oil, pyrethrins, canola oil, mild soaps and highly refined oils among others.

4. Welcome Summer Unwelcome Mosquitoes

   12:44 pm Leave a Comment

   

   The time of year has arrived where mosquitoes can be a real nuisance, but there are steps you can take to minimise the risk of being bitten.

   Mosquitoes top the list of summer pest concerns according o recent research.

   Although mosquitoes will inevitably continue to put a stinger into summer fun this year, Attack Pest Control offers solutions for homeowners on how to keep these backyard biters at bay.

   Not only are mosquitoes a summer nuisance pest, they have also been known to be a major health threat to the public as they can carry West Nile Virus and Malaria.

   Attack Pest Control offers the following tips for homeowners seeking relief from mosquitoes this summer season:

   • To avoid mosquito nesting and breeding sites, eliminate standing water and other sources of moisture in or around the home in flowerpots, water dishes, birdbaths, swimming pool covers, barrels, and other objects that can collect water.
   • Keep rubbish bins covered and sealed.
   • When dining outside, keep food covered until ready to eat.
   • Keep windows and doors properly screened to keep mosquitoes outside.
   • Be alert when outdoors during dawn, dusk and early evening hours when mosquito-biting activity peaks.
   • If approached by a mosquito or any stinging insect, remain calm and quiet. Avoid swaying or swinging, as this may provoke an attack.
   • Avoid wearing dark colors and floral prints, loose-fitting garments, open-toe shoes and sweet-smelling perfumes or colognes.
   • Plan ahead for spending time outdoors and wear mosquito repellant.

   Of course an effective mosquito control solution is also available by Attack Pest Control.

5. Plague of Mice Spreading

   12:44 pm Leave a Comment

   Householders are facing a plague of mice this summer, heightening the risk of disease.

   Warmer winters, the prevalence of rubbish on the streets and homeowners renovating their houses are all causing mice numbers to escalate at an alarming rate.

   New figures have revealed that homes and businesses with mice problems increased by eight per cent compared to last year.

   Although there is no accurate way of counting the number of mice, it is the second year in a row that calls to deal with infestations have climbed substantially, which can be used as a reliable indicator that mice numbers are soaring.

   The most affected areas are town and city centres, especially where rubbish is put out in bin bags rather than metal wheelie bins. In addition, the increased use of central heating and the popularity of home renovations – creating ever-wider cavities within stud walls and false ceilings – are making homes and offices the perfect habitat for wild mice.

   Homeowners are often unable to deal with the problem with a seemingly endless array of traps, poisons and deterrents on sale. People think a bowl of poison or a mouse trap will do the trick. But mice like to move around.

   A single mouse spotted in your kitchen is usually a male foraging for its family – and a sign that there are many more hiding beneath the floorboards or behind a false wall.

   The major issue with a rodent infestation is the serious health hazard that they pose to anyone coming in contact with their urine. Mice have the potential to spread diseases just as much as rats, as they cannot control their bladders and hence urinate continually.

   The best ways to keep mice out of the home is to make sure that no food is left out, all holes are blocked up, and the temperature of each room is kept down.

6. Bug Free BBQ

   12:43 pm Leave a Comment

   Barbeques can be a source of seasonal fun, but not when pests crash the party.

   When the sun is shining and the drinks are cold, you know it’s time to heat up the barbeque, however when pests gatecrash the party, the seasonal fun can be spoiled.

   Ants, flies and stinging insects are prevalent in the late summer and early autumn and although often considered a mere annoyance to partygoers, these pests can also bite, sting, carry diseases and contaminate food.

   Outdoor events can be tricky enough to plan for due to uncooperative weather and other unpredictable elements. Pest predicaments should not be another worry.

   More than just a nuisance, these pests can leave painful bites and transmit diseases, which should compel homeowners to take an active role in their prevention. Simply by taking a few precautions to discourage unwanted pests from spoiling the fun, you and your guests can be left alone to enjoy the summer:

   • Serve food and beverages indoors, and reserve outdoor space for eating and entertaining.
   • Keep food sealed in containers or covered whenever possible, and wipe tabletops frequently.
   • Bring utensils and dishware indoors shortly after the meal.
   • Dispose of rubbish in closed rubbish bins and keep receptacles a good distance from where guests are gathered.
   • Remove / drain sources of standing water in the garden that could be a breeding ground for mosquitoes, including birdbaths and paddling pools.
   • When outside, wear insect repellent on exposed skin to prevent mosquito bites.
   • Provide clear cups for beverages, as fizzy pop / juice cans are good hiding spots for stinging pests.
   • Properly screen doors and windows leading into the home.
   • Remind guests to close doors when entering and exiting your home.

   By sticking to these few simple steps, you will reduce the impact that garden pests have on your party, and will ensure that you will be left alone to eat, drink and be merry to your heart’s content.

   If you’re concerned about an abundance of pests in your garden, contact a licenced pest professional to help control the problem.

7. Sticky Sticky Sticky

   12:42 pm Leave a Comment

   Glue boards can be used to treat certain insect infestations, which not only cost less than fumigation, it also speeds up the eradication process.

