You may have heard recently about how insect populations all across the world are collapsing. While there is truth to that statement, it’s no reason to assume that your home won’t become the target of a broad variety of pests. Firstly, you still have rodents to deal with. Secondly, the agricultural industry may have a lot to do with the reason why the insect population is plummeting. Life finds a way of adapting. That means these insects could be setting up homes in the suburbs and cities where the ground isn’t overtreated with pesticides. Below, we’ll discuss some of the trends in pest control and what experts are prognosticating for 2019 and beyond.
Mice Problems Will Remain High
It’s been shown that community efforts to deal with rat and mice issues are the most effective. Both will go where the food is and take the path of least resistance to get there. In places where garbage disposal is managed in bins that remain closed, mice don’t have much of a reason to be there and will only go there when it presents the best of two bad options.
On the other hand, dumpsters remain an issue, especially those that are left open. Rats and mice are fully capable of scaling these dumpsters and accessing what’s inside. It’s imperative that dumpsters remain inaccessible to the rodent population.
Additionally, rodents will remain a larger problem all year round. While cold fronts do happen, statistically, our winters have been warmer than years past. That means more time for the mice to come out and play. If you’re a homeowner, you should think about coordinating with your homeowner’s association to ensure basic compliance with preventative pest control techniques. If a mouse problem does happen, the top-rated pest control experts at Pointe Pest Control have your back.
Adaptive Resilience of Urban Pests
Evolution 101 predicts that, when there is a major insect infestation, there will be a small minority population that is resistant to the pest control techniques used to exterminate them. If this small minority population is allowed to live, they will go forth with their adaptation and produce a new colony of insects that are completely resistant to our standard efforts.
This is especially true for one of the most pernicious pests that harry urban environments: The bed bug. Scientists have found entire communities of bed bugs that are resistant to standard pesticides. For that reason, Pointe Pest Control uses whole-room heat treatments whenever possible. While bed bugs can adapt to pesticides and evolve a resistance, they don’t appear capable of withstanding heat, nor are they likely to evolve that adaptation any time soon. Heat treatments, therefore, are often the preferred means of eradicating bed bugs. They also have the advantage of being a “natural” as opposed to a chemical solution.
The Impact of Higher than Average Rainfall on Pest Populations
Moisture is a major draw for certain kinds of pests. This includes (but is not limited to) termites. Termites are very active just after a rainfall and with more bugs moving into urban and suburban environments and away from rural environments with heavy agriculture, it’s likely to create some problems for the majority of homeowners.
Roof Rats are a Growing Problem
While roof rats used to be a major problem for coastal cities, the rats are on the move and spreading out their territory. Now, the northwestern United States is finding a growing roof rate population. Even places like Utah and Colorado that are largely landlocked can find more roof rats. There are two reasons for this. One of them is the aforementioned problem of higher than average rainfall. The other is the successful adaptation of the roof rat to non-coastal areas.
Mosquito-borne Diseases are an Increasing Problem
While most of the mosquito activity can be found in Southern California, warming trends and rainfall might push the mosquitos north. Mosquitoes can spread dangerous diseases such as dengue fever, St. Louis encephalitis, Zika virus, and the West Nile virus.
One of the major reasons that this is becoming an increasing problem is that these mosquitoes are developing a tolerance to cold weather. If the trend continues, the Northwestern part of the United States can expect to see dangerous mosquito activity within the next few years.
Hire the Local Pest Control Experts at Pointe Pest Control
If you’re seeing increased pest activity in your area or dealing with problems you never had to deal with before, you’re not alone. You can, however, trust the top-rated pest control experts at Pointe Pest Control to manage the problem safely and professionally. Call us today for a free inspection.
