Pest Info

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Ants

Ants form colonies that range in size from a few dozen living in small natural cavities to highly organised colonies that may occupy large territories and consist of millions of individuals. Larger colonies consist mostly of sterile, wingless females forming castes of “workers”, “soldiers”, or other specialised groups. Nearly all ant colonies also have some fertile males called “drones” and one or more fertile females called “queens”. The only places lacking indigenous ants are Antarctica and a few remote or inhospitable islands.

Interesting Facts:

There are more than 12,000 species of ants.
An ant can lift 20 times its own body weight.
Harvester queen ants can live for 30 years!
Ants “hear” by feeling vibrations through their feet.
Foraging ants leave pheromone trails to know where they’ve been.
Ants dont have lungs but breathe through tiny holes in their sides.

What you can do to control ants:

Pest proofing by sealing off entry points is often a very effective way to keep them out. This can be a more permanent solution to ant control.

Landscaping affects the strength of the colony, and ants prefer dry, patchy struggling lawns and flower beds. Keeping these healthy and not cutting the grass too short will help to keep ant populations down.

Sanitation is necessary and involves packing food away immediately and sealing them in tight containers. Clean up spilled food and mess immediately.

Baits are carried by the ants to the nests, essentially using the ants to kill their own colonies. Mixtures such as Borax and sugar work well, but this requires the correct mixture rate so that the ants do not die before reaching their nests.

Sprays are generally short term solutions, as this is usually done on the foraging ants, which will just be replenished by the queen. The nest must be eradicated.

Other control methods may include cloves, bay leaves, coffee, cinnamon, citrus oil, cayenne pepper, turmeric, lavender oil, talcum powder and diatomaceous earth.

DIY ANT BAIT RECIPE – BORAX

Mix one cup warm water with ½ cup sugar and 3 tablespoons borax. Soak it up with cotton balls and place them in shallow dishes near ant trails. Resist the urge to kill all the ants you see.

Do I have Termites or Ants?

What we can do to control ants:

Outdoor treatments
We can apply a water-soluble insecticide to the outer walls and surrounding areas, and including the yard using a tank to provide the sufficient amount of chemical needed. This is an effective short-term knockdown, but is affected by the weather and so is short-lived.

Interior residual treatments
Usually combined with the outdoor treatment, the sprays are applied to common problem areas and contain a longer residual action. But do not be alarmed if ant activity increases, as this is due to their hypersensitivity and is temporary, usually a few days.

Ant bait treatments
We make use of revolutionary gel and granular baits that have a time delay action, allowing the baits to be taken back to the nests. These are non-toxic, have no odour and can be done with minimal disruption.

Rats

RODENT CONTROL OPTIONS

Rodents present a unique challenge due to their habitual feeding on all foodstuffs left lying around. They cause extensive damage because they destroy both human food and animal feed, and often gnaw on cabling, equipment and packaging. Rodents are nocturnal, feeding mostly during the night. Their incisors have a sharp, bevelled edge and are well suited for gnawing. These incisors grow continuously and the regular chewing and gnawing keeps these them worn down. Successful long-term rat control is not simple – the key is to control rat populations, not individual rats.

What you can do to control rats

Sanitation is essential. Rodents must have food, water and shelter to survive. So clean up any spills and keep food in appropriate containers – rats need about 228 grams of food daily, while mice are nibblers, feeding 20 or more times during evening rounds. Don’t forget the dog food. Rats also need water every day, so make sure there is no standing water. Make sure there is no stacked timber of other items that can provide a safe haven next to your home.

Rodent proofing will aid in preventing rodents from entering. Close all holes and crevices (note plumbing and pipes entering the house) and make sure that no trees are overhanging onto your house. Check gaps under your doors – if a pen can fit under there so an your guest.

Traps are a safe means of eliminating rodents, but this is a longer process as only one rodent is caught at a time and it needs to be checked daily.

Baits can work well, but carry risks of secondary poisoning and needs to be kept away from children and pets. Baits have varying degrees of effectiveness.