   Use of glue boards to trap stinging insects is really catching on at homes and sensitive accounts such as schools and churches.

   For most insect accounts, the best time to treat is in the evening, when most of the colony have finished their daily foraging and are in for the night.

   However, this is rarely the preferred time to schedule technicians, especially after a full day on the job. It also means that the customer, expecting to have the problem taken care of on the spot, usually has to wait until after sundown for results.

   But, there may be a better way – a method that speeds up both technician productivity and customer satisfaction in one fell swoop, and can be done in broad daylight.

   Glue boards are commonly used for rodent accounts, but recently they have also been found to work as a handy treatment method for insects, such as wasps and bees. The nest itself, is treated for populations already inside and glue boards utilised to catch foragers upon their return.

   In addition to timely treatment, the glue boards are also a great tool when nests are hidden from view. With Superman’s X-ray vision not yet available to the commercial market, pest control technicians have to get creative when trying to get to sources.

   Placing the glue boards to potentially catch what otherwise couldn’t be reached is a matter of common sense. Wall voids are a perfect example. Holes in the walls can be sealed to prevent access, however more often than not, the bees work around it finding new entrances or entering the home directly, making matters worse.

   Even though you can’t see some nests, you can just slide up these glue boards on either side of the holes. By sticking them together, allowing a slight overlap, one long train of glue boards can be effectively positioned around the nest area. A couple of days later, when the pest control officer returns to the account, the whole line of glue boards can be safely removed.

   The glue boards are just as helpful outdoors, helping capture insects under vinyl siding. By placing the glue boards every 4 inches in the corrugation of the soffets, you can catch most bugs as they enter and exit the roof. The boards fit really well and can protect small areas of your home relatively cheaply.

   While glue boards are a classic tool in the integrated pest management (IPM) toolbox, they are much easier and less expensive to use than one might expect. It only takes one or two technicians to handle the glue board placements, which can then be left to the home and business owners to remove a few days later, following instructions on what to do, where and when.

   The glue board technique has also helped solve the problem of treating for insects around stone wells, where chemicals are not an option.

8. Bed Bug Epidemic

   12:42 pm Leave a Comment

   Britain is under threat from the bed bug – an insect that was once almost completely eradicated from our shores in the 1950s, but is now back with avengeance.

   An epidemic of bedbugs is sweeping the nation, fuelled by air travel and warmer summers leading to the number of infestations soaring by 500 per cent in the last two years.

   Cities such as Cambridge and Peterborough have taken the brunt of the epidemic because of the large number of people on the move every day.

   The increase is largely attributed to the huge expansion in air travel, coupled with global warming, which has brought millions of bed bugs into the country on travellers’ clothes and in their suitcases.

   Bedbugs are red and brown in colour and are about the same size as an apple pip. They feed on human blood by piercing the skin, sucking up four times their own body weight in 15 minutes. The insects, whose bites cause itching, were virtually eradicated in the 1950s, but now we are seeing a surge in the number of calls from homes with bed bug infestations.

   Many people think the spread of bedbugs is caused by bad hygiene – but that’s a common misconception. Dirty houses will make infestations harder to remove, but they are actually spread by many of the richer people in society because they travel more. They are also spread on public transport because people sit very close to each other, so you need to be a little cautious when sitting down.

   If people’s homes are badly hit, they’ll carry bed bugs on their clothes. If they sit on public transport, they’ll leave the bugs behind when they get up and the next person will get a dose.

   Bedbugs are notoriously hard to spot because they hide in mattresses or in cracks in flooring or walls and come out to feed between 1am and 5am. And we advise vacuuming mattresses and cleaning regularly to keep them at bay.

   What is clear is that it is imperative to get this epidemic under control before the bed bug population spirals any further.

9. The Flies Are On Us

   12:41 pm Leave a Comment

   Scientists have calculated that, because of global warming, Britain’s fly population could more than treble this century.

   Scientists have calculated that, because of global warming, Britain’s fly population could more than treble this century.

   A rise in temperatures means a shorter interval between the laying of a fly’s egg and its hatching, and a longer period during which conditions are suitable for breeding.

   The study, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, also warns we could see a corresponding rise in insect-borne infections, such as diarrhoea.

10. Death To Grey Squirrels

    12:40 pm Leave a Comment

    The plan to create defended reserves for red squirrels in the north of England is short-sighted. The European Squirrel Initiative proposal for total eradication of the grey squirrel is the only practical long-term solution.

    The plan to create defended reserves for red squirrels in the north of England is short-sighted. A permanent programme of trapping and shooting using buffer zones will not guarantee success.

    The European Squirrel Initiative proposal for total eradication of the grey is the only practical long-term solution. The benefits would be enormous. The decline in our songbird population would be reversed and large tracts of our broadleaf woodlands would be saved. Furthermore, our native, gentler red squirrel would return.

    Eradication worked with the coypu, and is close to working with the mink. Grey squirrel numbers are higher, but so too is public awareness of the problem.

    The UK should find that going to war in the homeland against an easily identified but highly invasive alien species would be relatively simple. It would also be successful.