Sykes Pest Control

Foxes

The red fox is native to the British Isles, and widespread throughout mainland Britain.Foxes moved into urban areas after the First World War due to a change in people's lifestyles. The new transport systems allowed people to work in one place and to live in another, leading to the building of suburban housing in once rural areas.

Rural foxes quickly urbanised, taking advantage of the food and shelter provided in the relatively large gardens, from compost heaps, bird-tables and garden buildings. Foxes are now accustomed to living near to people and successive generations have spread inwards towards the city centre. There are now more opportunities of food and shelter for foxes in towns and cities than in the surrounding countryside. Although foxes are predominantly nocturnal, it is not unusual to see urban foxes out during the day.

Foxes are controlled using live catch traps that are baited and set in areas of known fox activity.

It is a requirement of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to check all live catch traps at least once every 24 hours. However, it is strongly recommended to check them once every 12 hours. All trapped animals must be treated humanely.

Causing unnecessary suffering, whether deliberately or through neglect is an offence. The provisions of The Protection of Animals Act 1911 and the Wild Mammals Protection Act 1996 should be considered.

Foxes are becoming more and more common in urban society and can cause problems in people’s gardens and threaten the lives of pets. Foxes are known carriers of sarcoptic mange (scabies), which can be transferred to humans. They also carry distemper virus which can be fatal for dogs and other beloved pets.

Ants

Most ant species are highly developed social insects that live in permanent nests, which depending on the species, may be in the soil, in timber, under pavers, in wall cavities or roof voids.

Ants may travel large distances in search of food. Even the cleanest of homes can provide a ready food source for ants which once found can invade in large numbers, such that professional help is required.

Some inflict severe bites but most are a nuisance pest when they infest kitchens and BBQ areas in large numbers.

Identification of the particular species of ant is vital to implementing a control program.

Some do-it-yourself products may provide short term relief, but may in fact, make a problem worse. Ants are easily repelled by some common residual remedies and, without finding the colony, their repeated use can often cause a colony to move or even split into multiple colonies. And simply killing foraging ants will not eliminate the colony since the queen remains in the colony and her sole purpose is to lay more eggs to ensure the survivability of the colony.

Ants are now the number one pest problem for which homeowners rely on professional advice and remediation, Since an interior infestation is likely to have resulted from outdoor populations, you should expect your pest management professional to perform a thorough inspection of the surrounding environment and develop a strategy to prevent reinfestation of the building.

Birds

Birds roost on building ledges, causing defacement and health risks from their droppings.

Starlings and sparrows often nest inside roof voids, causing thousands of minute bird mites to enter the premises.

The bites of bird mites are 10 times worse than fleas and cause severe skin irritation and blotching.

Various long term bird control deterrent systems or products can be used where pigeons are a problem.

This may include installation of plastic or stainless steel spikes on ledges or other roosting areas; post and spring wire barriers and bird netting to exclude pigeons from particular areas.

In some areas, shooting of pigeons may be allowed as approved by National Parks & Wildlife Service and the local police authorities. Live trapping and humane disposal of the pigeons is also permitted in certain circumstances.

Rats and Mice

Rats often cause electrical fires in buildings by gnawing through plastic electrical junction boxes. Rats must constantly gnaw on hard objects to cut back their constantly growing incisor teeth.

In addition, they live in the most unsanitary places, and are carriers of serious health risks to humans from their droppings and constant incontinence (they use urine trails to find their way in the dark).

There are two pest species of rats commonly found in domestic and commercial premises - the brown rat and the black rat. The identification of each species is essential to formulate an effective control program.

Where do they live and breed? Rats and mice live in drains, under concrete, in sub-floors and in garbage refuse areas, kitchens, roof voids and other areas where a potential food and moisture source is available.

Rats and mice often become a serious problem in cold winter months when they seek food and warmth inside buildings. They may suddenly appear in large numbers when excavation work disturbs their in-ground nesting locations, or their food source is changed, such as, rats feeding in school premises may enter adjoining properties during the school holidays.

Rats are commonly a problem where a building is located near waterways, creeks and canals or other places where ready water supply is available.

Wasps

Adult worker wasps have the characteristic black and yellow patterning on the abdomen and are between 15 - 20 mm long. They have a black head and thorax.

The fore and hind wings are held together by a row of minute hooks giving the appearance of only one wing per side of the wasp. The wings are heavily veined.

The wasps are colonial insects living in social groups. Each colony is established in the spring by an overwintering queen which makes a smaller starter nest from paper made by itself by mixing wood and saliva.

The colony grows throughout the summer and the nest with it. Many thousand individuals are often to be found associated with each nest, with the workers feeding on nectar, sweet materials and at certain times insect larvae and other animal pieces.

The colony develops males towards the end of the summer to mate with the presumptive queens which when mated overwinter start a new colony the following year.

Dolichovespula norvegica, the Norwegian wasp, and Dolichovespula sylvestris, the tree wasp, are two native British species. In recent years, Dolichovespula saxonica, and Dolichovespulamedia have been recorded in the UK.

Dolichovespula spp usually produce grey aerial nests, which have a regular laminar construction. They may be suspended from trees, nest boxes, bee hives, rafters and dormer windows. If nests are formed underground, the envelope is always visible.

The wasps can cause alarm when present in large numbers and if the nest is in a place where the individuals from it interfere with humans they can inflict painful and sometimes dangerous stings

Moles

Moles have cylindrical bodies covered in fur, with small or covered eyes; the ears are generally not visible. They eat small invertebrate animals living underground. Moles can be found almost anywhere in Europe, North America, and Asia, although there are no moles in Ireland.

A mole's diet primarily consists of earthworms and other small invertebrates found in the soil. The mole may also occasionally catch small mice at the entrance to its burrow. Because their saliva contains a toxin that can paralyze earthworms, moles are able to store their still living prey for later consumption. They construct special underground "larders" for just this purpose; researchers have discovered such larders with over a thousand earthworms in them. Before eating earthworms, moles pull them between their squeezed paws to force the collected earth and dirt out of the worm's gut.[3]

Problems cited as caused by moles include contamination of silage with soil particles making it unpalatable to livestock, the covering of pasture with fresh soil reducing its size and yield, damage to agricultural machinery by the exposure of stones, damage to young plants through disturbance of the soil, weed invasion of pasture through exposure of fresh tilled soil, and damage to drainage systems and watercourses. Other species such as weasels and voles may use mole tunnels to gain access to enclosed areas or plant roots.

Moles burrow in lawns, raising molehills, and killing the lawn, they can undermine plant roots, indirectly causing damage or death. Contrary to popular belief, moles do not eat plant roots.