Category

Insects

The Best Fly Traps of 2023

By | Insects | No Comments

Keeping mosquitoes, flies, and other flying insects out of the house can prevent irritation as well as bug bites.

For keeping flying pests out, rely on the window fly traps by Catchmaster. These handy and transparent glue traps can be attached to any window, windowsill, or garage door in your home to attract pests before they enter.

For ease of use, these sticky traps are waterproof, disposable, nontoxic, and last for up to a year. Plus, these traps are easy to install: Simply remove the small release liner, place the trap where desired, and then remove the large release liner.

Product Specs

  • Type: Glue
  • Reusability: No
  • Disposal: Throw out when done

Pros

  • Very easy to use: Simply stick on a window, windowsill, or garage door
  • Does not draw a lot of attention; transparent construction blends right in
  • Waterproof, nontoxic, and disposable for ease of use and durability

Cons

  • Creates more waste than some comparable options

Article by Bob Vila continues here: The Best Fly Traps of 2023

Purchase Window Fly Traps here: Window Fly Traps by Catchmaster

Captain Stan’s ‘Creature Features’ – Volume 1

By | Honeybees, Insects, Tips & Inspirations | No Comments

Welcome to the inaugural edition of ‘Captain Stan’s Creature Features,’ where we will take a look at some of the more interesting animals in the pest management universe.  This month, the star of the show is one of our important non-target organisms, the honeybee (Apis mellifera)  and here are interesting facts about this highly beneficial insect:

 

  • The honeybee is the only insect that produces a food eaten by humans (and lots of other animals!)
  • Bees have 5 eyes; two large compound eyes on either side of the head and 3 smaller eyes, called ocelli, in the center of the head.
  • Honeybees fly about 15 miles per hour, and their wings stroke 11,400 times per minute, resulting in their distinctive buzz.
  • A queen bee can lay up to 2,000 eggs per day.
  • About 62 people die in the US each year from bee, wasp, and hornet stings.
  • Losing its stinger results in the death of a honeybee but not wasps and hornets.
  • Honeybees pollinate about 130 agricultural crops in the US, and through pollination, they are responsible for about 1/3 of everything we eat.
  • In the hive, honeybees communicate both direction and distance of a food source to other bees. This is done by something called the ‘waggle dance.’
  • A honeybee visits 50-100 flowers on one trip, and one forager must collect nectar from about 2 million flowers to make 1 pound of honey.
  • An average beehive can contain about 50,000 honeybees.
  • And CAPT Stan’s favorite – Fermented honey, known as ‘mead,’ is the most ancient fermented beverage! Legend has it that the term ‘honeymoon’ originated with the Norse practice of consuming large quantities of mead during the first month of marriage!

Honeybees are obviously important to our ecosystems, agricultural practices, and our economy.  Pest professionals should always make every effort to protect them.  I recommend you check to see if your area of service has a ‘beekeeper hotline’ or other source.  You can use that to find out who keeps beehives and where they are located.  Bee kind to the honeybee!

 

Integrated Pest Management Tips for Re-Opening

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

Integrated Pest Management Tips for Re-Opened Accounts

Learn how to be at the top of your game with these top 5 integrated pest management tips for re-opening. With people heading back to work and accounts opening their doors the opportunity for pest professionals has increased. Without regular maintenance there is a chance the pest pressure at previously closed businesses may be at an all-time high. Think about a re-opened account as a lake that has not been fished in awhile or a well-beaten deer path in the woods. Opportunity abounds, but where to start? Keep these 5 integrated pest management tips in mind when first visiting a re-opened account.

