Pests affect not only your lifestyle and health but also the natural environment in Cyprus. They minimize the quality of people’s resources (food, water etc.), damage wildlife and cause diseases and discomfort. A pest is a burdensome organism and a threat. Native species are confronted by their natural enemies. But what happens with invasive pests? Here is a list of how pests affect the environment in Cyprus.
What are Invasive Pests?
These pests are non-native meaning that they are introduced to the ecosystem either by accident or purposely. People and goods travel the world daily, probably carrying with them these pests.
Biodiversity Loss
Biodiversity is all kinds of life you can find in one area such as wildlife, plants, and different organisms. When pests invade another ecosystem, the environment is more vulnerable due to the absence of their natural enemies which live in their native habitat. As a result, they spread and have a negative impact on agriculture and the economy in general. Some disease indications on plants are rusts, smuts, downy or powdery mildews, mosaic patterns on leaves or holes in stems.
Pests destroy any kind of crops leaving an entire ecosystem with a monoculture. In the animal kingdom, pests stop various species from reproducing, or they even kill a native species’ young causing harm to animals or animal products. For example, they reduce animal weight gain, affect the production of milk or eggs and weaken their immune system.
Climate Change
One aspect of climate change is global warming. Global warming increases the planet’s temperature which results in more humid and warmer climates. Pests enjoy heat and humidity which aid in their growth in the habitat they exist.
Monitoring Pests
The growth pattern of pests within a crop is rarely consistent. Monitoring your plants and/or animals can give data for pest management in the unlikely event of a spread. It’s important to know what kind of pests have infected your plants or animals and what their activity is.
You can monitor your ecosystem either manually or using a device. You can use a variety of sampling methods, direct or indirect. Some direct methods are sweep netting or searching the ground. An indirect method is setting traps. Adjust your collection technique to the kind of pest you are targeting. When completing your sampling, take notes with all the data you collected.
Regardless, of what monitoring method you use, or natural techniques to keep the pests at bay, the need for an expert to eradicate pests may be necessary. Reach out to Pest Control in Cyprus for a professional and immediate response.