Fun facts about rats

Rats take care of injured and sick rats in their group.
Without companionship rats tend to become lonely and depressed.
Rats have excellent memories. Once they learn a navigation route, they won’t forget it.
When happy, rats have been observed to chatter or grind their teeth. This is often accompanied by vibrating eyes.
Rats make happy “laughter” sounds when they play.
Rats succumb to peer-pressure, just like humans. Brown rats are prone to disregard personal experiences in order to copy the behaviour of their peers. The urge to conform is so strong that they will even choose to eat unpalatable food if they are in the company of other rats who are eating it.
Although very curious animals, rats are also shy, and prefer to run away than confront a potential threat. Rats are extremely clean animals, spending several hours every day grooming themselves and their group members. They are less likely than cats or dogs to catch and transmit parasites and viruses.
A rat can go longer than a camel without having a drink of water.
Rats’ tails help them to balance, communicate and regulate their body temperature.

Description	Norway Rat	Roof rat	House mouse
Tail	16 to 21 cm	19 to 25 cm	7 to 11 cm
Body size	18 to 25 cm	16 to 21 cm	6 to 10 cm
Weight	Male – 350g; Female 250g	200g	15g
Appearance	Bigger & thicker; blunt nose, smaller eyes & ears	Smaller & thinner; pointy nose, large eyes & ears	Small & thin; pointy nose, large ears & small eyes.
Colour	Black reddish to greyish brown; stomach grey to white	Black-grey or different shades of brown; stomach grey	Back dark to medium brownish grey; stomach light grey to cream- brown
Droppings	Average. 19mm long, blunt edges.	Ave. 13mm long, pointed ends.	3 to 6mm long, pointed ends.
Habitat	Indoors (prefers ground floors, cavity walls & basements) & outdoors (burrows)	Homes, shops, warehouses, grain stores, poultry farms & animal houses. Harbourage always near water source.	Indoors (prefers vacant) & outdoors; dark & secluded areas; nesting material includes paper, fabrics, etc…
Habits	Predominantly nocturnal, very cautious. Fear of new objects. Uses established “runs”.	Predominantly nocturnal, very cautious. Usually in upper areas in structures & trees. Sometimes forage in groups.	Social with family but aggressive t other populations; territory marked with urine; keep close to nest (within 1.5m)
Mobility	Not very agile, climbs if necessary, swims well; territory up to 100m.	Agile, likes to climb; can swim but avoids water; territory up to 30m.	Agile, can swim; territory up to 6m. Highly territorial.
Sexually mature	2 to 3 months	2 to 3 months	1.5 months
Litter size	7 to 12	5 to 10	4 to 16
Litters per year	3 to 7	3 to 6	7 to 8
Birth to maturity	10 to 12 weeks	12 to 16 weeks	8 to 12 weeks
Natural mortality	About 90% per year	About 90% per year	About 90% per year
Food preference	Everything, incl. Meat, cereals, etc… Enjoys food with high water content.	Moist fruits, cockroaches, slugs, snails.	Prefers grains. Sometimes insects trapped on glue boards.
Food consumed daily	30g	15g	3g (usually from food source).
Daily water requirements	60ml	15ml	3ml
Distribution	Usually ground living, sometimes burrows	Often climbs, agile; rarely burrows	Usually ground living & burrows; often climbs

Norway rat vs Roof rat

Identification of droppings

Snap Traps

Tamper resistant rodent boxes

Commercial & Domestic

For our commercial clients, we offer a comprehensive rodent program that forms part of the IPM process. This includes audits when necessary, and all the paperwork needed for compliance. When it comes to our domestic clients, we consider varying factors such as children, pets, etc…

Rodenticides

We use only the best rodenticides, while taking care not to cause secondary poisoning. Our rodenticides can be placed in tamper resistant rodent boxes that are secured in place. Our options are wax blocks, pellets, liquid, paste and tracking powder.

Mechanical control

We make use of snap traps (which can be placed inside the tamper resistant boxes), multiple catch traps and cage traps. Glue traps are often frowned upon as they are not killed immediately.

Cockroaches

Cockroaches are among the most common insect pests found inside buildings. They are a nuisance for both their repulsiveness to people,as well as for the diseases they spread. Some say that cockroaches are in fact clean insects, but this is a fallacy. Moving between waste and filth, they can spread microorganisms that cause food poisoning and other illnesses.

What you do to control cockroaches:

Sanitation is an important step in preventing problems since they flourish

where food, moisture and shelter are readily available. Crumbs, spills

and grease should be cleaned up and unwashed dishes and food should

not be left out overnight.

Pest proofing will help by sealing all cracks and crevices where they hide. Make sure there are no openings to the outside where plumbing and cabling go through the walls.

Sprays should be applied carefully so as to avoid contaminating foodstuffs and should be focused to where they hide.

Baits can also be very effective since this attracts them despite food being present.

