Summer Travels Could Mean Bed Bugs ... Yuck!

If you are afraid of getting bed bugs, you should be!  Experts estimate that most people will experience bed bugs in the near future than not.  In the past there seemed to be little we could do to manage bed bugs, but things have changed and there are many options.  Bed bugs are kind of like termites - no one wants them, they scare most of us, they can be controlled but its a big investment.

If you want to learn more about bed bugs - where they hide, how they spread, what they look like, how to detect them, and what management options are out there - I will be hosting an educational seminar, May 30th from 2-4pm at the Bexar County Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Office (3355 Cherry Ridge, Suite 212).

I have had the great experience of performing a bed bug research study in homeless shelters, so I have some good stories to tell!

Bed Bugs on the back of a bed bug monitoring trap. 

This program is free and open to the public.  However, please RSVP by emailing or call me (Molly) at mekeck@ag.tamu.edu or 210-467-6575.

So You Want To Be A Beekeeper

If beekeeping is something that has always intrigued you, boy do I have a program for you!

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension in Bexar County along with a local Alamo Area Beekeeper have been providing a Beekeeping Basics Program for all you backyard beekeepers.  We provide this program every Spring and Fall.

This spring, our program will be held April 19th and 20th.  Friday, the 19th is our classroom program and the 20th is our field day.  The field day is where you will actually learn how to deal with bees and actually get the most information.  Our field day is what really makes this program unique.  We will put on beesuits, get into the hives, and see what it takes to be a beekeeper.

If you're interested, jump on it!  We are almost full for the class now, and we always fill up.  Send me an email or give me a call to see if there is still room.  If there isn't, I can put you on our waiting list and you'll get first dibs on the Fall program (expected to be held October 11 and 12).

For more information and registration form, click here.  Or see below:

 

Great Time to Treat for Fire Ants

You may have noticed that since the rainstorm this weekend, fire ant mounds have popped up.  When it rains, or you water well, the fire ants move their colony to higher ground to keep from drowning, making their mounds very noticeable.

It also makes them easier to step on and sting us.  The weather we are having right now, is the perfect weather to treat for fire ants.  If you treat now, you can give yourself some good control through the summer (unless mounds relocate from your neighbor's into your yard).

After the dew has dried, broadcast spread a fire ant bait of your choice around the yard.  Be sure to follow the recommended label rate - more bait does not mean better control.  In fact, it only takes one little granule of bait to be brought into the colony to eliminate the colony.  The workers feed the bait to the larvae, who then regurgitate the partially digested food and it is fed to the queen.  When the queen dies, the colony dies.

If applied correctly, baits can be an environmentally friendly option, saving other ant species and not harming wildlife, other insect, pets, or us.

Be sure to find a bait that is labeled for fire ants.  Other ant baits aren't as attractive to fire ants.  I find that application is almost more important than what bait you choose.  Apply fresh bait, not old bait, apply to dry grass, and apply when rain is not in the forecast for at least 24 hours (do not water the lawn either).  When fire ants are actively foraging for food is the best time to apply.  This is generally when its over 65 degrees.  You can test this by placing a piece of hot dog or a potato chip outdoors for about 45-60 minutes.  Fire ants love hot dogs and potato chips and if they are looking for food, they'll come to it.  Then you know if its a good time to spread your bait.

For more information on fire ants, visit these websites:
http://fireant.tamu.edu
http://www.extension.org/fire_ants

Is it Bees in My Tree?

Chances are, if you've seen a big ball that looks like a huge hive up in your tree, you do not have bees.  You actually have Mexican Honey Wasps!

The news has been abuzz lately about homeowners scared to fits of bees nesting in their trees.  Well, these are not bees, these are very small (5-7mm) wasps, more the size of a house fly than a bee and non-aggressive.  If you see the actual wasps, they cannot be mistaken for bees.  They are not hairy, much smaller, nearly all black, and have non of the markings of a bee.

Mexican honey wasps, Brachygastra mellifica, are a social wasp that builds paper nests in the canopy of trees and shrubs.  They are native to Texas and range from Texas to Nicaragua.  There are 16 different species of Mexican honey wasps, however only one has been reported in Texas.

Colonies can become quite large, containing up to 18,000 wasps, and can cause concern when homeowners spot the large basketball or football shaped nest attached to the branches, however they are non-aggressive wasps and often live peacefully with their human neighbors.  If you climb up into the tree, throw rocks at it, squirt it with the water hose or something else disruptive, of course they are going to get irritated and your chances of being stung will increase.  But mowing, closing the car door or other regular activities largely go unnoticed by the wasps.

