719-661-5310Pests are simply organisms that disrupt the comfortable living conditions of humans. They may include organisms such as insects, pathogens, rodents, birds and arachnids.
Unless they are regulated or removed from human habitats, they can cause diseases, destroy structures, farm produce and disrupt the ecosystem of other domestic animals.
The process of extermination, removal or regulation of a pest community is known as pest control.
Different methods, depending on the category of the pest, the environment in which they live and the expected outcome, are applied during the control.
These range from chemical, mechanical or physical, biological, cultural, and genetic to integrated pest control methods.
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Chemical Control
Just as the name implies, this method entails the use of chemicals to regulate pest populations. A good example of chemicals used when regulating pests is pesticides. These are designed to kill different pest types such as weeds, flies, bugs and ants. Unfortunately, this method has sparked a global outrage because of the many health concerns and its impacts on the environment. Some selected pesticides have been reported to contain carcinogenic compounds that contribute to most cancer issues not just in the US, but globally.
Cultural Control
Cultural control as a method of regulating populations of pests entails altering their behavior. It also entails altering the environment in which they thrive to make it uncomfortable for the pests to breed further. Examples of cultural control include crop rotation and avoiding planting during peak seasons of pests and sanitation of areas where pests thrive best. This is one of the environmentally conscious methods since it reduces your carbon footprint.
Biological Control
Biological control, as a method of controlling pests refers to the blending of enemies amongst the pest communities to make it unbearable for them. This works by making the environment where they thrive unbearable and preventing further breeding. The major limitation associated with this method is that it is determined by climate.
Integrated Pest control Methods, IPM
IPM refers to the technique of applying a combination of several methods. This technique comes in handy where several individual methods have failed to address the issue of pests. The technique aims to address pest issues with minimal disruption to the pest ecology, while still protecting the integrity of environment. The choice of methods to combine depends on factors like population size, environment and what expectation you have from the process. For instance, one may combine mechanical with cultural and biological methods to control a specific pest type.
Mechanical/Physical Control
This method relies heavily on heat and cold treatment to remove and eliminate pests from certain areas of inhabitation. Moreover, traps and barriers may also be relied upon when using this method. Physically control falls under the most eco-friendly hacks for dealing with pests. This is because it does not affect the environment negatively in any way whatsoever.
Genetic Control
This is the alteration of the genetic makeup of pests to reduce their damage or eliminate their ability to breed further. This method relies on the use of specialized equipment in highly rated laboratories. Genetic control can be in the form of sterile insects that lack the ability to fertilize female pests, thereby reducing and ultimately eliminating the pest type. Since pests play an important role in maintaining ecological balance, an alternative method to genetic control of pests without eliminating them, exists. This entails the use of a similar pest that lacks the ability to cause harm.
This method is among the most effective and environmentally conscious since it does not disrupt ecological balance. However, it comes with a major limitation since lots of resources and time have to be invested into the generic alteration.
Conclusively, effective methods of pest control entail the application of a wide range of strategies suited for different pests and environments they are wreaking havoc. Chemical methods provide a quick and effective strategy for combating pest infestation but they negatively affect the environment. Biological and genetic methods are a great hack to combat pest infestation but they are unsustainable, financially. Mechanical and cultural methods are a great hack to eradicate pests while paying attention to environmental considerations.
By carefully evaluating your unique pest infestation situation in terms of type and environment, you can come up with an effective and sustainable solution. Hiring a professional in pest control is the best way to combat this menace. In addition to delivering exemplary results in a more reduced timeline, they are licensed, which is quite important when it comes to pest control since disruption of the ecology of pests like birds may get you into bad books of authorities that safeguard their wellbeing.
