Pests can cause property damage and health problems. They can gnaw on wires, carry diseases like hantavirus and leptospirosis or simply be a nuisance. Click the Pest Control In Bakersfield to learn more.

Accurately identifying the pest is essential to selecting a management method. Consider preventive or nonchemical methods first.

Some natural forces affect pest populations, causing them to rise and fall. These include climate, natural enemies, barriers, food and water sources.

Insects

The control of insect pests is a major component of plant production and health. Insects can cause considerable damage to plants and crops, reducing yields, quality and marketable value. They can also transmit diseases from one crop to another. For example, western flower thrips can transmit mycoplasma-like organisms that cause Peach X disease and Aster yellows to impatiens growing in greenhouses. Pests can also transmit viruses, such as the ones that cause tomato spotted wilt and peach leaf curl disease.

Many insect pests have natural enemies that suppress their populations, making them less damaging. These natural enemies include predators, parasitoids and pathogens. Insecticides often devastate these natural enemies, allowing populations of potentially damaging insects to increase. In order to prevent this, the methods used for pest control must take into account their impact on natural enemies.

Chemical controls that reduce the impact on natural enemies can reduce pesticide use and minimize or eliminate the need for broader-scale spraying. For instance, products that provide a longer residual may reduce the need for repeated applications. Likewise, using spot applications or treating alternating strips in the field to reduce contact between beneficials and long-residual insecticides will decrease the need for additional spraying to maintain control.

Insecticides should only be applied when the benefits of treatment outweigh the costs. The need to treat a crop should be determined by estimating the economic injury level (ELL) or aesthetic injury level (AEL). An ELL is the amount of damage from an insect pest that must be incurred before the investment in controlling its population is justified. For example, the cost of spraying cabbage to protect it from imported cabbage worm would need to be greater than $15 in order for it to be economically justifiable.

Rodents

Rodents are the second most successful mammals on Earth, populating every continent except Antarctica. They have sharp incisors and chew through a wide variety of materials in search for food, shelter or water. Rodents are social animals and many species live in groups. Mating varies from monogamy to polygyny and promiscuity. Rodents range in size from pygmy mice to capybaras.

Rodents can cause significant damage to buildings, structures and equipment. They can gnaw through electrical wires, causing fires and costly repairs. They also consume ripening fruits, vegetables and ornamental plants and dig holes in compost piles, damaging the structure of the pile and stunting or killing plant life. Rodents are known carriers of diseases and can contaminate the foods we eat.

Infestations can be controlled with sanitation, exclusion and lethal control. A pest control professional will assess the situation and determine the best course of action to eliminate the rodents and prevent them from returning. The most important factors to consider are the species of rodent, their population dynamics and the ecological and sociocultural setting in which they operate.

In the home, storing dry goods in sealed jars and tins can help prevent infestations. It is also a good idea to keep food in cabinets and off of the floor. It is a good idea to keep garbage and compost bins tightly closed. Rodents are active at night, so if you hear scratching or gnawing during the evening hours, it is probably time to set some traps. Always use disposable gloves when handling rodents and bury or dispose of them properly. Be sure to check traps often and have backup traps ready. For more severe infestations, chemical rodent control methods may be required and should only be used by a licensed pest control operator. The most commonly used chemicals are zinc phosphide, which produces a toxic vapor when inhaled, and cholecalciferol, which causes toxicity by building up calcium in the bloodstream.

Bed Bugs

Bed bugs are difficult to control because of their stubborn nature and complex life cycle. They are very good at hiding, making inspections and treatment difficult. They are also able to survive the effects of many household pesticides and sprays. They can also hide in the smallest cracks and crevices, making it difficult to treat all areas of an infestation. Even after treatment, it is common for them to recur as they hatch from eggs with incubation periods of up to two weeks.