Mexican honey wasps are considered beneficial insects, much like honey bees.  They are nectar gatherers, pollinators, and have been known to predate upon harmful insects such as the Asian citrus psyllid that causes citrus greening in citrus.  

These are very interesting wasps and one of those insects that I tend to suggest: "live and let live." Also, contrary to the news reports, the nests are extremely well built and it would take a near tornado force wind to knock it out of the tree along with the branches it has been built around.

Trapdoor Spiders Make an Appearance

This New Year's Eve (or more correctly, very early New Year's Day), I came home from my festivities to find FOUR trapdoor spiders crawling along my garage door and up the side of my house.  I wonder if one of the first things I see in 2013 happens to be an emergence of cool spiders means it will be a great entomological year?

Trapdoor spiders are large spiders, that closely resemble tarantulas, but are not as hairy and not quite as large.  They are dark brown to black, and have a hairy cephalothorax and legs, but a fairly smooth abdomen.  Trapdoor spiders are native to Texas, and have a fairly far range across the US.  They are a common spider, however we don't often see them.

Trapdoor spiders build tube-like tunnels in the ground, and cap it off with door.  They feed on other insects, and pop out of their home to grab their food.  New Year's Eve Day was a relatively wet day, drizzly and pretty miserable.  During these constant wet days, we tend to see trapdoor spiders emerging - and it always seems to be males.  Males have large pedipalps that remind me to boxing gloves.

I have always assumed the weather sparks an interest in migrating to find mates OR they didn't build their trapdoor nests well enough and the rain forces them to leave their homes.  Regardless of the fact, they emerge and start wandering around, usually making their way to the house and crawling along the side of it, looking for a way in or around it.

In the San Antonio area we usually see them around mid November, but this year, they've been more active later into the year.  We can probably blame lack of wet days and warmer weather from keeping them from hunkering down.

Trapdoor spiders are not harmful - I doubt in their stressful state, they would even attempt to bite you if you picked it up.  They are not invading the house, and likely when the weather clears up they will go away.  If they bother you, sweep them away from the house.  There is no need to apply pesticides because you can never predict when they'll emerge.


On New Year's Day, when I ventured outdoors, they were completely gone.  They will eventually die, get picked off by lizards or birds, or find their way off your patio and to a new home.

Join the 4-H Entomology Team!

If you have or know of a child ages 8-18 who is interested in entomology and learning a little more about insects, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension has an opportunity they may be interested in.  I am trying to get an Entomology Team started for Bexar County (and any other surrounding county that might be interested).

If you are not familiar with 4-H, it is the youth development program of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension.  Kids can join a traditional club in which they meet regularly, do community service, projects, etc, OR they can join and be a part of a team or participate in a contest.  This gives those that have a specific interest the opportunity to compete and local, regional, and state levels.  Some examples of projects and teams include: livestock showing, horticulture shows, nutrition, debate, rifle shooting, and entomology.  Of course, there are much, much more!

This year, I would like to see an Entomology Team get started, and as the entomologist in Bexar County, I feel I should help get this underway!  I am hosting an informational meeting about Entomology Teams, October 25th at 7pm.  I will go over what is expected of an entomology team, how the contest works, and what all the kids need to know to compete.  We'll see if we have enough interest to get some teams started.

There are three levels: junior (ages 8-10; intermediate (ages 11-13) and senior (ages 14-18).  You will need to join 4-H to be a part of the team, so come to the meeting to see if this is for you.

I plan to set up trainings once a month so we can practice for the contest, which will be held April 13th.  If you aren't from Bexar County, you are still welcome to attend.  We can try to get a team started in your county!

For more information, or to RSVP to the meeting, please email me (Molly) at mekeck@ag.tamu.edu.

Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite!

If you haven't already experienced bed bugs, the chances are very good that you will.  Experts are predicting that bed bugs will continue to be an issue for us and that the worst is yet to come.  They are saying its not a matter of "if" you get bed bugs, but a matter of "when".

Unfortunately, the unknown can be pretty scarey, but there are ways to learn more about prevention and early detection.

Just in time for the holiday travels, I will be hosting a Bed Bugs 101 Seminar.  It is free and open to the public and we will cover the basics of bed bug biology, how to identify them, where they like to hide, prevention tips, detection tips, and management options.

Bed Bugs 101

October 30, 2012

2-3:30pm

Bexar County A&M AgriLife Extension Office

3355 Cherry Ridge, Suite 208

Please RSVP to Molly at mekeck@ag.tamu.edu, so we can keep a head count.