mapping the future of pest management

1. mapping the future of pest management

2. How it works… • The technique has been developed using software developed originally for cartographical and meteorological purposes. • The monitoring programme is tailored specifically to the site and the pest species concerned. • Monitoring data is collected and, if necessary, transformed to take into account variables such as irregular inspection intervals. • The data is then presented in the form of a contour map. This: • highlights areas of greatest pest density, and; • allows inspection and treatment efforts can be more effectively targeted.

3. Which pests can this technique be used on? • To work best the pest species must; • Be reasonably mobile, so that it can move towards an attractant. • Have something to which we can attract it; an an effective pheromone is ideal. The technique has been used with excellent results on cockroaches, stored product moths, one species of stored product beetle and house-flies.

4. Could it be used on stored product beetles, such as Tribolium? • The short answer is; we don’t know, because we haven’t yet tried. • Most species of storage beetle show very clumped distribution, living within their food source. Individuals generally do not travel far, and sources of infestation are usually best found through inspection, often through tracks in dust. • Contour mapping might be useful, but at this point we do not have the evidence to support this. We’re always on the lookout for opportunities though!!

5. What about on rodents? • Again, we haven’t tried it. The difficult problem to resolve would be how to obtain reliable monitoring data in a cost-effective manner: • Takes of rodenticide baits alone would be unlikely to provide sufficient information. • Density of droppings might be useful, but there would have to be a thorough clean-up first to remove old ones which would confuse the results. • Footprints on some form of tracking plate provide the most realistic option, but could be labour intensive.

6. Examples of problems that we have used contour mapping to investigate…. • Example 1: • A facility processing cereal based food products • Several floors are infested with a species of stored product insect • One floor of approximately 3200 m2 was selected for the trial • The floor included a large open area containing no plant, as well as a large dryer and various items of milling plant. Electrical trunking and air-handling ducts criss-cross the area

7. A total of 78 species-specific pheromone traps were distributed in a grid pattern throughout the entire floor area • Insect counts were completed after two weeks • Catches per trap, per day were calculated • A contour map was produced using the spatial analysis software…….

8. Contour labels indicate no. of insects caught per trap, per day. The map shows hot-spots of pest activity around traps 45/46 and 60/61, with lesser pockets around traps 21, 30/31, 54 and 77. By overlaying the map on a site plan we obtained a clear picture of the likely locations of infestation, and through inspection, cleaning and design changes eliminated the problem.

9. Example 2 • A warehouse storing large quantities of cereals, dried fruits and nuts had been experiencing an on-going problem with storage moths. • The warehouse had 56 funnel traps permanently sited within it. • The catch data collected during the month preceding the inspection was subjected to spatial analysis, and a contour map plotted and overlaid onto a plan of the warehouse. • The result speaks for itself…….

11. Example 3 • The hot and humid processing area of a food manufacturer, containing numerous lagged tanks, pumps, and heat exchangers, was troubled by a long-standing and deep-seated infestation of German cockroaches. • The wet conditions in the area made it impossible to permanently site insect monitors. • Instead, 25 sticky-type monitors, incorporating a cockroach attractant, were located for just one-week. These were then collected, and cockroach counts plotted in a contour map….

12. Cockroach activity was not uniform, but heavily clumped around one lagged tank and two pump motors. • Intensive treatment, with gel-baits, was carried out around these and nearby plant and areas. The monitoring exercise was repeated two-weeks later…..

13. Example 4 • A large bread bakery was experiencing a long-standing problem with house-flies. The hygiene manager knew roughly where the hot-spots were, but felt that a contour map would provide a valuable picture to take to management to ‘free-up’ resources. • A sticky trap was sourced incorporating variety of visual and chemical house-fly attractants. • 26 of these were hung in the bakery area and inspected after 10 days……

14. Trap catches ranged between 0 and 50. The hygiene manager got the resources he needed!!!!

15. Conclusion • Contour mapping offers a unique visual means of interpreting monitoring data. • It can highlight hot-spots of pest activity within complex production areas and large warehouses. • It can thereby allow treatments to be timed and targeted for maximum effect; • and may also facilitate allocation of financial or human resources.

16. Contour mapping of pest populations is a service that we believe is unique, in the UK, to Acheta. • For more information, or to discuss whether this approach might be appropriate for use in your site, please contact: • Dr John Simmons • +44 (0)1530-224942 • +44 (0)7855-944049 • john.simmons@acheta.co.uk