It’s that time again when working in the garden looks like it’s about to begin, have you ever noticed small blue black wasp flicking its shiny wings as it dashed across the dirt, searching here and there, looking for a spider. The chalybion californicum is an impressive wasp, which can be identified by its blue and black sheen, a narrow waist between thorax and abdomen. Though Yellow jackets, paper wasps and bald faced hornets are the very model of teamwork, the solitary wasp have an incredible variety in their lifestyle and shapes, but one thing binds them together injecting eggs directly into their victim while larvae consume its innards. The larva, having molted five or so times, will be at full adult weight and pupate (form a cocoon), emerge as an adult and continue the cycle.
Here is a complete list of how-to’s for rodent proofing that you won’t find on google. The number one piece of advice I give, empty out your garage of storage and use it to hide your vehicles from rodents. Next, call us and get professional grade Tier 1 Rodent Bait Boxes to eliminate the pests. Consider getting metal mesh and or capsaicin-infused tape (Honda) wrapped around wiring harnesses, hoses, or openings that rodents could enter. Electrical tape around wiring or cables may deter rodent chewing. Hint: rodents use vehicle air filters for nesting material and mice like to nest on a car battery. Rodents often clog up filters or engine intakes with food or nesting materials. All this rodent damages can cause serious damage and here’s the big ouch, EXPENSIVE to repair – $50 – $2000 + expensive. Rodents are attracted to the warmth of vehicle engines and certain materials used to make car parts. Pop the hood open after parking to dissipate engine heat faster. Park away from garbage bins, dumpsters, gardens, leaf piles or thick vegetation (rodents like to observe and master plan from shadows). Don’t always park in the same spot. Don’t keep food, drinks or food wrappers, in the vehicle. Start up and move the vehicle regularly. If vehicles are parked outside for long periods of time, check for rodent activity, monitor for signs of rodent activity to catch problems early. Looking for nesting materials like leaves, sticks, plastic bags, fabric, droppings, chew marks, or the smell of urine (rodent pee is very pungent). Next step – call Go Green Pest Control and Exterminators.
Vancouver’s airport and don’t expect things to get much better
Richmond B.C. — The invasive fire ant continues to spread in the Lower Mainland, wreaking havoc on Vancouver airport runways and forcing CP Rail to burn the soil on the Arbutus corridor in attempts to eradicate them.
Last summer, several planes hit birds feeding on the fire ants at YVR, forcing a series of short runway closures.
And the pest problem is no longer confined to the common European fire ant.
It has branched out to include a lesser-known species dubbed the “impressive fire ant,” according to Thompson Rivers University entomologist Rob Higgins.
“We’re talking of two different types of fire ants,” said Higgins, noting both fire ants appear to be on the move. “We’ve got them in virtually every municipality.”
We’ve got them in virtually every municipality
Higgins has been conducting surveys of known fire ant infestations and doing random sampling throughout southwestern B.C. to assess the extent of these tiny aggressive insects, which possess a painful sting and swarm very quickly when disturbed.
The investigation initially focused on the European fire ants, which spread naturally over short distances by budding off new colonies in which a queen and a group of worker ants leave a nest to form a new colony.
His research took a turn, though, after a Burnaby entomologist sent Higgins a sample a few years ago of a fire ant discovered at his home. Higgins, who was heading back east to compare his collection, took the ant along and determined it to be the Myrmica specioides, a lesser known species from Europe, that undergoes mating flights every summer.
But it wasn’t until later that fall — after a call from Vancouver International Airport’s wildlife program — that Higgins started researching the impressive fire ant.
Airport officials were worried about a spate of collisions between small birds, mostly barn sparrows, and planes on the runway during July and August, which forced them to close the runway for five to eight minutes each time to clear away the mess.
“They wanted to know what they’d been eating,” Higgins said. “I looked at their gut contents and they were full of impressive fire ants. They’d been eating a lot of them, especially the winged queens.”
Higgins said it appears the impressive fire ants, who nested in the grasslands around the airport, were attracted to the end of the runway for their mating flights. The swarm of ants then attracted the birds, most of them barn swallows. In one month last summer, he said, there were 50 collisions between birds and planes. One day, there were five runway closures.
David Bradbeer, a runway wildlife specialist at YVR, confirmed the situation. “It is a service inconvenience, but we do close the runway to remove the carcass because we don’t want another bird to be attracted and get hit.”
Bradbeer said the situation only became a problem in the past year. He noted the YVR wildlife management branch has been trying to understand the ecology of the many species around the airport, including the swallows and fire ants, to figure out how to deal with the problem. The investigation has just started, he said.
Fire ants are difficult to control or eradicate, even with pesticides.
Higgins acknowledged the impressive fire ant is “just emerging as an invasive species here” and while he and Bradbeer are looking at running an experiment at YVR to control the ants, he expects it could take a year to get the permits.
Darryl Dyck CP has been fighting a scorched-earth campaign against the fire ants along the Arbutus Corridor rail line that runs from False Creek to the Fraser River in Vancouver.
Meanwhile, the Canadian Pacific Railway, which is tearing up its tracks along the Arbutus corridor on Vancouver’s westside, has been incinerating the soil along the tracks and said it will now also burn the rail ties to ensure the ants aren’t transported to another location.
