Monthly Archives

June 2020

Jun 25
1

Mosquito Battles – Final Feed Mosquito Bait

By | Mosquitoes, Pest Business, Pestimonials, Tips & Inspirations, Trapping Tips | No Comments

Saving the Schools

In this version of Pest Management Professional’s Mosquito Battles series, Anaheim Union High School District’s Rich Kravetz controls the growing mosquito population in Southern California with Final Feed Mosquito Bait.

Anaheim, California was hit by more than just a heat wave in the spring of 2019. A new species of mosquito was flying about the city, darkening the normally sunny skies.  This mosquito – known as the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) was targeting high population areas with tall trees and thick bushes, such as the Anaheim Union High School District.

Mosquito Battles - Kravetz

Rich Kravetz, an integrated pest management (IPM) technician for the school district, knows the importance of protecting schools from Asian tiger mosquitoes, a known carrier of West Nile virus and other illnesses. Kravetz is no newbie to the pest management profession – hit father has owned a pest control business for the last 50 years. Because of his background, Kravetz understands how much of an impact one product can have on the mosquito population.

Kravetz began using Catchmasters’ Final Feed Mosquito Bait in 2019, and has seen a huge impact across all 22 locations of the Anaheim Union High School District.

“We had a cloud of mosquitoes over Orange County and Southern California, so we were just looking for something to help alleviate or lessen the frustration with them,” says Kravetz, “We started using it in May, and we are already seeing huge results.”

Mosquito Battles - Final Feed

Kravetz has tried multiple different tactics to try to lessen the severity of the Asian tiger mosquito population around the schools, but has found that not much works to effectively rid the area of the pest – except for Final Feed.

“The product goes right on the shady bushes where the mosquitoes hang out, so the sweet draws them in and the garlic kills them,” he explains.

The non-toxic formula used in Final Feed makes it ideal to use around children, utilizing natural fruit juices to bait the mosquitoes and garlic to starve them. When paired with Catchmaster’s Ovi-Catch Mosquito Trap, Kravetz says, the combination makes for the ideal mosquito solution for schoolyards.

Mosquito Battles - Ovi-Catch

Showing results with the product is also easy, according to Kravetz. Every female mosquito killed by Final Feed or caught by Ovi-Catch mosquito trap eliminates up to 1,000 future mosquitoes. The best part of using Final Feed around the schools for Kravetz is being able to communicate with the students, staff and parents that the IPM technicians are doing something that will have results. Kravetz recalls it having the most impact on a special needs school in the district.

Kravetz sprayed the property with Final Feed, and saw positive results almost immediately. Final Feed helps to control the mosquitoes, resulting in smaller populations. This allowed the children to spend more time outside with less of a risk to get bites from the daytime-feeding species.

Mosquito Battles - Garlic

“Anything I can do for them means a lot,” Kravetz says, “They’re so appreciative. When you get a smile from the kids playing outside – that’s real.”

A little goes a long way with Final Feed, so Kravetz is able to spray more sparingly and still impact the mosquito population at the school.

“I can’t recommend this enough,” Kravetz says of Ovi-Catch, “The buckets are out of sight from the kids and families.” Meanwhile, of Final Feed he says, “The smell is nice. It’s really a great product to have.”

Mosquito Battles – Additional Resources

Get more content like this daily when you follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/catchmasterPRO/

Get our Mosquito Management Guide here: https://catchmasterpro.com/mosquito-management-program/

For help with mosquito season 2020 & beyond, discover Catchmaster® mosquito management tools:  https://catchmasterpro.com/collection/mosquito-management-tools/

In addition, learn more about mosquitoes from the NPMA here: https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/mosquitoes/

Finally, get tips for your business by following us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ap&g-co-inc

Jun 19
0

Mosquito Control Inspections – Top Overlooked Breeding Sites

By | Mosquitoes, Pest Business, Tips & Inspirations | No Comments

When it comes to mosquito control inspections are important. The key to a successful mosquito service is a thorough inspection, done on each visit to the customer’s property.  If all mosquito breeding sites are not identified and either eliminated or treated, your customers will not be happy and you will waste time and money on callbacks.

