Purdue Conference Provides Attendees with Roadmaps for Success

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Attendees of the 87^th annual Purdue Pest Management Conference learned the finer points of pest management and had the opportunity to learn about cutting-edge research taking place at one of the nation's top urban entomology programs.

This year’s conference included presentations from leading industry educators and in-the-field trainers, all of whom have the goal of providing attendees with the knowledge they need to succeed as pest management professionals. Additionally, attendees had the opportunity to tour Purdue's entomology labs to see first-hand some of the research taking place at Purdue.

Conference chair Carrie Campbell, owner of Hatfield Pest Control, La Porte, Ind., dedicated this year’s conference to a pair of longtime presenters who passed away last year: Gene White and Pete Markham. White spent more than 40 years educating others, both at companies he worked for (most recently Rentokil) and as a speaker at Purdue, which he “called home,” Campbell said. Markham, owner of A-Mark Pest & Bird Management, Baytown, Texas, began his pest control career in the 1970s as a bird and pest control specialist for Eli Lilly Corporation. He became an expert in bird control and was a frequent speaker on the topic at the Purdue Pest Management Conference.

Other highlights included:

Fred Whitford, director of the Purdue Pesticide Programs, provided a step-by-step explanation of what PMPs should do if they are a driver in an accident that involves an injured pedestrian and a pesticide spill. Whitford used a couple of audience members to simulate the scenario. Among the takeaways was that PMP's should "have their MSDS alphabetized by brand" so they are easily accessible at the scene of a pesticide spill. He also stressed the need to have technicians call the office and have the owner/supervisor join them at the accident scene as soon as possible because it is difficult for those involved in vehicle accidents to think straight.

Cassie Krejci, director of technical services at Rentokil Terminix, presented on “Demystifying Pesticide Formulations.” Her goal was to “take away the haze of technical buzzwords and simplify understanding of pesticides.” Krejci shared how different active ingredients and formulations work, noting that her teaching philosophy is to educate pest management professionals about where and when to use the various tools at their disposal.

Dr. Coby Schal, North Carolina State University, noted that the goal of cockroach control in residential accounts must be elimination. Schal provided the following baiting tips for pest management professionals: Take the time to understand the infestation; use fecal focal points as a roadmap; use vacuums to remove large pockets of roaches before baiting (which saves on bait product) or increase the number of bait placements; be aware of bait depletion and replenish baits when dealing with large populations; and use insect growth regulators to stimulate activity/feeding in gravid females.

Ron Harrison, technical director at Rollins, provided a national and international perspective on ants. Harrison said the spread of invasive ants has created challenges in some of Rollins’ international businesses. For example, he mentioned that the company’s Portugal business recently dealt with Argentine ants. Harrison reminded attendees that when controlling ants, killing large numbers of workers is not the goal. “The goal with ant control is to eliminate the queen. If all we is get rid of the queen, we’ll be pretty happy,” he said.

Mark Vanderwerp, director of education at Rose Pest Solutions, discussed “When a Pest is a Pest.” Vanderwerp noted that different cultures and societies define pests differently. For example, in the U.S., ants are considered a pest while in some countries they are not. He also said pest is defined differently in the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) than it is in the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Even in the U.S., Vanderwerp said people simply live with many insects in their home, citing work done by Matt Bertone, N.C. State, who evaluated the biodiversity of arthropods in U.S. homes and found that humans share their houses with any of more than 500 different kinds of arthropods – at least on a short-term basis.

Consultant Bobby Corrigan presented remotely from New York on the topic “Assessing Rodents Vs. Inspecting for Rodents.” Corrigan said rodents are an “unbelievably smart animal and the more we study them, the more we realize how much we have underestimated how smart they are.” Corrigan encouraged pest management professionals to focus on the following seven on-the-job assessment points:

1. Pest pressure overview (helicopter view)

2. Exterior/sanitation/harborage (refuse, junk and vegetation)

3. Exterior structural tightness (doors, penetrations)

4. Interior tightness/harborage/travel paths

5. Interior/sanitation/refuse/clutter

6. Interior behavioral spots

7. Monitoring tracking/progress (EAS, remotes)

When it comes to on-the-job inspection points, Corrigan said the focus should be on these six areas.

1. Droppings

2. Sebum/hair

3. Burrows and structural holes

4. Tracks

5. Gnaw marks

6. Young rodent occurrence

Day two of the conference included a presentation on bats from Zach Ewert, Ewert Pest Control, Green Bay, Wis. Ewert reviewed biolody and behavior of bats advocated for the use of bat boxes, but reminded attendees to never attach a bat house or box to a structure. “If you are the bat, it’s like choosing between a condo and a mansion,” he said. NPMA's Jim Fredericks explained the need for reciprocity and how it works and Leo Reed, Office of the Indiana State Chemist, explained how it works in Indiana and surrounding states. Alan Feuer of Preventive Pest in New Mexico presnted on "Identifying the 'O' in WDO" which focused on wood-destroying beetles, while industry consultant Paul Bello shared some of his termite experiences, including tips for ensuring that calibration is done right.

Kevin Thorn, Thorn Pest Solutions, kicked off the final day of the conference by sharing some of his experiences using electronic monitoring. Thorn said this technology has helped increase job satisfaction because his technicians have more time to spend on what they enjoy including, “assessments, inspections and problem solving.” Dominique Sauvage, Terminix/Rentokil, shared case studies on how to keep food processing facilities secure and in compliance. Another day three highlight was a bed bug presentation from industry consultant Rick Cooper, who discussed how PMPs treated bed bugs in the beginning of their resurgence in the U.S. and how we are treating them now.