Natural remedies, such as diatomaceous earth and borax have been used with some success.

10 fascinating cockroach facts

A cockroach can live a week without its head. it only dies of thirst because it cannot drink.
A cockroach can hold its breath for 40 min.
A cockroach can run up to 5km/h.
German cockroaches, the most common of the cockroaches, can reach adulthood in as little as 36 days.
A 1 day old cockrioach, the size of a speck of dust, can run almost as fast as its parents.
American cockroaches love alcohol, especially beer.
The world’s largest cockroach, from South America, is 15cm long and has a wingspan of 30cm.
There are 4 000 species of cockroaches worldwide.
Cockroches can live for a month witout food, but a week without water.
Cockroaches break wind every 15 min.

Sprays

Insecticides are usually required to eliminate an existing cockroach problem. Emphasis needs to be on finding and treating cockroach harbourages. This may include residual sprays, non-residual residual sprays and IGR’s (insect growth regulators). Drains are also sprayed for the larger Americana cockroaches.

Gel baits
Baits are attractive to cockroaches since they contain pheromone attractants which will be chosen over food. These contain a slow-acting insecticide, causing the cockroaches to die within a few days. They often take it back to the harbourages where other cockroaches are also contaminated. Cockroaches are also cannibalistic and so will eat contaminated cockroaches.

Insecticide dusts
Insecticide dusts are used for treating wall voids and hollow spaces beneath and behind cabinet and appliances.This is also placed inside cockroach harbourages.

Population reduction
Once treatment commences,cockroaches will begin scurrying around, and we use this opportunity to vacuum these, and those hiding in their harbourages. This quickly reduces the population, allowing for less survivors.

Monitoring traps
Monitoring traps aid us in several ways. They allow us to see what life-stages are present (catching only adults may indicate that they arrived recently in boxes or other items). They can indicate which direction they came from (where they are caught in the trap). And they can also, although minor, reduce the cockroaches present since they are caught.

Termites

Termites are of great interest to Pest Control Operators because of their destructive behaviour. They cause Billions of Rands worth of damage around the world, and Africa has a large proportion of termites, about 400 of the 2000 species alive today. All termites have simple mouth parts like those of cockroaches with jaws that move sideways

Typical evidence of activity

Subterranean termites, unlike drywood termites, require contact with soil or some other source of moisture. Termites usually enter buildings unobserved through the foundations, and they spread to the upper levels by way of the joints, floors and wall cavities. To maintain lines of communication between the nest and the food, termites use soil to create covered runways against the foundation walls.

Fascinating facts about termites

1. While they can be pests to homeowners, termites are actually beneficial insects, ecologically speaking. They are important decomposers and break down tough plant fibres recycling dead and decaying trees for the soil.

2. Termites digest cellulose with the help of microrganisms in their gut. They feed on plants directly or on fungus growing on decaying plant material.

3. Termites feed on each otehrs faeces. They aren’t born with all that bacteria in their gut, so the must obtain a supply of microorganisms for their digestive tracts. They also need to resupply themselves after they moult, so eating poop plays a big rolein their lives.

4. Termite father help raise their young. Unlike in bee colonies, where males are short-lived and die soon after mating, the termite kings stick around. He stays with the queen, fertilizing her eggs as needed and helps her feed their young with pre-digested food.

5. Termite workers and soldiers are blind in almost all species. Since they spend their lives in the dark, they do not need to develop functional eyes. Only the reproductive termites require eyesight for when they fly to find new mates and new nest sites.

6. When termite soldiers detect a threat, they tap warning vibrational signals to the colony.

7. Termites use pheromones, or chemical scents, to communicate with one another. Each colony produces a distinct scent so there will never be confuson between 2 neighbouring colonies.

8. Termites need to be well-groomed for survival. To keep parasites and bacteria under control, they will spend a great deal of time groomig each other.

Assessments

We can be called for free identification, advice, and quotations for any termite infestations. At times the client mistakes common ants for termites, but we are SAPCA trained inspectors and we know what to look for.

Spot treatments
Spot treatments, or localised treatments, are done when either finances do not permit full treatments, or where we cannot do full treatments. This treatment carries no guarantees since termites at the activity sites aren’t necessarily nesting in that area. Nests are also pumped with termiticide.

5 Year guarantees
We offer 5 year written guarantees where full termite treatments are carried out. This involves drilling and injecting the termiticide into the foundation. Our work is of the highest standards, and our work is done so neatly, often the customer has to ask us to show them the drill marks.