Top 5 IPM Tips for Re-Opening

Top 5 Integrated Pest Management Tips for Re-Opening - House

  • Exterior inspection – like any good pest detective your work in a re-opened account will start with the exterior. As a result, a thorough inspection is vital. If the business or property has been closed for an extended period of time it is likely that basic property maintenance has been neglected. Look for any piles of debris, like trash, leaves or lawn clippings that may have accumulated. They may provide food and harborage to pests. For mosquito prevention look for any standing water. Inspect the structure as well as cracks in foundations for gaps in doors may have grown. Exclusion work is likely to be required. Here is a helpful article with the top 5 areas for exclusion in a home: https://catchmasterpro.com/blog/top-5-areas-for-exclusion-around-the-home/
  • Don’t miss the forest for the trees – as a pest pro you are trained to look for minute details in an account but now the reverse might be true, and the bigger details may be more prominent. This may be especially relevant for rodent activity. With months of unimpeded activity, telltale signs of rodents are more likely to emerge. These signs include:
    • Droppings
    • Strong Odors
    • Gnaw Marks
    • Tracks or Rub Markings

Be mindful of conducive conditions

  • Drains and water systems – if an account has been closed for awhile chances are the water has been drained. Therefore, the presence of moisture around drains or other water systems may be an indication of an underlying condition, like a leaking pipe or clogging. Here’s a pro tip – to monitor for small flies found in many commercial accounts use one for our 100FF Fruit Fly Glue boards inverted above a drain. This will allow you to diagnose any flies that have found a food source during closure.
  • Sanitation opportunities – with fewer people at work there is a possibility that normal, everyday sanitation has been neglected. This could include examples like leftover trash to floor and surfaces that have not been mopped or swept for some time. Look for signs like mold or staining and provide sanitation recommendations. Not only will this educate your customer it may provide the opportunity for add-on surfaces.

Don’t forget your toolbox!

  • Use the right tools – install monitors, like our 100i & 288i Insect Monitors in areas where insects and rodents might be. A lot has likely changed since you were last in the facility and monitoring will allow you to establish a new baseline. Monitoring will not only tell you what species have flourished but they will also tell you where they are at. If pests have flourished, consider utilizing a tool like our Catch Zone Pest Boundary Roll. With 60 feet of catching power it is ideal for hotspots and clean outs.

In a lot of ways, visiting a re-opened account may feel like a regular maintenance check, just on steroids. Therefore, it may feel daunting but focus on the basics first. With pests flourishing in the absence of human activity the key is to look for the basic signs, both small and large, that will inform your integrated pest management program.

Integrated Pest Management in Re-Opened Accounts – Additional Resources

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

Sign up for our mailing list here: https://catchmasterpro.com/join-email/

Learn more about mosquitoes from the National Pest Management Association here: https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/mosquitoes/

Finally, get COVID-19 updates from the NPMA here: https://www.pestcontrolcoronavirus.com/

Get in the Game of Mosquito Control with a Dynamic Mosquito Reduction Program

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

Mosquito Reduction Program - Mosquito

Mosquito Reduction Program – Get in the game of mosquito control

A mosquito reduction program can be a key service for your pest control business.  Driven in part by fears over Zika, West Nile and other vector-borne diseases, mosquito control services are in increasingly high demand.  In fact, the rise in demand has corresponded with an increased presence from pest control organizations focused solely on mosquito control.  Yet, despite the opportunity, mosquito control is one of the most under-utilized revenue streams for established pest management companies.

Why is that?

There are several possible reasons for the hesitancy to add mosquito services:

  • Inability to fully eliminate mosquitoes on a property
  • Difficulty managing customer expectations
  • Available products on the market are limited
  • Products on the market may produce unpredictable results
  • Frustration with previous mosquito service protocols

Whatever the reason for staying on the mosquito control sideline, now is the time to get in the game!  For example, in the latest year available, PCT Magazine reported 78% of PMPs expected their mosquito revenue to grow in 2018.  PMPs can take advantage of this opportunity with an integrated mosquito management program from the Catchmaster® brand.  Our products are effective, eco-friendly and safe to use around people, pets and animals.  Most importantly, our products are backed by peer-reviewed, published science.

Mosquito Reduction Program – What products can help?

