The ANT-SER Man » PALM PESTS

The Expert Bug Man

admin — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:11:43 +0000

I am not one who toots his own horn-however I am going to do it. I am now an Associate Certified Entomologist. This a limited availability credential with a stringent qualifying procedure. I look forward to any and all inquiries about the pest world or just general questions. Inquire @ www.ant-ser.com.

Well I appreciate you listening.

Have A Great Day,

Jeff Ahrens, A.C.E.

New Survey Shows Family and Pet Safety Is Top of Mind for Homeowners Faced With a Pest Infestation

admin — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:48:54 +0000

WILMINGTON, DE–(Marketwire – June 18, 2009) – According to a national survey released today by DuPont, protecting family, pets and property is top-of-mind for homeowners dealing with pest infestations, they go to www.ant-ser.com for do it yourself products. Forty percent of respondents replied they were most scared of potential bug bites or stings, and another 35 percent were most troubled by the damage to their home or lawn caused by bugs.

The survey also found that the majority (70 percent) of homeowners are concerned about the safety of pest control products and want to handle insect invasions in a manner that poses no threats to themselves, their family or pets. The good news is that consumers don’t have to choose between pests and pesticides they go to www.ant-ser.com for do it yourself products. Today’s pest control options provide homeowners with effective pest management in and around their homes with low impact on their families, pets and the environment. www.ant-ser.com has products such as Talstar, Advion, Demon and rodent baits.

Please follow this link to see the results from a Dupont survey.

http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Dupont-1006246.html

Look At The Stinging Caterpillar We just Found On The Palms!

admin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 19:28:15 +0000

Distribution
Io moths are common throughout eastern North America, north to southern Canada. They range west to southern Arizona and south to Central America, at least as far as Costa Rica. Over 200 species of Automeris and related genera in Hemileucinae occur south of the U.S. border (Collins and Weast 1961).
Identification
The io moth adult is 2.0 to 3.5 inches (50 to 87 mm) in wingspan and easily recognized by the large eye-spots of the hindwings. Adult males are mostly yellow, while females have brown forewings. Subspecies A. io lilith (Strecker) of Florida has male adults with distinctly red-brown forewings, especially in south Florida; the same type of red form is also found in southern Mexico and the Bahamas. The larvae have characteristic long yellow or green spines covering most of the body. Only a few other caterpillars may look similar, but these do not have the well-defined red and white lateral line. The io moth caterpillar has at least three discrete color forms: the usual last instar form is light green, with a distinct lateral body strip of red and white. Earlier instars are yellow overall and the lateral line is reduced. There also is a blue-green color form of last instars (Collins and Weast 1961).
adult

caterpillar, early instar larvae

caterpillar, last instar larva

Biology
Io moth larvae are leaf feeders, gregarious in early instars, then solitary as they grow. After several weeks of feeding, they make a simple paper-like cocoon away from the host plant. In Florida, there are three to four generations per year. There usually is only one generation in northern states.
Host Plants
The io moth has a long list of host plants, with over 100 recorded plant genera in North America, including such diverse plants as roses, cotton, hibiscus, azaleas, willows, clover, and palms. In Florida, io moth larvae are commonly found on oaks and other hardwoods.
Management
If present in large numbers, caterpillars can be sprayed with a bacterial spray (Bacillus thuringiensis) or any common insecticide although usually the larvae are not so common as to warrant spraying. Larvae should not be touched. Remedies for relief of urticating pain include initial removal of any remaining inserted spines by the use of adhesive tape, followed by ice compacts, mentholated vaseline, or an antihistamine medicine (Riley and Johannsen 1938, Frazier and Brown 1980).