Principles of pest control

Abstract

Despite a high degree of specialisation and the immense fund of knowledge, pest control as it is carried out in the home, field or factory is all too frequently incomplete or ineffective. This applies whether it is carried out by the householder or by the various forms of pest control unit. The reason for this incomplete performance is in most cases due to inadequate use of the various specialist resources and the fact that problems are all too frequently approached in an uncoordinated and undisciplined manner. Generally there is incomplete appreciation of the basic factors influencing effective pest control, how animals become pests, what constitutes an infestation, what the strategic weapons are, and how they should be used in a planned and coordinated fashion to achieve the quickest effective and economic result. This paper reviews these factors.