The Catchmaster® brand’s new mosquito bait, Final Feed™, attracts and kills. It is the first mosquito bait on the market and is classified as a 25B exempt minimum risk pesticide by the EPA.  In fact, the dual-action formula is made up of natural sugars that attract mosquitoes to the bait.  Once ingested, the micro-encapsulated active ingredient (garlic oil, 0.4%) reduces mosquitoes’ appetite for blood and then kills them. In fact, it’s a key component in a true integrated mosquito management program.  In fact, Final Feed™ mosquito bait stops the breeding cycle and reduces mosquito populations by over 90% within 2-3 weeks.

Final Feed™ mosquito bait joins the Catchmaster® brand’s expanding mosquito line which currently includes the Ovi-Catch™ mosquito trap.  Used together, both products offer the ability to “kill & catch” on a single property in an eco-friendly manner.

About Ovi-Catch

The Ovi-Catch™ mosquito trap uses mosquitoes’ breeding habits against them.  Research has shown that some of the most invasive mosquito species seek out containers to lay their eggs.  The Catchmaster® R&D team utilized this knowledge along with technology that was developed and tested at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) laboratory in Puerto Rico, to develop an economical, environmentally-safe and effective tool that works to catch female mosquitoes during their breeding cycle.

The Catchmaster® Ovi-Catch™ uses only organic matter, a container and a glueboard to attract and capture mosquitoes. The tool uses no pesticides, making it safe for use in everyday environments.  This includes areas like backyards and businesses where children and pets may be present.  For each female mosquito caught, up to 1,000 future mosquitoes may be prevented.

Bobby Kossowicz is a content creator for the Catchmaster® brand, learn more here: https://catchmasterpro.com/blog/bobby-kossowicz/

Mosquito Reduction Program – Additional Resources

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

Sign up for our mailing list here: https://catchmasterpro.com/join-email/

Learn more about mosquitoes from the National Pest Management Association here: https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/mosquitoes/

Finally, discover more about the Catchmaster® brand’s mosquito management tools here: https://catchmasterpro.com/collection/mosquito-management-tools/

7 Kissing Bug Fun Facts

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Kissing Bugs: Romantic or a Big Misnomer?

Kissing bug sounds like a nice nickname for an insect but you may be feeling differently about these 7 fun facts from our Captain Stan.

It’s Valentines Day, and supposedly, love is in the air!  And guess what?  So are some nasty insects called ‘kissing’ bugs.  These creatures belong to the insect family Triatomidae, and they all feed exclusively on blood, including that of humans.

7 Kissing Bug Fun Facts

  1. They are found in Central and South America, as well as Mexico and the Southern   United States.  There are 11 different species in the U.S.
  2. They are responsible for transmitting a nasty disease known as Chagas disease, which is on the increase in the United States.
  3. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that as many as 8 million people have the infection in the Americas and Mexico, with up to 300,000 infections in the United States.
  4. Some of the larger kissing bugs can reach 2.5 inches in length and take as long as 20 minutes or so to ‘fill up’ on blood!
  5. Some people are highly allergic to the bite of these bugs, which can result in anaphylactic shock.
  6. Kissing bugs have the nasty habit of defecating on the host while they are feeding, and this is how the parasites that cause Chagas disease are transmitted.
  7. And finally, the name? Well, they are not called ‘kissing bugs’ because of amorous tendencies.  In fact, they generally bite people at night, when they are sleeping, and they prefer to bite on the face, around the lips.  There you have it!

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

Kissing Bugs – Additional Resources

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

Sign up for our mailing list here: https://catchmasterpro.com/join-email/

Learn more about kissing bugs from the NPMA here: https://www.pestworld.org/pest-guide/other-pests/kissing-bugs/

 

Intelligent Pest Management

By | Insects, Mosquitoes, Rodents, Tips & Inspirations | No Comments

AP&G Co., Inc. = Intelligent Pest Management (IPM)

The pillars of our approach are grounded in a multi-step process to dealing with pests.

