RI, MA EHS Pest Control Blog

Smithfield, RI - Winter's a tough time if you're a mosquito. Icy temperatures can freeze your blood, dry air can desiccate you, and a mountain of snow can bury you.  But mosquitoes, like bears, have found a way to make it through the winter: They hibernate.

OK, before you hit the comment button, I know that technically speaking, mosquitoes don't hibernate ... although if you want to get really technical about it, some scientists say bears don't really hibernate either, they just go into a kind of deep winter sleep.

But getting back to mosquitoes, what they do is go into a state called diapause. David Denlinger says it's a state where mosquitoes "essentially shut down their development and hunker it out until spring comes."  Denlinger is an entomologist at the Ohio State University in Columbus. He studies a common backyard mosquito called Culex pipiens, and not all of them make it to spring.

"The males die, and only the females overwinter," he says. And like bears, the females start storing fat as winter approaches.

Female Mosquitoes Bulk Up — A Lot.  "They have a structure we call the fat body, which is much like the liver of mammals, and much of the fat ends up in that structure, although it's there in the blood and other tissues as well," says Denlinger. Females that go into diapause probably have 10 times the fat accumulation that a nondiapausing mosquito has.

Culex pipiens isn't the only insect Denlinger studies. He's interested in how all cold-blooded insects make it through harsh winters.
A composite of a nondiapausing mosquito (top) and a diapausing mosquito (bottom).
Enlarge Mijung Kim/OSU

Female mosquitoes can gain up to 10 times their warm-weather weight as the cold rolls in. The males are not so lucky and do not survive the winter.
A composite of a nondiapausing mosquito (top) and a diapausing mosquito (bottom).
Mijung Kim/OSU

Female mosquitoes can gain up to 10 times their warm-weather weight as the cold rolls in. The males are not so lucky and do not survive the winter. "We were sitting around one day, and we thought we should really push this to the limit sometime," he says. So Denlinger and some colleagues mounted an expedition to Antarctica.

The only insect that has survived through the ages is a wingless midge, Belgica antarctica.  The Midge Endures Being Frozen, And Severe Dehydration.  And it has some amazing survival strategies.

"First, it retains its capacity to be frozen solid," says Rick Lee, a cryobiologist at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

It does this by making sugars and sugar alcohols that protect cell membranes. It also produces heat shock proteins. These are special molecules that cells usually only make when they're under severe distress. The midges appear to make them all the time.

And the midge has one more trick up its sleeve.

"It can also tolerate severe dehydration," says Lee. In the larval stage, it can lose most of its body water. "These little larvae look like raisins when you dry them out like this. They look terrible. They look for sure that they would be dead. You put them in water, they plump up, and they wiggle away," Lee says.

Spring Is In The Air

Of course, it's not much of a life, being a flightless midge in Antarctica. They spend two years in this raisin stage. Then in the summer, the adults emerge, mate and lay their eggs; they only live about 10 to 14 days.

Seems like a lot of work for not much reward, but Lee says that for any species, there's really only one requirement for success.

"Whether you can reproduce and leave offspring," says Lee. "That's the bottom line."

An appropriate thought as we head toward spring.

Location: Westwood, MA
 

• There are about 170 different kinds of mosquitoes in the U.S. alone.
• Mosquitoes can develop from egg to adult in 4 to 10 days.
• Only female mosquitoes actually suck blood, males feed only on plant nectar.
• A single female can lay 100-300 eggs at a time, up to 1,000-3,000 in her lifetime.
• Mosquitoes can fly considerable distances, up to 20 miles or more.
• Mosquitoes are responsible for more human death than any other living creature.
• Mosquitoes DO transmit dog and cat heart-worm.
• Mosquitoes don't see very well, but they zoom in like a heat-seeking missile once 30ft away.
• Mosquitoes don't like to travel Most mosquitoes remain within a 1 mile radius of their breeding site.
• Mosquitoes live long enough to create misery. The average life span of a female mosquito is 3 to 100 days. the male lives 10 to 20 days.
• Male mosquitoes find female mosquitoes by listening to the sound of their wings beating.
• Mosquitoes can fly about 1 to 1.5 miles per hour.
• A mosquito can smell the carbon dioxide you exhale from about 60 to 75 feet away.
• You are more likely to be bitten by a mosquito after you have eaten a banana.

