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News you can use
- Statewide pest management trainings for school coordinators start in March
- From pests to pollutants, keeping schools healthy and clean is no simple task
- SPN: Warm-Season Turfgrass Fall/Winter Preparation
- Uninvited vultures draw community ire: AgriLife provides solutions to human-vulture conflict
- Statewide pest management trainings for school coordinators start in March New laws went in effect that school districts, coordinators need to be aware of
Tag Archives: mosquitoes
SPN: Mosquitoes and West Nile Virus is on the rise.
According to the calendar we are entering the season of fall. For Texans, this means football (hopefully) and battling mosquitoes on your campuses. This particular insects will make you itch, scratch, and sometimes even say bad words. With the help of Dr. Sonja Swiger,Associate Professor & Veterinary/Medical Extension Entomologist, AgriLife Extension this article will help explain the symptoms of West Nile Virus and encephalitis, what schools need to know about basic mosquito management and additional resources to help educate you and your staff. Mosquitoes are of concern in… Read More →
SPN: While the humans are away the pests will play
Since March 23, 2020, most TX schools have been closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, during this time the most common pests of TX have not taken a break from your campuses. Even though our AgriLife Extension offices are closed we are still working from home and insect questions are still coming in. Over the past month we have seen an increase in stinging caterpillars mostly in the San Antonio and Hill county region of the state. There will be a special story on that coming later… Read More →
SPN: Gardens, Mosquitoes and Fungi
In this month’s edition of School Pest News, I have several items to share with you. In an effort to help School IPM Coordinators in TX with their school garden programs, I recently worked with the Junior Master Gardener team to develop a simple document that help explains the volunteers and teacher roles in the school garden process. This document can be shared with those in your district overseeing gardens to help educate them as well. At the same time, there is an online module on School Gardens… Read More →
SPN: End of school activities what you should be thinking about this month
As the school year comes to end, most of our readers are preparing for the mad rush of numerous maintenance projects that come when students and teachers leave. However, before they go here are some tips to get you through the next month and help you prepare for summer as well. Moisture Monitoring This spring has been extremely wet. With the increased moisture in the air and the soil, there are a lot of pests that will be showing up. This is a good time to remind staff… Read More →
Texas A&M AgriLife entomologists: Floating fire ants, insect pests among flood hazards
Fire ants, as their colonies begin to flood, can join feet or tarsi to form water rafts, and they are more aggressive once in the floating formation, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service entomologists. But other insect pests can also pose human threats in flood conditions, they said. Check out this Facebook Post from WFAA Chief Meteorologist Pete Delkus Dr. Paul Nester, AgriLife Extension entomologist, Houston, and Dr. Mike Merchant, AgriLife Extension urban entomologist, Dallas, encourage those affected by flooding to stay prepared and aware of pests,… Read More →
SPN: Mosquitoes and Zika Virus
Mosquitoes By: Wizzie Brown, Extension Program Specialist III – IPM Mosquitoes are a hot news item currently, especially those transmitting a new virus….Zika. (At the end of this article you will find a handout designed to help you educate others about Zika.) Mosquitoes can transmit various diseases to humans and animals such as heartworm in dogs and cats, as well as encephalitis (including West Nile Virus), Chikungunya, dengue, yellow fever, malaria and filariasis among humans. Aedes mosquitoes transmit diseases such as Zika virus, Chikungunya, yellow fever and dengue…. Read More →
School Pest News, Volume 12, Issue 6, September 2013
Imported Fire Ants the Cause of Death in Texas By Maggie Lawrence, Auburn University The biting, stinging fire ant is a nuisance most people are far too familiar with, but few recognize the life-threatening danger these small pests pack in their punch. Recently, a Texas teen died after numerous fire ant stings during a junior high football game in Corpus Christi. Allergic reactions to fire ant bites are rare, but require quick thinking and proactive first aid work. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Program Specialist, Janet Hurley, works… Read More →
Texas Pesticide Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit (TPDES)
Many of you have heard about a new Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) requirement/regulation relating to pesticide applications to, over, or near water. The regulation is the result of federal court decisions which place pesticide applications and use under not only the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), but under the Clean Water Act (CWA). TCEQ and other state environmental protection agencies nationwide (including Puerto Rico, Guam, and Samoa) had until October 31, 2011 to develop or adopt a Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (PDES) permit. TCEQ… Read More →
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