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What happened to all those giant flying spiders that were about to take over the country? Weren’t they supposed to have webbed over the entire area like a snowstorm? Well, I’m still getting a few headlines on those Joro spiders and it brings up a great point. When a new invasive species makes headlines, the narrative is almost always the same: exponential population spikes, widespread ecological disruption, and panic over supply chain impact. Whether it's the spotted lanternf

Lately, I’ve been doing a LOT of work in food processing sites. So of course, I have stored product pests on my brain. And on every other open tab of my browser! This time of year, if you run quality assurance or perform pest control services for a food processing plant, commercial bakery, or distribution hub, late summer brings a very specific kind of headache. It’s August. Temperatures inside non-air-conditioned warehouses are hovering in the upper 80s or 90s, if you are lu

I like chocolate. Specifically dark chocolate, but I’m not turning away the semi-sweet chocolate chip cookies or the milk chocolate morsels in a good brownie. A candy bar or a filled chocolate candy will do just fine. Open a bag and I’ll be there. The closer it is, the faster I am going to find it and eat it, probably a lot of it given the chance! If I have to go to the store and buy it, or spend a few hours cooking it, obviously it’s going to take me longer to get to it and

When most people hear the word "plague," they immediately picture medieval Europe, wooden carts, and plague doctors in bird masks. It feels like an ancient historical artifact. The plague is still very much active today. Yersinia pestis (the bacterium that causes plague) has been quietly circulating in the wildlife of the American West for decades. A recent announcement from the New Mexico Department of Health: a wild rodent in Santa Fe County officially tested positive for

The FIFA World Cup is here, and the numbers being tossed around are staggering. A recent piece by food safety expert Francine Shaw highlighted a logistics nightmare: one host city expects up to 10 million visitors but only has 28 health inspectors on staff. Yep, that’s my city of Atlanta. Let that sink in. Ten million international fans. Thousands of temporary food trucks, pop-up tents, and fan zones. The Atlanta airport has new food stalls in many terminals. All being monito

My cat was playing with a cockroach the other day, just one of the woods roaches that occasionally get in. Of course, I yelled at her (lots of good that did!) and removed the dead cockroach from her mouth and threw it out. Is my precious Max in danger from sucking on a cockroach? Probably not. Cockroaches elicit a definite “ew”, a distinct “yuck”, and a pretty definitive “nope” from most people and for good reason. The conditions they are found in are nasty and disgusting. So

I’m back from an amazing trip overseas. That being said, I have lost all sense of time and I’m a bit jetlagged. So I forgot yesterday was Tuesday. I’m now pretending today is yesterday and getting the blog out. Speaking of time travel, do you know how old termites are? (and yes, all the pictures in this week's blog were taken by me on this trip!) While I was in Kenya last week, in between inspections and other work, I had the privilege of going on safari with some absolutely

I was in Egypt last week helping out with some accounts and learning all about pest control in the region. Here are some cool things I'm taking back with me (aside from pounds/Kgs of dates!). Sorry there are no pictures, my internet is terrible here so suck it up. Large flies are one of the biggest problems there. Between infrastructure issues, stray animals, trash, and sanitation problems, there is prime breeding grounds for huge infestations. Mostly coming in from the outs

It was World Bee Day last week, and that’s a great time to talk about bees. Honey bees specifically. Honey bees are an invasive species. These are sometimes referred to as the European honey bee, the western honey bee, but ESA states the common name is simply the “honey bee”. If you want to get scientific about it, it’s Apis mellifera*, which comes from the Latin of Apis meaning bee and mellifera meaning honey-bearing. There is still a little controversy, but most science poi