Tag Archives: fleas

SPN: Fall Pests on the Move

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Over the past month it seems that everyone I have heard from has discussed a large outbreak of one type of insect pest or the other. For this newsletter rather than discuss pest control record keeping, I am going to refer to several common pests and then give you links to past newsletter stories where you can find Action Plans or additional educational information you can use. Asps – Aka Puss Caterpillars Asps and other stinging insects are part of the nature in Texas, their frequency is dependent… Read More →

SPN: Updated Green List publication, Summer Bugs that make you Itch

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Recognizing Green Category Products By Janet Hurley Introducing our “Recognizing Green Category Products” handout as a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension numbered publication. Forever known as the ‘green list’ this document has morphed over the past fifteen years to help us (Don Renchie, Mike Merchant and Janet Hurley) to train Texas School IPM coordinators about our three colored category pesticide ranking system. When the ranking was first developed in the mid-1990’s organophosphates were being phased out, pyrethroids were coming on, but also a variety of other insecticides were being… Read More →

SPN: Fleas and Ticks

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By: Dr. Mike Merchant, Professor and Urban Entomologist Fleas and ticks are not the kind of pests one normally expects to find in schools, but then what’s normal about school IPM?  Several recent calls to our office have concerned flea and tick problems, some of which are apparently being brought from home, and some which may be originating on school grounds.  So let’s learn some basics about these two pest types. Fleas are insect pests of warm blooded animals.  About 95% of flea species specialize in feeding on… Read More →