Tell us Ted - Best Calibre for Pests?
The mighty Ted of Ted #39;s Holdover is rightly considered the greatest airgunning YouTuber in the world. We go to him with some of the burning airgun questions of the day - and he pronounces....
By: Fieldsports Channel
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Tell us Ted - Best Calibre for Pests? - Video
June 19, 2014
Researchers Develop Genetic Control Mechanism for Major Livestock Pest
Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a technique to control populations of the Australian sheep blowfly a major livestock pest in Australia and New Zealand by making female flies dependent upon a common antibiotic to survive.
Dr. Max Scott, professor of entomology at NC State, and his research team genetically modified lines of female Australian sheep blowflies (Lucilia cuprina) so that they required doses of tetracycline in order to live. Female blowflies that did not receive the antibiotic died in the late larval or pupal stages, before reaching adulthood. Several genetically modified lines lacking tetracycline showed 100 percent female deaths.
Scott says that the gene construct responsible for lethality in antibiotic-free diets is female-specific. Interestingly and unexpectedly, the genetically modified female larvae containing the tetracycline lethality genes also took on a crimson color due to overexpression of the linked red fluorescent protein marker gene. This allows scientists to tell which larvae will be females and which will be males.
Overexpression of the gene responsible for the reliance on tetracycline also seems to overexpress this marker gene, Scott says.
Since the females will die when not provided tetracycline in their diets, the males can be separated out in the larval stage. This is essential for a male-only genetic control program to reduce blowfly populations, Scott says, as fertile males would pass the lethality construct on to female offspring, which would die in the absence of tetracycline. Male larval offspring, however, would still be dangerous to livestock.
In the study, the researchers showed that the tetracycline gene construct also works in Drosophila, the fruit fly lab rat of the insect world that is a distant cousin of the sheep blowfly. This holds promise that the genetic system will function in the New World and Old World screwworm, two major livestock pests that are close relatives of the sheep blowfly. Scott is working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to make male-only strains of the New World screwworm (Cochliomyia hominivorax).
The New World screwworm is a devastating pest of livestock that was eradicated from North and Central America by releasing sterilized male and female flies, Scott says. However, a male-only strain offers several advantages, including potentially more efficient population suppression for the ongoing program. Efficient genetic control systems have the potential to help eradicate some of the biggest problem pests across the globe, he said.
The research is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture and NC State.
People who know I am from Winnipeg cannot believe when I complain about the savage mosquitoes here in Merritt.
But youre from Winnipeg! they exclaim. The mosquitoes are the size of pelicans there!
Theyre bad there, sure, but man, theyre bad here too.
In the last few years, there has been a big push back against the City of Winnipeg fogging different neighbourhoods because people fear they are being exposed to toxic chemicals.
If it kills mosquitoes, they reason, its probably not all that great for humans to be breathing in.
Well, I am actually kind of glad Merritt doesnt seem to be dealing with the blood-sucking, buzzing nuisances the way Winnipeg does, because that city sure has some how shall I put it unique pest control methods.
Lets start with the gopher, those cute little rodents also known as the Richardsons ground squirrel, who tunnel underground and dot the landscape with gopher holes that are just the right size and depth to trip up unwitting walkers.
Winnipegs administration hired a pest control company to drop poison pellets down the gopher holes so the little guys eat them and then slowly bleed to death internally.
Painful way to die though it seems, it would work if the pellets had actually made it into the holes.
Instead, they were kind of strewn across the ground of at least one city park, which also happens to have a large off-leash dog area.
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The ethical conundrum of pest control
An informal survey of bar and restaurant patio owners in Gibsons found that a smoking ban was not a divisive issue, a Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) official told councils committee of the whole on June 10.
VCH tobacco reduction coordinator Caitlin Etherington said she surveyed 16 patios where it currently would be legal to smoke. Of those, she said, 11 are already smoke free, two allow limited or occasional smoking, but both of those said they would welcome a bylaw because it would provide clarity and a more concrete justification for providing a smoke-free place for their clientele. Three technically allow smoking, but only one has a concern about their bottom line.
VCH is asking local governments to pass a leading-edge bylaw that would ban smoking 7.5 metres from doors, on all patios, in parks, on beaches and trails, transit stops and public places where people gather.
Coast Reporter
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Smoke ban not divisive for Gibsons patio owners
Rechargeable portable LED flood light for outdoor lighting
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Rechargeable portable LED flood light for outdoor lighting - Video
Best House Cleaning company in Boston - THE FABULOUS MAID
The Fabulous Maid is a professional certified cleaning company that offers residential and commercial services, such as housekeeping, maid services, janitorial, regular cleaning, deep cleaning,...
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Best House Cleaning company in Boston - THE FABULOUS MAID - Video
New York Housekeeping: The Top Most Maid Services
New York Housekeeping offers eco-friendly, green cleaning services. NY Housekeeping is one of the top maid services in the entire city, and a premier company...
