Pest Control, Termite Treatment & Exterminator

Pest control refers to the regulation or management of another species defined as a pest, usually because it is detrimental to a person's health, the ecology or the economy.

Pest control is at least as old as agriculture. In order to maximize food production, it is necessary to protect crops from competing species of plants, as well as from herbivores competing with humans. This can be done with conventional, chemical or biological weapons.

The conventional approach was probably the first to be employed, since it is comparatively easy to destroy weeds by burning them or plowing them under, and to kill larger competing herbivores, such as crows and other birds eating seeds. Techniques such as crop rotation, companion planting, also known as intercropping or mixed cropping, and the selective breeding of pest-resistant cultivars also have a long history.

Many pests have only become a problem because of the direct actions of humans. Modifying these actions can often substantially reduce the pest problem. In the USA, raccoons caused a nuisance by tearing open refuse sacks. Many householders introduced bins with locking lids, which deterred the raccoons from visiting.

Seagulls have become a pest at many seaside resorts. Tourists would often feed the birds with scraps of fish and chips, and before long, the birds would become dependent on this food source and act aggressively towards humans. Many local authorities have now erected signs warning visitors not to feed the seagulls.

Chemical pest control dates back to 2500BCE, when the Sumerians used sulphur compounds as insecticides. The Rig Veda (c. 2000BCE) also mentions the use of poisonous plants for pest control. And the ancient Chinese and Egyptians are also known to have used chemical pest control. But it was only with the industrialization and mechanization of agriculture in the 18th and 19th century, and the introduction of the insecticides pyrethrum and derris that chemical pest control became the method of choice. In the 20th century, the discovery of several synthetic insecticides, such as DDT, and herbicides boosted this development. Chemical pest control is still the predominant type of pest control today, although its long-term effects led to a renewed interest in traditional and biological pest control towards the end of the 20th century.

termite or white ant, common name for a soft-bodied social insect of the order Isoptera. Termites are easily distinguished from ants by comparison of the base of the abdomen, which is broadly joined to the thorax in termites; in ants, there is only a slender connection (petiole) joining these segments. In addition, the antennae of termites are beadlike or threadlike, while ant antennae are elbowed. Termites have chewing mouthparts. They feed chiefly on wood, from which they obtain cellulose. In primitive species cellulose is converted into various sugars by specialized gut protozoans and in the more highly evolved termites by specialized bacteria living symbiotically in the termite's digestive tract. Termites undergo gradual metamorphosis (see insect). The nearly 2,000 species are mostly tropical, and some build huge mounds to house their colonies. These mounds, up to 40 ft (12.2 m) high, are a characteristic feature of the landscape in parts of Africa and Australia.
Termite Colonies and Castes

Termite colonies are composed of three castes; the reproductives (kings and queens), the soldiers, and the workers. The kings and queens are sexually mature termites, with compound eyes and fully developed wings. The workers and soldiers lack wings and compound eyes. Sexually mature termites, or reproductives, are produced in large numbers during certain seasons and leave the colony in a swarm. They are poor fliers, and most are eaten by birds and other animals.

When the surviving termites settle, their wings break off along a weakened seam at the base. They then form pairs, each of which establishes a new colony. A couple excavates a chamber in wood or soil, in which they mate; they remain permanently paired, and the queen eventually produces as many as 30,000 eggs per day. Two or three weeks after mating, the young nymphs hatch and are fed on liquid secreted by the parents and on fecal wastes, from which they obtain the protozoan or bacterial symbionts essential for life.

The caste into which the young termite, or nymph, develops is dependent upon the amount of growth-inhibiting substance (a pheromone) passed to it during feeding and grooming. The pheromone is secreted by the reproductives and, when present in a high enough concentration, prevents the development of nymphs into reproductives. (A large colony may have several pairs of reproductives.) As more workers and soldiers are added, since they do not produce the pheromone, its concentration in the colony is correspondingly decreased. Therefore when the colony reaches a certain size, some of the nymphs begin to develop into reproductives, which then produce pheromones. This phenomenon also occurs if the original reproductives die. The increase in the pheromone level prevents the maturation of additional nymphs into reproductives; these remaining nymphs then become workers. In a similar way, the appearance of soldiers appears to inhibit the production of more soldiers.

In some families of termites, no workers develop, and the nymphs perform worker functions, which include feeding the royal couple, the soldiers, and the very young nymphs; caring for the eggs; grooming the queen; constructing and repairing the nest; and foraging for food. The soldiers have heads as large as the rest of the body and equipped with strong mandibles used in defense of the colony. They attack any intruders to the colony and stand guard at the entrances, in some species closing the entrances by putting their heads in the holes. Soldiers of certain species squirt a sticky, poisonous secretion at enemies.

Damage by Termites

There are two major groups of termites, the wood dwellers (family Hodotermitidae) and the soil dwellers (family Rhinotermitidae). The latter cause over $250 million loss per year in the United States alone. The Formosan termite, a more aggressive species than the U.S. species, was discovered in the United States in 1965 along the Gulf and in Atlantic port cities. Soil dwellers attack only wood that is in contact with the ground or close enough to be reached through enclosed earthen runways, which are connected to the termite's underground galleries. Treatment of soil, use of treated wood, or shielding with metal and concrete are among the methods used to prevent entry of termites into buildings. Drywood termites do not require as high a humidity as do soil dwellers and will attack trees, fence posts, stumps, and wooden buildings.

exterminator - someone who exterminates (especially someone whose occupation is the extermination of troublesome rodents and insects)