The 4 Steps of Intelligent Pest Management

  1. Inspection – spend as much time as it takes to do an excellent inspection to get a thorough understanding of the unique situations and problem areas that are present in your account.
  2. Plan – habitat manipulation to remove conducive conditions is critical – making sanitation and exclusion the cornerstones of any IPM plan.  Special consideration needs to be paid to sanitation and structural issues that are creating conducive conditions, attracting pests to your account and allowing them to thrive.  Your IPM Plan must take exact species identification and problem areas identified in your initial inspection consideration to identify the most prudent and effective means of removing the existing infestation.
  3. Execute – mitigate all conducive conditions, incorporate any sanitary or exclusion requirements where necessary and remove remaining pests from your account based on your comprehensive IPM plan.
  4. Monitor – install monitors or schedule repeat visits to evaluate the results of your plan and to identify new or recurring problems.

Working together, each of the steps in Intelligent Pest Management provide a holistic system for protecting your client’s “turf”.

Intelligent Pest Management - 4 Steps

Additional Resources

Learn more about our full line of IPM monitors and other products here: https://catchmasterpro.com/product-line/ 

Get more great content like this in your inbox – sign up for our mailing list here: https://catchmasterpro.com/join-email/

Learn more about your pest management professional options from the National Pest Management Association here: https://npmapestworld.org/

Cankerworm Control Services 101

By | blog, Insects, Tips & Inspirations | No Comments

Cankerworm control 101

Looking to expand your business offerings? Consider cankerworm control. Cankerworms, also known as inch worms, are a common pest that occurs throughout much of the United States. The pest can be quite destructive. It feeds on the leaves of trees of many types of trees, including:

  • Oak
  • Maple
  • Ash
  • Beech
  • Basswood and more

The pest may cause trees to defoliate. As a result, it places great stress on the tree leading to significant damage. Cankerworms are a nuisance for both home and business owners. Areas with cankerworms infestations are often unpleasant.  In particular they can take over backyards, make an unsightly nuisance and even fall into outdoor eating areas.

Your role as a pest professional can help conserve the beauty and necessity of trees in your service region. At this time let’s take a closer look at getting started in cankerworm control.

Cankerworm control 101 - lifecycle

4 easy tips for getting started in cankerworm control

  1. Tree-banding is the solution!The good news is you do not need to obtain any special licenses to offer tree-banding services for the cankerworm. And adding this service to your repertoire will also help you to get into the Cankerworm business as well.  Not sure how to tree-band?  Fortunately, we have you covered with detailed instructions in our Tree-Banding 101 one-pager. The process is very straightforward and simple.
  2. Cross-market to your current customer base.Simply make your current audience aware of your new business offering. Use your usual marketing channels to notify customers of the threat and your additional service offering. We recommend both monitoring and control service options. Fortunately, tree-banding will allow you to do both.
  3. Protect tree health and preserve the beauty of your community.Get the word out in your service area.  Utilize social media posts, e-mail blasts and dedicated portions of your website to educate the public about the importance of treating for and monitoring for cankerworms. Pictures of the insect as well as the damage they cause can be very effective in your marketing. Our Social Media Resource Library has lots of educational content free for your use.  As a result, you can help educate the public on cankerworms and their control. For example, you could offer your expertise to your community through local newspapers and radio stations.  These organizations are often looking for local experts.
  4. Consider donating your services.Have you noticed cankerworm damage in your service region? Consider treating a small area of trees in a busy part of your community for free in exchange for placement of lawn signs advertising your business.  Lawn signs are a great way to get the word out about your brand and new service offering.

Additional Resources

Learn more about tree-banding with our Catchmaster® TB-1 glue here: https://catchmasterpro.com/product/tree-banding-glue/

Learn more about cankerworms from the University of Maryland here: https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/topics/cankerworm

Bobby Kossowicz is a content creator for the Catchmaster® brand, learn more here: https://catchmasterpro.com/blog/bobby-kossowicz/

 

Keeping Your Home & Pumpkins Safe from Pests this Halloween

By | blog, Insects, Rodents, Tips & Inspirations, Trapping Tips, Uncategorized | No Comments

Halloween pest control can help keep your holiday festive.

Halloween Pest Control - Cota

It’s October, a chill is in the air and homeowners are busy decking their halls with spiders, rats and other creepy crawlers in preparation for Halloween.  It is about the only time of the year that pests are an acceptable décor choice around the home.  Holiday displays aside, here are some tips for keeping the real pests at bay this year.

