Monthly Archives: September 2013

Animal Control, Commercial Services, Green Pest Control, Insect Control, News, Pest Control, Pest Eradication, Pest Management, Pest News, Residential Services, Uncategorized

Integrated Pest Management the New Cure for Pests

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When it comes to pests, there is no “one size fits all” solution that works for everyone. Even though in recent years, it has become clear that certain types of pest control treatments don’t work, it’s also become clear that the best approach to pest control is an integrated one. Don’t waste your money purchasing pesticides in your local hardware store that claim to be “the best” on the market. The best defense you have against pests is only a phone call away – Stern Environmental Group.

Warm Weather Warnings

Now that the warm weather is here, pests of all kinds are going to begin showing up. If you have an infestation on your hands, don’t put off giving us a call. We’re eager to provide you with an integrated solution that will take care of your problem quickly.

Your Personalized Commercial Solution

Our technicians understand the best way to handle any infestation. So, whether you’ve discovered a new nest of mice in your office, or guests are suddenly waking up with bed bug bites, you’ll find that our integrated pest management techniques are what will take care of the problem once and for all.

Are you ready to take care of your pest problem for good? We’re eager to help.Give us a call today, and we’ll give you a personalized, integrated solution.

Cockroaches, Commercial Services

Cockroaches Invade White House

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As if President Obama didn’t have enough problems to deal with, a new war has erupted — this time in his own basement! A White House cockroach invasion of the basement press facilities has turned the offices of the Fourth Estate into a battleground.

On one side is a cockroach “the size of a small drone,” according to Martha Kumar, a Towson University professor who has been studying president-press relations for nearly four decades and is an experienced soldier in the periodic White House pest wars. Facing off against the roach brigade is a desultory press corps led by a few determined hunters like Kumar.

So far the cockroaches seem to be winning the war. The wily insects handily escaped their attackers in several hard-fought skirmishes. The embattled reporters have appealed to the General Services Administration for aid; but so far the GSA has been reluctant to escalate the conflict by arming the reporters with more advanced pest control weapons. Reporters have been reduced to fighting the cockroach invasion with spiked heels and leather-soled loafers.

We can understand the GSA’s concern. To protect human health and safety, professional-grade pest control products should only be applied by experienced, well-trained, licensed pest control professionals like the commercial roach extermination experts at Stern Environmental. Don’t let roaches invade your business; call Stern today!

Bed Bug News, Bed Bugs

New Research Discovers How Bed Bug Genes Disarm Pesticides

Bed bug infestations are notoriously tough to get rid of and the increasing ability of modern bed bug populations to resist commonly-used pesticides has puzzled scientists and created growing concern among public health officials that have been battling the resurgence of this annoying pest for the past decade. Bed bugs aren’t the only pest to gradually develop a genetic resistance to the products used to kill it, but the way bed bugs shrug off pesticides turns out to be unique in the insect world.

As reported in PCT, the online issue of Pest Control Technology magazine, new bed bug research presented at last week’s National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society revealed that in bed bugs pesticide-resistant genes are concentrated in the insect’s hard outer shell.

“Every living thing on Earth has a unique set of strategies to adapt to life-threatening situations in the environment,” research leader Fang Zhu of Washington State University told the scientific gathering. “The surprise discovery we never expected is that most of the genes responsible for pesticide resistance in the bed bug are active in its outer skin-like shell or cuticle. This is the unique adaption that has not been discovered in cockroaches, termites, ants or other insects.”

Bed bugs may have developed genetic protection against pyrethroid insecticides, but genes are no match for Cryonite. Get the details on our website.

Crickets, Insect Control

Watch Out for Cave Crickets in Damp Basements

Cave crickets are common in the New Jersey-New York area. As their name implies, these insects prefer cool, dark, damp, cave-like places and are often discovered hiding in building basements. Unlike noisy, black field crickets, cave crickets are light in color, usually a pale brown, and do not chirp.

These creepy-looking nocturnal insects have large, 2-inch long bodies, huge hind legs and long antennae that help them navigate in the dark. With hum0pbacked bodies and spidery legs, cave crickets may also be called camel or spider crickets. Wingless, they use their powerful hind legs to jump high and far; but they typically use their long legs to walk from place to place.

Outdoors, cave crickets live under rocks, boards, logs or damp leaves. Considered “accidental invaders,” they sometimes wander into building basements where their odd defense mechanism can be frightening. While these insects are harmless, when attacked cave crickets launch themselves at you, landing on your clothes and person. It is believed that they do this to make predators think they are larger and fiercer than they are.

The cave cricket’s typical diet includes dead insects, decayed plant matter and fungi; but when these omnivores invade buildings they can damage fabrics and curtains. Good at hiding, cave crickets can be difficult to get rid of. For professional removal, contact a licensed NJ pest control company like Stern Environmental.

Mice, Rats, Rodent Control

Mice Seek Indoor Shelter when Weather Turns Cold

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Mice and rats start looking for cozier accommodations when the weather starts to turn cold. With the arrival of fall, New York and New Jersey home and business owners may begin to notice signs of rodent activity, particularly inside garages, storage sheds, warehouses and kitchen areas.

The discovery of small brown or black fecal pellets on shelves, counter tops or inside cupboards are often the first sign of a rodent invasion. Mice are incontinent, leaving germ-laden waste wherever they scurry. Dried droppings pose their own health threat when pulverized particles are wafted into the air and breathed in. Only last year, an outbreak of potentially deadly Hantavirus that killed 3 people was traced to a mouse infestation in camping tents at Yosemite National Park.

Mice and rats are attracted to indoor spaces by food, water and warmth. Their ability to squeeze through small openings — a mouse can squeeze through a dime-sized opening — makes mice difficult to keep out. And once they get in, their prodigious reproduction rates — a single female can produce as many as 60 pups a year — can quickly lead to a major infestation.

The trick to halting rodent invasions is to pinpoint and block entry and exit points. Stern uses the innovative rodent Track & Trap system to locate entry points and stop mouse and rat invasions in their tracks.