Ground Squirrel Bait continued from page 3

Like all of Bell’s rodenticides, Ditrac Ground Squirrel bait contains only the high- est-grade toxicants and inert ingredients for outstanding rodent acceptance and control. Ditrac Ground Squirrel bait is now available through Bell distributors, in select U.S. states. Ground squirrels can cause extensive dam- PESTWORLD 2015 IN NASHVILLE - OCT. 20-23 age and also carry and transmit disease. Their burrows cause structural damage to orna- Mark your calendars for PestWorld 2015, Blox towering over the exhibit. This is where mentals, lawns, sports fields, parks, golf this fall at the Grand Opryland Hotel & Con- the Bell team will be to answer questions and courses, and levees, which can lead to human vention Center in Nashville, Tennessee. discuss new products and expanded labels for injuries and damage equipment - costing Bell’s booth #615 will be easy to spot this select Bell rodenticides. property owners a significant amount of time year – look for Bell’s Evo Mouse and Contrac See you in Music City, October 20-23! and money. I V O L U M E 3 4 l N U M B E R 3 l JULY-SEPTEMBER 2015

PRSRT STD US Postage PAID 3699 KINSMAN BLVD. l MADISON, WI 53704 Madison, WI www.belllabs.com Permit 1355

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Sweet Success For Bell’s T-Rex A sugarcane crop was providing the sweet life for a hardy population of Cotton in Guatemala, that is, until Bell’s T-Rex®.

Island Conservation ats are nothing new to sugarcane pro- sugar production. It’s a costly pest problem continued from page 3 ducers in Guatemala. As one of the that requires creative methods to eliminate. mostR damaging pests that growers have to deal After a recent presentation with the Sugar- feat in island restoration. With many years is acceptable,” said Craig Riekena, Bell’s eration Manager and Invasive Species expert with, managers and producers stop at nothing cane Growers Pest Control Association, Bell’s and several million pounds of bait to be dis- Compliance Manager. from BirdLife Pacific, in a recent report from to protect their valuable crop from a rodent’s Latin American Business Manager, Dan De tributed, Bell and partners at Island Conser- If any rodents are found on follow up in- project headquarters. sweet tooth. Poli, gave a box of Bell’s Trapper T-Rex vation work towards 100% removal of vestigations at one and two years post appli- “In the last few days of the operation more Rodents, in particular the Cotton Rat, cause Snap Traps to sugarcane producers to test in invasive rodents. cation, the project is considered a failure. This Polynesian Ground-dove and Tuamotu Sand- extensive destruction to sugarcane yield. Rats the fields. After much success, one company “For island projects only 100% eradication is because the inherent isolation of these is- piper were sighted on Vahanga,” said Richard gnaw through the ring of the sugarcane stalk in in particular, Ingenio Madre Tierra, was ready lands and typical lack of predators means that Griffiths, Island Conservation Project Direc- order to eat the juicy tissue inside. This causes to put the T-Rex to the ultimate test. just a few rodents left unkilled will repopulate tor. “This is a sign of hope for recovery not anything above the chewed portion to die and Ingenio Madre Tierra (translates to ‘Mother and resume their destructive ways in just a few only for these French Polynesian species, but attracts insects and other pests to the hollowed Earth’) is Guatemala’s fourth largest sugarcane years. for the hundreds of threatened island species out section. producer, and second largest in output. With After initial surveys, the project shows signs around the world waiting for similar interven- I Just a mere six inches of gnawing can com- over 18,500 hectares of crop (plus production of success. “It will be one year before we can tions on their behalf.” pletely damage a full 30-foot sugarcane stalk. facilities), an aggressive Integrated Pest Man- declare the six islands rat-free, but initial signs Every one percent of damage to each hectare agement (IPM) program is fundamental to suc- are very positive,” said Steve Cranwell – Op- of crop represents half a ton (1,000 lbs) lost in cessful crop maintenance. Continued on page 2 T-Rex Continued from front page Bell Debuts Ditrac So, Perez and his team purchased 3,000 of quick kill. Bell’s Trapper T-Rex snap traps to use for not Another benefit of T-Rex was the ease-of- Ground Squirrel Bait only trapping, but also monitoring rodent pres- use for applicators in the field. “They are sure. They placed seven traps in each hectare much easier to use and safer for our employ- of land, using corn tortillas as an attractant. ees,” said Perez. Based on the percent of captures, Perez would When setting 3,000 traps across 18,500 then determine the amount of bait to use. hectares of land (that is about 45,700 acres), “If the catch rate per hectare was less than safety and ease-of-use is of top priority. The T- 8%, no baiting took place. 8%-15%, then one Rex is a safer option because it can be set eas- kilo of bait was placed per hectare. 16%-30% ily by foot or hand. Applicators simply have to Return to Paradise Restoring the French Polynesian Islands - two kilos, and so on,” explained De Poli. press the lever on the back of the trap and they Conservation Island Hall, Tommy credit: Photo This strategy avoided the costly mistake of are good to go. The removable bait cup can be either overbaiting or underbaiting the fields as withdrawn to fill with an attractant, and then nother island rat eradication project is part of an ongoing effort to use less rodenti- re-inserted without having the trap set. underway, this time in the Pacific par- cides. “With the results and durability of the T- adise of the French Polynesian Islands. Lo- ® Rex, they’ve already paid for themselves,” said A rom the makers of PCQ , Bell introduces Traps and IPM cated in the South Pacific Ocean halfway ® Perez. The team at Ingenio Madre Tierra is new Ditrac Ground Squirrel bait, with between California and Australia, it is In crop and commercial food processing ac- so pleased with how T-Rex has performed in Fthe powerful multi-feed, first generation anti- known as an exclusive island escape, filled counts, trapping is an essential component to a the sugarcane fields; they will soon place an coagulant Diphacinone. with stunning turquoise lagoons and pictur- comprehensive IPM approach to rodent pre- order for 2,000 additional traps. It can be used for the control of the Califor-