Spiders – better out than in

Did you know that spiders can actually be a beneficial pest, particularly in your garden? Perhaps not the best news if you suffer from arachnophobia. It’s true though, spiders in your garden play a pivotal role in keeping down the number of plant-killing bugs and may also prevent you from being stung while working in your garden. However, very few of us want to share our homes with these creatures.

Spider pest control tips

  1. To keep spiders out of your home, consider performing some exclusion work, filling cracks and crevices, sealing gaps and openings around the home and replacing door sweeps that may no longer provide a strong seal.
  2. Another great line of defense against indoor spiders is your vacuum cleaner. Suck up any visible spiders and be sure to remove cobwebs around your home as well.
  3. Finally, consider monitoring your home for spiders with our glue traps and boards. Place our glue trays or boards in out of the way areas to find what’s really creeping around your home this fall.

Halloween Pest Control - Rat Facts

Halloween Pest Control – Keeping the Rats at Bay

Much like spiders, rats can enter your home through relatively small cracks and holes. Did you know that a rat can squeeze its body through a hole the size of a quarter? There are a couple of actions you can take to keep rats away. First, fill any holes or gaps you find around the perimeter of your home. Second, keep your plumbing in tip top shape. Like many other pests, rats are drawn to moisture and a leaky pipe can be the water source needed.

Beware the Pumpkin Eaters

Lastly, be careful where you place that seasonal pumpkin. Pumpkins are a huge component of Halloween Pest Control.  Pumpkins left outdoors are a great food source for rats, mice and other rodents and will also draw pests to your home particularly as the pumpkin begins to rot.

Pumpkin pest prevention

  1. Display pumpkins in a cool, dry place to prevent mold and rot from setting in early and attract insects.
  2. You can protect your pumpkins with a simple mixture of bleach and water. Simply spray this mixture on a carved pumpkin each day before Halloween for an easy, effective pest management practice to keep fruit flies and other insects at bay.
  3. To avoid your pumpkin serving as a food source for rodents and squirrels in the area, try coating the pumpkin inside and out with hot pepper sauce.

We hope these tips help you to enjoy the Halloween season where the only pests you see are a part of your seasonal décor.

Bobby Kossowicz is a content creator for the Catchmaster® brand, learn more here: https://catchmasterpro.com/blog/bobby-kossowicz/

Additional Halloween Pest Control Resources

Looking for more Halloween pest tips?  Gest some mosquito tips from our own Captain Stan (aka the Mosquito Man) here: https://catchmasterpro.com/blog/halloween-mosquito-prevention/

Learn more about pests at Pest World, the official site of the National Pest Management Association here: http://pestworld.org/

Halloween Mosquito Prevention

By | Insects, Mosquitoes, Trapping Tips | No Comments

Don’t let mosquitoes take a bit out of your fun this year – use these 4 Halloween mosquito prevention tips to enjoy pest-free trick-or-treating!

Ah- Halloween!  The season of gremlins and ghouls is upon us, and costumes and candy rule the day!  However, if your locality has not experienced a heavy freeze, nasty mosquitoes will still be out on Halloween. Here are a few tips from Vampire Captain Stan to minimize your exposure whether you are dispensing candy or seeking it yourself.

Halloween Mosquito Prevention - Mosquito Fun Facts

4 Easy Halloween Mosquito Prevention Tips

  1. If costumes permit, cover as much of your exposed skin as possible. Limit access for the blood-seekers (mosquitoes, not vampires!)
  2. If needed, use a mosquito repellent that has an EPA-registered active ingredient (https://www.cdc.gov/zika/prevention/prevent-mosquito-bites.html)
  3. Mosquitoes love entering houses through open doors. When answering the doorbell, don’t leave the door wide open while giving treats.  Invite the visitors in or go outside with them.  If weather permits, you can set up your candy store outside or in the garage but be sure and protect yourself!
  4. Many kinds of mosquitoes are highly attracted to white light. Consider using yellow ‘bug lights’ or perhaps even super cool Halloween bulbs in your outdoor fixtures.  This will help limit the mosquitoes attracted to your front door as well as to your property.