Allston-Brighton —

Neighborhoods in Boston, including Allston and Brighton, have reported a surge in bedbug complaints, especially as the parasites have become more prevalent in large cities across the U.S. in recent years.

During a seminar addressing the growing number of bedbug infestations in the city, Jonathan Boyar, principal of Ecologic Entomology, spoke to 20 residents and landlords at the Boston Public Library in Copley Square on Feb. 22, 2010 about how to identify and eradicate bedbugs.

Many neighborhoods in Boston have had a rise in the number of complaints during the last three years, with Allston and Brighton just behind East Boston for the most. Housing Commissioner Dion Irish of the Inspectional Services Department said places with a large number of renters tend to see more bedbugs. But he said the problem has improved since before when 75 percent of complaints citywide came from Allston and Brighton. “It’s a highly transient place. It’s always going to be a problem,” Irish said in regards to the large college student population that contributes to high resident turnover.

Problems occur when residents take used furniture from the street, but Boyar said bedbugs can also come into buildings from clothing, luggage and other belongings. He urged the audience to avoid Dumpster diving and buying antiques, and to check rooms when staying at hotels.“The nicest hotels in America can have bedbugs. It’s not just seedy hotels,” Boyar said.

When there is suspicion of an infestation, Boyar recommended calling a reputable pest management company right away for an inspection that can cost anywhere from $250 to $500. He said the best pest control companies send at least two people to inspect the entire residence, but do not guarantee pest eradication because it is impossible to do so.

“If you don’t have folks going through this level of treatment, you’re going to have problems. This stuff is tedious,” Boyar said. “The guys that do this stuff love it. They can’t wait to see which one is worse than the next.”

Inspectors will check all crevices and furniture and if it is badly infested, they may suggest disposing of furniture, covering it with a plastic covering before bringing it outside. Clothing and other infested belongings can also be thrown in the dryer because bedbugs cannot survive conditions over 140 degrees.

While inspectors may use a pesticide, Boyar said to avoid over-the-counter bug sprays because they can “make a mess of the problem” since they don’t do a good job of killing all of the bugs. He also said that sometimes the bugs develop a tolerance of the over-the-counter sprays.

Landlords who own buildings with many infestations may consider fumigation or thermal treatments, but these can be costly.  Bedbugs can crop up in the most unexpected places. Boyar showed a videotape of bedbugs — they typically hide in small crevices until coming out at night to feed on humans. “They have a tendency to cluster. They’re looking for the same sort of environment,” Boyar said.

That environment is typically close to the bug’s food source, such as mattress seams, box springs, curtains or under baseboards and carpets. While they prefer warm surfaces, Boyar said bedbugs have been found on cool metal surfaces and can survive for a year without a meal, but tend to feed every two to four days.

What also makes bedbugs hard to detect, Boyar said, is that in most cases, people do not feel the bite while they are sleeping. And after it finishes feeding, the insect crawls away to digest its meal. Those who are bitten wake up to a row of bites that may appear the next morning or several days later.

Of all the delays you'd probably most like to steer clear of, a "roach delay" would rank high on the list. But that's just what caused a Miami-to-Washington flight to be delayed by about 90 minutes earlier this month, according to W-USA Channel 9 of Washington D.C.