“I just got confirmation we will incinerate the ties in that whole area,” said CP spokesman Jeremy Berry, noting the move will likely happen next week.
Although Higgins has yet to tally the numbers he has collected through his research, in the past four years, the ants have been introduced to at least 25 locations on Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland through the movement of landscaping materials, soil and potted plants.
He noted the most common areas for fire ants tend to be Vancouver and Chilliwack, but they were recently spotted in West Vancouver, Burnaby and handful of spots in the District of North Vancouver.
A study shows commonly used household pesticide with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and young teens. This is why the government is trying to stop the sale of pesticides to the public. Pesticide exposure and ADHD, particularly in terms of hyperactivity and impulsivity, rather than inattentiveness is associated in boys more than girls.
Animal studies suggest a heightened vulnerability to the effects of pesticide exposure on hyperactivity, impulsivity and abnormalities in the dopamine system in male mice. Dopamine is a neurochemical in the brain thought to be involved in many activities, including those that govern ADHD. Go Green Pest Control Ladner Pest Control Tsawwassen Pest Control Delta Pest Control Randy Bilesky
Misconceptions, along with the burden of head lice itself, can lead to great discomfort, anxiety and embarrassment for those affected.
Often, individuals feel embarrassed just talking about the condition, not realizing that having head lice is not an indicator of poor hygiene. The need for education and awareness regarding the condition and treatment options is paramount.
The survey results indicated:
low-income families are more likely to contract head lice.
poor hygiene is a factor in the spread of an infestation.
men are significantly more likely to believe poor hygiene is a contributing factor
head lice can be contracted by lice “jumping” from person to person.
Head lice are the most prevalent parasitic infection in Canada, which most frequently affect children between three and 12 years old; however it doesn’t discriminate with age. Fortunately, head lice can be treated easily and don’t need to be a source of social embarrassment or panic. Delta Pes
Chickens and their coops are very attractive to rats for food, water, and a warm home. Keeping rats and other rodents out is important to prevent disease spread and potential infestation to other nearby areas, especially in denser urban neighbourhoods. To reduce the appeal of your chicken coop to rodents: 1- Build the chicken run with strong gauge hardware cloth material, with mesh openings less than 1 cm (1/2 inch) 2- Elevate 45 cm off the ground or, if elevation is not an option, lay a concrete foundation for easier cleaning and to prevent rodents from burrowing under it 3- Hammer sheet metal flashing into the ground around the perimeter to create a barrier 4- Remove potential attractants like feed, water, eggs, and chicken droppings, especially overnight. Sweep up after feeding and clean up droppings before nightfall 5- Keep grass and vegetation cut low around the coop 6- Regularly inspect and repair holes and rodent entry points
If you are going old school, like we always do, buying a real Christmas tree is tradition. But, before you bring the softwood tree indoors give it a shake. Check for ticks, beetles, flies and spiders around the base of the tree. And when using bug spray, never apply it on the tree because it could be flammable. Did you know moths and silverfish are attracted to and eat the gift wrap and cardboard that Christmas presents come in, so take the paper and boxes out to recycling as soon as possible. Cockroaches and ants
enjoy turkey, ham and roast beast with all the trimming as much as you do – so keep your kitchen clean and all food tucked away in the fridge. If you have a fireplace, lucky you, remember before you bring in wood from the wood pile outside, check it for mice, rats, termites, spiders and ants. Merry Pest Free Christmas and a Happy normal New Year.
Want to do your own rodent control, you you have a choice between trapping and baiting methods. Baiting is quicker, especially for pest control novices, but there is also a chance that a dead smelly rodent will die behind your walls waiting until the carcass decomposes. If there is potential that the rodent will get stuck in the walls near a common area in your house, you might want to use traps to catch the rodent instead.
Best Of South Delta – Go Green Pest Control – Annual Readers’ Choice Awards
A 25-year Tsawwassen resident, Randy Bilesky at Go Green Pest Control.
After many years in the forest industry, long-time South Delta resident Randy Bilesky decided to start a new venture – and Go Green Pest Control was born.
Over his 25 years in Tsawwassen, Bilesky had noticed there was little consistency with how other companies dealt with pests. After taking the B.C. government training and certification program, starting Delta’s only locally owned and operated pest control company seemed like a natural next step.
“I’ve always had my own business,” he said. “I’m an entrepreneur.”
Bilesky said living in South Delta for close to two decades has given him first-hand knowledge about the pest problems local home and business owners encounter, adding he can provide environmentally friendly and humane removal techniques that control pests without impacting surroundings.
Bilesky said one thing he’s on the lookout for is the impressive fire ant, which is currently spreading across the Lower Mainland and has been seen in Richmond.
“Once it comes to Delta, it’s going to stay,” he said, adding they are hard to control.
Bilesky said he’s also noted a lot of rats in Ladner.
“It’s an epidemic. It’s unbelievable.”
For more information about Go Green Pest Control, visit www.gogreenpestcontrol.ca. Call 604-946-9698 in Ladner, 604-948-9838 in Tsawwassen and 778-886-4111 in North Delta.
