Pest Management Professional, November 2011
did you know Birds Rodents The pigeon the starling and the English sparrow three of the United States most pesky pest birds are immigrants to the U S and not naturally indigenous as many would expect Starlings were introduced to North America in 1890 as one species in a group of birds from Europe that were deliberately released into New Yorks Central Park The pigeon was already domesticated and used for food and sport thousands of years ago They were brought to North America in the 1600s for similar reasons The English sparrow also called the house sparrow is European and Asian in origin and also was brought to the U S to be deliberately released Bird droppings are a perfect growth medium for a large number of bacteria viruses and fungi that may be pathogenic to humans Some serious diseases associated with bird droppings include histoplassmosis candidiasis cryptococcosis toxoplasmosis and others Bird fecal matter commonly harbors Salmonella and when the droppings end up in water that is consumed by people the result could be this serious food infection Birds are home to many arthropod parasites such as bird mites and bird bedbugs and when these birds live in close association with people they commonly introduce those biting mites and bugs into a persons living space Rats and mice usually live anywhere between six and 36 months Roughly half of all mammal species 2000 are rodents There are approximately 4000 rodent species divided on the basis of their anatomy into three well defined groups or suborders and more than 30 families Rodents are the only placental order except for bats to reach Australia without human introduction Male and female rats can complete their courting ritual and entire romantic relationship in less than a minute A group of rats is often called a mischief Although certain mice are known for short life spans due to predation populations are maintained through constant reproduction Rodents are worldwide in distribution and are found in almost every terrestrial and freshwater habitat from the Arctic Ocean to the hottest deserts Rabbits and hares were once classified as rodents because of their large chisel shaped incisors But because they are very distinct anatomically and have a long separate evolutionary history they are now classified in an order of their own Lagomorpha 66 November 2011 Pest Management Professional mypmp net
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