The station reports that Alissa Kempler, a passenger on the American Airlines flight, was told by a flight attendant: "There are roaches on the plane." W-USA adds Kempler says she eventually learned "there (were) actually 50 roaches and they found a colony on a curtain between first class and the pilots." Kempler tells W-USA that "we spent the next two and a half hours, or at least I did, curled up in my seat thinking 'how many cockroaches are going to be in my bag when I get out?' "

In response to the story, American Airlines' spokesman Tim Smith tells W-USA "infestations are very rare but not unprecedented." Smith tells the station that the company's planes are treated regularly by pest control companies. "The planes have outside panels removed once a month to give maintenance crews better access and if a problem is detected, it will be treated during the next layover," W-USA writes.

Fruit flies could unlock mystery of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's
By Mary Saner

Scientists look to insects for answers on how human brain forms and retains memories.  At Scripps Research Institute in Jupiter, Florida, scientists are working to find clues about how the human brain processes memories. Their laboratory test animal is not a chimp or a dog or a rat — animals that we know can remember things — it is the common fruit fly.

"They're relatively simple," Ron Davis says, explaining why the fruit fly's brain has some ideal properties for human brain research. "The brain of the fruit fly has about 100,000 neurons. The brain of a human has about 100 billion neurons, and that's an enormous network of interconnected neurons in the human brain, if one thinks about it. We literally can't wrap our brains around the human brain yet."

Fruit fly training regimen - Davis chairs the Department of Neuroscience at Scripps Florida. He's designed an experiment in which fruit flies are trained to remember an odor associated with an unpleasant electrical shock.

It involves a series of Plexiglas tubes which have an electrifiable copper grid on their surfaces. "One puts the fly in these tubes first, passes an odor through the tube," Davis says. "Odor A shocks the animal, mild electric shock." After fresh air has been blown through the tubes to remove any trace of the first odor, a second scent is pumped in.

"Odor B passes through the tube and the animals are not shocked. That's the training where we're hoping the animals will develop an association. They'll learn that one odor is bad because it's been punished in the presence of that odor. And the other odor is okay."

Then, the flies are tested to see how well they remember which odor is which. Davis says about 90 percent do, and avoid the electric shock. The ones that don't are isolated, so their genes can be studied.

The human-fruit fly connection - Researchers can remove a fly's brain and place it — still functioning — under a microscope. They can isolate neurons that have different functions and watch them fire -or send signals- to other neurons when stimulated.

Once they identify which neurons are firing differently in the normal flies that have learned to identify the difference, they examine the mutants that don't remember the shocking odor to see how genes control the firing process.

Fruit flies have essentially the same genes as we do, just fewer of them. Davis says that correlation is what makes his research so promising.

"If we find a gene in flies that's important for a process like memory formation, that sequence of that gene is generally conserved [across species]. We can use that gene to identify a similar gene in a mouse or in humans, because they have a very, very high sequence similarity. The bases that make up the gene are very similar." He explains that is how researchers are able to identify with a very high probability in humans the vast majority of genes that exist in fruit flies.

"We're actually quite similar to a fruit fly, believe it or not," he adds with a laugh.

Generations of flies in one room - Fruit flies have a very short lifespan compared to other laboratory animals like the mouse or rat. So, with the flies mating and reproducing every two weeks, many generations of flies can be studied in a year, allowing researchers to do genetic studies quickly. And since the flies are small, hundreds of thousands of them can be stored easily and inexpensively in plastic vials.

Davis shows off a small room at the Institute, filled with vials of fruit flies — all to be used in the search for answers to how our memories are made and stored.

"If one examines the vast majority of neurological diseases — Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and so forth, and psychiatric diseases — schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, ADHD, autism, all of these have a commonality in that they have learning disorders, in general, or memory formation seems to be an underlying feature of the vast majority of neurological and psychiatric diseases."

Davis and his team of researchers hope their work will lead to a drug that will help the brain fight learning- and memory-related diseases. He says gaining a fundamental understanding of how the learning process works could be the key to treating — and perhaps curing — them.

Location: Sharon, MA - Tick Control

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) have listed Massachusetts & Rhode Island as epidemic-like for tick-borne diseases. It is very rare (I would argue impossible) to not have a family member, friend, or even pet affected by lyme disease. My wife has it and I know how excruciatingly painful the process is. It can severely affect a family's health + financial situation.

