Browse Animal Diseases and Parasites Stories - Page 2

Twenty-seven years after joining the faculty as a fledgling researcher, University of Georgia professor Kris Braman has been named the head of the university’s Department of Entomology.

Since the pest control training center opened on the University of Georgia campus in Griffin, Georgia, thousands of pest control operators from across the Southeast have received training. Now the training facility is expanding to allow pest control operators to learn how to control pests in commercial kitchens and schools and pests like bed bugs in bedroom settings.

Avian influenza can’t make humans sick, but it has driven the cost of eggs up and will result in consumers paying more for their holiday turkeys.

Avian influenza is not a problem in Georgia, yet. Commercial chicken producers are prepared to fight the virus that kills birds, and backyard chicken flock owners should prepare, too.

Pesticides can be helpful in controlling insects and diseases, but there are chemicals that should be handled with care. To educate pesticide users, University of Georgia Extension has planned pesticide safety and handling classes in Albany, Savannah and Perry this February and March.

A new app, developed for smartphones and tablets by researchers and Extension personnel with University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, allows farmers and scouts to save time and money by finding and using the most effective treatments available for stink bugs.

Grits sprinkled over fire ant mounds, plastic bags filled with water to repel flies and high-frequency sound waves to chase away rats and mice—these are just a few non-chemical methods rumored to work as pest repellents.

The State Botanical Garden of Georgia at the University of Georgia will host the 22nd annual Insect-ival! Family Festival on Sept. 13 from 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. in the Visitor Center and Conservatory at the garden in Athens.

Last month, a Jefferson County woman died and her three grandchildren were sickened after a pesticide, labeled for agricultural use only, was used to kill insects inside their home. Unfortunately, this tragic story now serves as an opportunity for University of Georgia Extension agents like myself to stress the importance of following label instructions on pesticides and other chemicals.

The University of Georgia Bug Dawgs of the UGA Entomology Department will host the 29th Annual Insect Zoo Open House on Friday, April 4 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in front of the Miller Plant Science Building on the campus in Athens.