By: Miriam Kahn
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New York Housekeeping: The Top Most Maid Services - Video
Dan Gross/The Gazette
I come from a long line of entrepeneurs, says Lyn DeWitt, who founded Solar Mowing, a Bethesda company that uses solar-powered mowers and trimmers. Working behind her are her daughter Anna Kelly and employees David Jimenez and Dylan Reilly. A solar panel on the trucks roof charges the equipment.
Before Lyn DeWitt used to mow her lawn, she would take her children inside her Bethesda house and shut the windows to escape the mowers fumes and loud motor. As the communications director for the Audubon Naturalist Society and generally an environmentally aware citizen, DeWitt decided that she had enough of the gasoline-powered mower.
Thats when she decided to harness the same sun that helped the lawn grow in the first place and her company, Solar Mowing, was born.
In 2009, DeWitt bought her first battery-powered mower for roughly $400. Although it cost about $200 more than the average gasoline mower, she said it was worth the investment because it was quiet, convenient and did not pollute the air. She then found a small company in Virginia that outfitted her truck with a photovoltaic solar panel and storage batteries. Thanks to the solar panels, she could charge her mower all day as she worked.
I come from a long line of entrepeneurs who always had their own businesses, so it felt very natural for me to start a business out of this, DeWitt said. My uncles had a lawn equipment business, my father sold Christmas trees in the winter and flowers in the spring and summer, and my uncle owned a small fruit farm.
She invested about $30,000 on the truck, solar panels, mowers and other equipment. She enlisted the help of her 14-year-old daughter, Anna, and several young adults.
Since 2009, the company has grown to six mowers, eight trimmers, three trucks with solar panels and a dozen employees. A year ago, it was certified by the Montgomery County Green Business Certification Program, signifying its effective environmental stewardship. It received a runner-up award at Bethesda Greens gala in 2011 in a category recognizing local green services.
According to the Solar Mowing website, the company abides by a few distinctive standards. First, it mows, not according to a set schedule, but when it is best for the lawn.
Lyn is mowing the lawn so its best for the lawn in the long term, unlike some services who just do it on a schedule and theyre not really thinking about the best interest of your lawn, said Andrea Witt of Bethesda, a customer for three years.
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Cutting grass the green way: Bethesda woman grows Solar Mowing -- Gazette.Net
Christina Bell, Ashland's director of development and chief party planner, is in the final stages of preparing the biggest fundraiser of the year. In her office, Bell is surrounded by auction items. There are 40 for the silent auction and 10 bigger-ticket items a year's lease on a BMW, a Greek coin necklace, dinner for eight at Botherum, another historic home in town that the foundation hopes will get bid up in frenzied competition. HERALD-LEADER|BuyPhoto
A casual visitor to the Henry Clay Estate this week might have no inkling, but behind the serene, historic faade, it's crunch time for the people who work there.
Saturday is the Lawn Party, the biggest day in the Ashland Foundation's fund-raising calendar. Banners at the four corners of the grounds declare it "Summer's Best Party," doubling down on the pressure as if raising a quarter of the annual operating budget in a single night isn't enough.
"There's a ton of things to do," says Christina Bell, director of development and chief party planner, who's pretty much camped out this week at work, keeping her finger on the elevated pulse of the preparations.
Besides the catering and the tent and the musicians, there are weeds to banish, bricks to clean, mosquitoes to discourage and 17 acres of grass to cut. The estate hires outside services for the spraying and mowing. But for the other sprucing-up tasks, and for generally keeping a cool head amid the frenzy, Bell and curator Eric Brooks know they can rely on one man: Shawn Goheen.
What, me worry?
"I just wait for my list," says Goheen, looking surprisingly serene for a go-to guy days before the big bash.
Or maybe he hasn't fully woken up. It's just after 8 a.m. and he normally doesn't clock in until 10.
Goheen, 46, grew up across the road on Sherman Avenue, and as a boy climbed Ashland's trees and played Frisbee on its lawn. His memories of the place include seeing the long-departed cat Gypsy, one of Ashland's favorite residents, sitting in a window, surveying her domain. But he'd never been inside the building until five years ago, when he was hired as the estate's maintenance technician. It's a job title that is elastic enough to include almost anything.
"Shawn does an incredible number of things in a few hours and does them well and cheerfully," says Brooks. "He often finds problems that we don't know about."
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It's all hands on deck at Ashland for major fundraiser
Planting a Rattan Hanging Basket with Jane McCorkell
Award winning landscape architect and gardening expert, Jane McCorkell, presented a series of educational workshops as part of our #39;Brighten Up Your Garden #39; ...
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Planting a Rattan Hanging Basket with Jane McCorkell - Video