Happy Haunting and remember:  Safety First!

Captain Stan Cope (aka the Mosquito Man) is our Vice President of Technical Services.  Learn more about Stan here:  https://catchmaster.com/introducing-captain-stan-the-mosquito-man/

Additional Resources

For help with mosquito season 2019 & beyond, discover Catchmaster® mosquito management tools:  https://catchmasterpro.com/product/final-feed-mosquito-bait/

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

Catchmaster Pestimonial – Envirosafe

By | Insects, Pestimonials, Rodents, Uncategorized | No Comments

Catchmaster Pestimonial – Envirosafe

In this edition of our Catchmaster Pestimonial series, Veteran PMP Gary Pietrucha says the Catchmaster® brand listens to its customers, creating a corporate culture that values relationships and drives innovation.

The Value of Relationships

Relationships are important to Gary Pietrucha, owner and president of Envirosafe Pest Management, Itasca, Ill. Upon launching his company in 1988, the veteran PMP knew he wanted to operate a “boutique business” providing high-quality, environmentally sensitive pest control services, but one which also maintained close ties with its customers and employees as it grew.

“From the day I started, I wanted to be directly involved in the business,” he says. “I wanted to be large enough to handle major accounts, but small enough to know what was going on in every facet of the business. I didn’t want to lose track of my customers or employees. I wanted to be that ‘go-to’ person for both of them, and I think I’ve been successful.”

Catchmaster Pestimonial – The Value of Glue Boards

Those are also qualities Pietrucha values in his vendor relationships, which is why he thinks so highly of AP&G, manufacturer of the popular Catchmaster® line of products. Pietrucha says one of the reasons AP&G has been successful for so many years (the company was founded in 1952) is they listen to their customers.

A longtime proponent of glue boards, Pietrucha says he uses these valuable IPM tools in a variety of accounts, from warehouse and distribution centers to food-service facilities.

“Glue boards are an amazing pest control resource,” he says. “Us old-timers remember taking a gallon of bulk glue and making giant glue boards designed to capture large numbers of rodents. They were effective in reducing populations, but they looked unprofessional.”

Thanks to companies like AP&G, however, glue boards have become more sophisticated and increasingly effective over time. Today, the New Jersey-based company offers a comprehensive line of adhesive products, including rat glue boards, mouse glue boards, custom glue boards and glue trays.

“Glue boards are a very simple devices with multiple uses,” Pietrucha observes. “We use them in a variety of different applications and they also offer a number of public health benefits. Rodents not only get stuck on the boards, but the pathogens and parasites that reside on those rodents also get stuck.”

Catch Zone™ Pest Boundary Roll – A Timely Innovation

Catchmaster Pestimonial - Catch Zone

“I also use Catch ZoneTM in a number of accounts,” Pietrucha says. Perfect for clean outs and protecting large, sensitive areas, Catchmaster® Catch ZoneTM comes in 60-foot by 12-inch rolls that can be cut easily to conform to virtually any space, providing a first line of defense against both rodents and insects.

Pietrucha was so impressed with the product that he wondered if it could be adapted to control rats by applying a thicker layer of glue. “I asked Dave Johnson, my sales representative, and he listened,” Pietrucha says, shaking his head in amazement. “I’m small potatoes, just a little pest control guy from Itasca, but they listened to me! They took my comments to heart and helped me out. Now I can level the playing field against rats. I can put this long strip of glue out there and provide very effective rodent control.”

Catchmaster Pestimonial - Pallet Image

Learn more about our Catch Zone™ Pest Boundary Roll here: https://catchmasterpro.com/product/catch-zone-pest-boundary-roll/

Learn more about Envirosafe here: http://www.pestmgmt.com/

Read other stories in our Catchmaster Pestimonial series here: https://catchmasterpro.com/?s=pestimonial

Special thanks to the team at PCT Magazine for their contributions to this article: https://www.pctonline.com/