When you think of ticks you think of deer. Unfortunately that is not the case. Rabbits, chipmunks, squirrels, birds, etc. all bring ticks onto your property.  EHS uses a certified organic treatment program that reduces the tick borne disease threat to your family & pets. Highly effective & 100% eco-friendly!
 
George E. Williams Jr., A.C.E.
General Manager - Staff Entomologist
Environmental Health Services, Inc. 

Late snow in Massachusetts & Rhode Island coupled with record rain levels in March have caused increased water levels in reservoirs and in the soil. This increase in moisture has set the stage for the largest termite swarming season ever to be recorded in this area. This will be followed by record activity from carpenter ants once temperatures remain consistantly over 70 degrees. Both pest need moisture to survive but thrive when it is abundent.

Termite damage is conservatively estimated at five billion dollars yearly in the United States. In most years, this is five times the dollar amount of hurricanes and fires combined. Termite swarming occurs when the weather becomes warmer and termites leave their colonies to find new nesting sites. Homeowners must be proactive to prevent termites from infesting and causing irreparable damage to their biggest investment—their home. Termite Control is important in protecting the biggest investment most people make – their homes.
Carpenter ants cause considerable hidden damage behind walls. Recent studies have found that the average expense for damage repair from carpenter ants ranged from $2,000-$10,000 per incident.
 
The best preventative measure is to get your home inspected by EHS even if you do not have any visual signs of these pests. In this case the risk SIGNIFICANTLY outweighs ignoring it.
 
Sabrina Key
VP of Operations

WASHINGTON—The White House suffered a severe bedbug infestation last month after Vice President Joe Biden reportedly "scored" a discarded recliner chair that "someone was just throwing out" on the corner of Windom Road and 32nd Street. "It's plenty comfy, and I'll tell ya, they don't make 'em with levers like this anymore," said Biden, scratching at a series of red welts on his arms as he pointed out the pocket on the side that could hold both a remote control and a Coors tallboy. "It reclines all the way back. All the way. And you wanna know what else? It holds two people, if you know what I mean." Meanwhile, Senegal officials reported that their nation has been plagued by an outbreak of bedbugs since its president returned from a short stay in the Lincoln Bedroom.

Location: Newton, MA

They still sell them so people must be buying them?! The scientific research community states the only thing it repels is money from your wallet!

The real truth is that it is a placebo treatment in that it is visual & you perceive it works because you may not see pests. If pests happen to be gone it is just a coincidental fluke. Insects do not respond to ultrasonic sounds, it is not biologically possible. If it worked on rats & mice then why does it not affect humans & pets? Rodents have 30x better hearing than humans but that does not mean only they can hear high frequency sounds.

If a $9.99 plug in the wall, repel all insects + rodents actually worked don't you think every pest control firm in the world would be using it???!!!

George E. Williams Jr., A.C.E.

General Manager - Staff Entomologist

Environmental Health Services, Inc.

Location: Wrentham, MA

Biting bugs are buzzing northward and asthma has spread like a dust cloud, but there are deep divisions about how concerned health and life insurers should be about disease and death caused by climate change.

So far, this corner of the massive industry has remained in the background of its climate debate, letting its counterparts who specialize in property losses worry in public forums about potential risks from rising sea levels and more powerful storms.

But there can be storms inside the human body, as well, scientists say, pointing to increases in malaria, heat waves, lung illnesses and other diseases spread by insects that are expanding into new territory as temperate climates experience warmer winters that are less likely to kill them.

The insects' spread could be a signal of new risks that are coming, says Paul Epstein, a doctor at Harvard Medical School who studies the health effects of rising greenhouse gas emissions.

"Beetles, stinging insects, mosquitoes are all responding much faster [than expected]. That's the kind of leading indicator in terms of health costs that should be looked at by the health insurers," he said. "The life and health folks have really not taken this seriously yet."

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