The importance of a good initial diagnosis

One of the most important tools, and not always valued within integrated pest management and control programs, is the diagnosis of existing environmental conditions. These variables are determining factors in the establishment, the intensity of pest multiplication, estimating the environmental potential for the burden of said pest in a given place and/or its spatial distribution. From the result of this measurement (diagnosis), central conclusions will be born not only to define the control actions to be implemented in a given environment, but also, to establish the frequency of treatments, the appropriate selection of products (chemical and non-chemical), their formulations, application equipment, physical/mechanical barriers and also, as a relevant factor, the fulfillment of the expectations of those contracting the services, one of the axes of our work. As is known, pests must be understood as populations, subject to environmental conditions (abiotic) and biotic conditions (specific to the pest and the ecological regulations that define them, such as, for example, competition). Abiotic factors are decisive in defining the establishment, environmental load and distribution of a pest in an environment and include elements such as the availability of water, food and shelter, factors that are often difficult to visualize in a given environment or in which their management and intervention are difficult to implement or afford but which must be included in the proposed control equation. Understanding the relevance of a good initial diagnosis is essential throughout the following chain, a clear example being what happens with fly populations and their relationship with substrates. Thus, for example, in the case of flies, a substrate capable of emitting odors that allow the attraction of flies within a certain perimeter to the substrate, a distance that is defined by the wind conditions and spatial volume in which said substrate is located. As different authors have described, these odors facilitate the attraction and generation of the “fly effect”, which is a dense-dependent agglomeration effect in which flies tend to gather on a surface. The substrate will also be a fermentation focus that will maintain sufficient temperatures for oviposition, hatching and larval development, reducing the initial mortality that occurs in eggs and early larvae (Larva I and II mainly) regardless of the existing environmental temperatures. On the other hand, the same substrate will be responsible for maintaining adequate humidity, determining, like temperature, lower mortalities and greater viability of non-adult phases and, furthermore, whether the substrate conditions are more conducive to the generation of Musca domestica or Fania cannicularis or Fania scalaris, for example. Last but not least, the nutritional composition of said substrate determines the generation of better-fed, larger and, consequently, more prolific adult flies. All these elements provided by the substrates are determining factors in the potential of a pest and must be considered at the beginning of the establishment of management and control programs, as well as in the evaluation of management, treatment frequencies and their cost. This initial diagnosis will also serve to identify the predominant pest species, allowing us to focus precisely on its habits and behavior, generating rational and effective measures and indications to reduce the pest. Starting a pest management and control program is always a decisive and determining step that we must keep in mind when visiting an environment or quoting a service. Environmental conditions are often dynamic, so periodic and exhaustive review should always be done. Never forget to have all the necessary tools to make this diagnosis (flashlights, magnifying glasses, screwdrivers, etc.) and to review records or existing information.