IdentifyUS

IdentifyUS Information and guidance on insect and tick pests, including bed bugs, lice, fleas, flies, mites, ticks, and diverse other pests and parasites.

01/05/2025

The release of genetically modified mosquitoes in the United States started in Florida, marking a controversial step in the fight against mosquito-borne diseases like Zika, dengue, and yellow fever.

After years of regulatory delays and public opposition, bioengineered male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes were introduced into the environment.

The goal of this field test is to suppress wild populations of Aedes aegypti, which make up only 4% of the local mosquito population but are responsible for nearly all mosquito-borne disease transmission to humans.

The genetically modified male mosquitoes, which do not bite, will mate with wild females. These males carry a gene that causes female offspring to die in early larval stages, while male offspring survive and continue passing the gene to future generations. As the population of biting females declines, researchers expect the Aedes aegypti population to gradually collapse, potentially reducing disease transmission. This strategy offers an alternative to insecticides, which have contributed to the evolution of insecticide-resistant mosquitoes.

This U.S. field test follows successful trials by the same company in Brazil, the Cayman Islands, Panama, and Malaysia, where Aedes aegypti populations dropped by at least 90%. The release of genetically modified mosquitoes in Florida adds to previous U.S. trials of bioengineered insects, including diamondback moths in New York and pink bollworms in Arizona. If successful, the mosquito project could offer a sustainable, targeted solution to control mosquito populations without relying on chemical insecticides

Happy Holidays to all! May your days be free from pests and bug bites!
12/24/2024

Happy Holidays to all! May your days be free from pests and bug bites!

https://apple.news/ANiUE8LrgQJGE5oEZUDzaxA
11/25/2024

https://apple.news/ANiUE8LrgQJGE5oEZUDzaxA

Case counts for Oropouche virus are still low but rising dramatically. What's going on? And then there's a study that raises the possibility that insect bites aren't the only way the virus can spread.

Another thing to get bit by!
06/04/2024

Another thing to get bit by!

"It is a matter of when, not if" the spiders are set to arrive, experts say, and it could happen any day now.

09/27/2022

Reminder on just how effective sticky traps can be. We often recommend them to customers looking to send us samples of creatures they capture that they suspect have been plaguing them.

07/16/2022
5th case of Jamestown Canyon Virus in New Hampshire: https://idus.co/JCV-in-NH
11/23/2020

5th case of Jamestown Canyon Virus in New Hampshire: https://idus.co/JCV-in-NH

By NewsDesk New Hampshire state health officials reported a fifth case of Jamestown Canyon Virus (JCV) in an adult from Newport. The patient was hospitalized with left side weakness, unresponsiveness and multiple seizures. Their condition has not recently improved and they remain hospita...

https://www.wired.com/story/the-meat-allergy-tick-also-carries-a-mystery-killer-virus"But the CDC has yet to formally de...
07/31/2020

https://www.wired.com/story/the-meat-allergy-tick-also-carries-a-mystery-killer-virus

"But the CDC has yet to formally declare Bourbon virus a tick-borne disease. To definitively link Bourbon virus with its suspected vector, the agency needs more data—specifically on how well Lone Star ticks acquire, maintain, and transmit the pathogen in a lab. Aaron Brault, a microbiologist with CDC’s Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, says those studies are currently in progress. He says it’s now a “strong probability rather than simply a possibility” that the virus is transmitted to humans through ticks."

In any case, send us your ticks for rapid and professional identification (and testing if needed).

A tick best known for making people allergic to red meat can also infect its victims with the deadly Bourbon virus.

Isn't it ironic that with eighty percent of the world’s population at risk from one or more vector-borne diseases, vecto...
05/09/2020

Isn't it ironic that with eighty percent of the world’s population at risk from one or more vector-borne diseases, vector-control programs that keep disease-spreading bugs at bay are now at risk from COVID-19 pandemic related resource shortages and social distancing restrictions that cut down on their ability to effectively reach treatment areas? When will we learn to balance long term preventative public health maintenance with emergency preparedness and regular annual budget cycles?

https://idus.co/vectorcontrolcuts

Vector-control programs that keep disease-spreading bugs at bay are suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic as resources are pulled from critical control programs and social distancing cuts down the reach of treatment areas, warned public health experts.

Be (and bee) mindful of this recent invader.
05/02/2020

Be (and bee) mindful of this recent invader.

Sightings of the Asian giant hornet have prompted fears that the vicious insect could establish itself in the United States and devastate bee populations.

Fleas are never a welcome sight, and if they are carrying the plague, there's even more reason to worry. https://idus.co...
04/30/2020

Fleas are never a welcome sight, and if they are carrying the plague, there's even more reason to worry. https://idus.co/flagstaff-fleas

By NewsDesk Health officials in Coconino County, AZ are reporting that fleas collected in the Baderville area, northwest of Flagstaff, have tested positive for plague (Yersinia pestis). Collecting and testing of fleas for the presence of plague was conducted by the Pathogen and Microbiom...

As if cattle ranchers didn't have enough to worry about these days. Tick borne diseases also affect animal populations a...
04/30/2020

As if cattle ranchers didn't have enough to worry about these days. Tick borne diseases also affect animal populations and thus, indirectly, humans too. https://idus.co/cattlefevertick

Interesting diversion from the usual news.
04/29/2020

Interesting diversion from the usual news.

A tiny 'mechanical' insect once helped experts get their brains into gear… quite literally! While the natural and mechanical worlds seem poles apart, the

instructions on Removing Gloves Safelyhttps://youtu.be/tT5N_LMIGhI
03/20/2020

instructions on Removing Gloves Safely
https://youtu.be/tT5N_LMIGhI

Town of Bristol Fire Chief Ben LaRoche demonstrates the proper and safe way to remove gloves.

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