Mosquito Control Inspections - Top Breeding Sites

The ‘usual suspects’ for mosquito breeding include bird baths, buckets, kiddie pools, kids’ toys, discarded trash, used tires, etc.; basically, anything that will hold water from bottle caps to an abandoned swimming pool.  However, some breeding sites may be ‘cryptic’, that is, hidden or not very obvious.  Let’s take a look at some of them:

Mosquito Control Inspections – Top 9 Overlooked Spots

  1. Water-holding plants, such as bromeliads – it is not likely these can or will be removed but they can be treated with a larvicide.
  2. In-ground drains – ask if the customer has an irrigation system that utilizes in-ground drains. These often hold water and a high content of organic matter, perfect for foul water-loving mosquitoes such as the Northern and Southern house mosquitoes. 
  3. Corrugated plastic tubes – these are often attached to downspouts to pull water away from structures. The ends usually curl up and hold just enough water to cause trouble!
  4. Large piles of leaves – adult mosquitoes will rest in damp piles of leaves, and some leaves are large enough to hold water.
  5. Clogged gutters – some folks have full-blown botanical gardens growing in their gutters!
  6. Treeholes – remember to look up! A large treehole can hold lots of water, and many species of mosquitoes will breed here.
  7. Abandoned rodent bait boxes – these can hold water and are like the Ritz-Carlton to mosquitoes!
  8. Drainage saucers under potted plants – recommend that your customers set their pots on bamboo sticks or rocks to increase the drainage. Drainage saucers are breeding heaven, especially for the Asian tiger mosquito and yellow fever mosquito.
  9. Tarps – these always sag, collect water and organic debris, resulting in a ‘Mosquito Motel’!

The presence of mosquitoes on a property means a majority of species are breeding nearby. As a result, your mosquito control inspections are important. Keeping both the usual & unusual breeding sites in mind when on a property will give you a leg up with your customer!

Captain Stan Cope (aka the Mosquito Man) is our Vice President of Technical Services, learn more about him here: https://catchmasterpro.com/blog/stan-cope-phd/

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Get more content like this daily when you follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/catchmasterPRO/

Get our Mosquito Management Guide here: https://catchmasterpro.com/mosquito-management-program/

For help with mosquito season 2020 & beyond, discover Catchmaster® mosquito management tools:  https://catchmasterpro.com/collection/mosquito-management-tools/

In addition, learn more about mosquitoes from the NPMA here: https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/mosquitoes/

Finally, get tips for your business by following us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ap&g-co-inc

Jun 08
0

Ovi-Catch Mosquito Trap Ingredients

By | Mosquitoes, Tips & Inspirations, Trapping Tips | No Comments

The ingredients in our Ovi-Catch Mosquito Trap optimize performance. The trap, built for research conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), utilizes mosquitoes’ breeding habits against them. In particular, the trap mimics traditional breeding sites to draw the mosquitoes into the container and trap them on a glue board. Removing 1 female mosquito can eliminate up to 1,000 future mosquitoes field results indicate that capturing up to 30% of egg-laying female mosquitoes can decrease populations by 80%. Clearly, the trap can be a great addition to any mosquito management programs.

Therefore, placing the trap correctly and using the right ingredients as an attractant will go a long way to determining success.  First, some basics on trap placement. Traps should be placed in areas on a property that are conducive to mosquitoes.

Areas on a property to place Ovi-Catch mosquito trap

  1. Cool
  2. Shaded
  3. Moist
  4. Out-of-the-Wind

Above all, the key for ingredients is pretty simple, the smellier the better. Additionally, if possible prepare your mixture of the ingredient plus water a few days in advance. This will allow the mixture to get smellier and will produce more immediate results.

7 optimal Ovi-Catch Mosquito Trap ingredients

Ovi-Catch Mosquito Trap Ingredients - Icon

  1. Alfalfa hay
  2. Rabbit food pellets
  3. Stagnant water (from ponds, lakes, irrigation ditches, streams or rivers)
  4. Oak leaves
  5. Dry dog food
  6. Brewer’s yeast
  7. Grass clippings

Additionally. be sure to monitor your traps for performance over time. If one ingredient isn’t working don’t be afraid to switch it up & happy hunting!

Finally, did we miss your go-to ingredient? Let us know in the comments below, happy to update the article and add your tip!

Additional Resources

Get our free mosquito management program guide when you sign up for our e-mail list here: https://catchmasterpro.com/mosquito-management-program/

Get more content like this daily when you follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/catchmasterPRO/

Along with Ovi-Catch, discover our full line of Catchmaster® mosquito management tools:  https://catchmasterpro.com/collection/mosquito-management-tools/

Additionally, Captain Stan Cope (aka the Mosquito Man) is our Vice President of Technical Services and blogs frequently on mosquitoes. In addition to his social media content you can find his blog archives here: https://catchmasterpro.com/?s=captain+stan

Finally, learn more about mosquitoes from the NPMA here: https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/mosquitoes/