Their flattened bodies allow them to fit into tiny crevices about the size of a pencil eraser. They are usually nocturnal but will be active in the day if hungry. They will travel to feed, often 5-20 feet from their established harborage. The bite is painless, but it does irritate the skin. The insect ingests blood through needle-like mouthparts. After feeding they return to their hiding places.

During the early stages of an infestation, there are nonchemical control methods that can help. Vacuuming and washing bedding at high temperatures will help reduce the population. But they are only effective if conducted regularly and thoroughly. They are also not effective against the hardy nymphs and eggs.

During the later stages of an infestation, there are insecticides and temperature based treatments that will effectively control the pest. It is generally recommended that you use a pesticide labeled to control bed bugs, and that it be applied to mattresses and box springs, as well as cracks and crevices around the beds, and on the baseboards. It is best to avoid over the counter total-release aerosol foggers, which can be harmful if misapplied. You should only use pesticides that are registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and specifically labeled to control bed bugs.

Mosquitoes

Over 200 types of mosquitoes live in the United States and its territories, but only about 12 of these pests spread germs that can make people sick. The majority of mosquitoes simply bother people by biting them and carrying bacteria, viruses or parasites on their legs or bodies. These organisms may cause diseases including encephalitis, dengue fever, chikungunya, West Nile virus, and Zika.

Mosquitoes become most active after rainstorms, when their populations grow rapidly. They breed in small pools of water and hatch into larvae in moist soil, in tree holes, in rotting logs and stumps, or in containers such as old tires, bird baths, and discarded crates. The larvae feed on decaying vegetation, algae and other organic matter and, in some species of mosquito, on animal blood.

Female mosquitoes are attracted to carbon dioxide emitted from the breathing of humans and other animals, which she detects by sensing changes in air pressure. Once she lands, she probes the skin with her mouthparts (known as a proboscis) to locate a capillary to sucker. She injects a tiny amount of salivary fluid into the blood vessel to help her draw up the liquid meal. This fluid contains a chemical that prevents the blood from clotting as it flows into her body.

Adult mosquitoes are killed with a variety of insecticides, usually in a spray form. These include pyrethroids, which are synthetic forms of the natural plant pyrethrins, and organophosphates, such as malathion. In addition, some products kill mosquitoes at the larval stage by using bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis (Bti), which does not harm butterflies, bees, frogs or fish but is highly specific to mosquitoes and other insect larvicides.

Fleas

Fleas are small, wingless insects that attach to host animals, especially mammals such as dogs and cats, and feed on them. They are reddish-brown in color and have itchy bites that can easily become swollen and inflamed. Fleas spread germs that can cause diseases in people and pets by either directly feeding on hosts or through fecal contamination, which is caused when infected flea feces (poop) scratched into an open wound. Flea infestations often begin in the yard and are brought indoors on pets or by rodents, raccoons or feral cats that live in or around homes.

Understanding the flea life cycle is vital to effective pest control. Once eggs hatch, the larvae feed on organic debris and flea dirt until ready to pupate into adult fleas. The fleas lay their pupal cocoons in places where host animals rest such as rugs, blankets and furniture. When the fleas mature, they will use their powerful legs to jump onto their host and remain there until it is time to mate.

Pest control professionals utilize a wide range of tools to successfully treat flea infestations. This includes insect growth regulators, which interfere with the normal development of fleas, and spraying homes, pet sleeping areas and carpeted areas with a pesticide that contains an insect growth regulator. It is important to follow all pre-treatment and post-treatment preparation instructions provided by your pest control professional, which may include putting all throw rugs in hot water, washing pet bedding and regularly vacuuming rugs, carpeted areas and crevices. Vacuuming stimulates insecticide-resistant flea pupae/cocoons to hatch, bringing the adult fleas into contact with the treatment sooner.

The effectiveness of pest control services depends on a partnership between the homeowner and the pest management company. Thorough sanitation practices such as sanitizing rooms and floors with hot soapy water, vacuuming frequently, washing pets in hot, soapy water and destroying all vacuum bags are the keys to successful pest control.