esque romantic landscapes. Blanvillain Caroline credit: Photo vention and control. It can be the most effec- “Our T-Rex continues to be a favorite tool nia Ground Squirrel in California, Oregon, Visited by honeymooners and travelers tive method to eliminate rodents quickly. Dead used for IPM in Latin America,” said De Poli. Critically Endangered Polynesian Ground-dove Washington, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, New alike, the island is now the site to what will rodents can easily be disposed, eliminating any “When it comes to mechanical control, it has Mexico, Arizona and North Dakota. likely be the largest ever rat eradication proj- odors or other issues. quickly become the market’s number one Specifically developed to appeal to this squir- ect. BirdLife International, with SOP Manu population, with BirdLife International esti- “We are trying to reduce our bait usage con- choice.” I rel species, Ditrac Ground Squirrel bait is avail- (BirdLife Partner in ) and mating fewer than 100 remain today. siderably by increasing the amount of traps,” able in an economical 12 lb. pail or 50 lb. bag Island Conservation are leading the opera- Nests built throughout the sugarcane fields entice said Perez. “Not only to monitor, but also to A Familiar Story with its active ingredient at 0.005 percent. The birds-of-prey that hunt rodents tion across the remote areas of the French control and reduce populations mechanically.” highly palatable formula competes with Cali- Polynesian Islands. Despite the isolation of these islands, res- The T-Rex not only traps rodents with its fornia Ground Squirrel’s natural food sources. The first phase of bait application fin- ident species were not immune to human in- The man in charge of such a project is Fer- patented interlocking teeth, but it’s also built “This non-restricted rodenticide will give ished in July of this year. For Bell, the terference. Decades ago the Norway rat, nel Perez, from the Guatemala Agricultural with a durable plastic material to withstand the PMPs an excellent tool to control ground squir- French Polynesian project is currently the Polynesian rat and other invasive species Research department, responsible for Pest and harshest environments, and can be re-used rels around man-made structures,” said Bell’s largest island bait donation to date with overran the island groups of French Polyne- Deceased. Perez and his team are IPM experts again and again with continued results. Western Technical Representative, Jeremy more than 200,000 pounds of Brodifacoum sia. They fed on the young chicks and to say the least, employing creative methods to The durability and performance of Trapper Davis. “We are confident that users will find pellets manufactured and donated. hatchlings of the famed ground-dove, along stop the destructive habits of rodents in the T-Rex went above and beyond expectations for the same great results with Ditrac Ground The project team of 31 successfully car- with native species including the endangered field. Perez and his team. Where wood traps failed, Squirrel Bait as they found with PCQ over the ried out the aerial rodenticide bait drop. For . His pest control strategies at Ingenio Madre T-Rex outperformed the rest. Overcoming the past 30 years.” several weeks, the team baited more than Because the island species evolved with- Tierra consisted of not only baiting and trap- extreme environmental conditions that caused Ditrac Ground Squirrel Bait is a non-re- 1,300 hectares of land, spread across two is- out predatory , they were particu- ping in the fields, but also harborage reduction other traps to break, T-Rex performed despite stricted use product that can be applied within lands in the (Vahanga and larly susceptible to hungry rodents that and biological control. “We built man-made heat, humidity, rain and direct sun. 100 ft. of man-made structures when used with Tenarunga) and four islands in the preyed on the eggs and chicks of the flight- nests for owls and placed stakes and observa- “The account noticed a much higher kill a secured, tamper-resistant bait station. group (Temoe, , , and less birds. tion stands,” said Perez. “With this tactic, we rate per snap,” said De Poli. “With the T-Rex, Patented interlocking teeth of the Trapper T-Rex® ). “Invasive alien species are a key driver of hoped to attract birds of prey that hunt the ro- the trapping rate improved to 11 kills for every Continued on back page deliver quick results with a powerful snap. The French Polynesia project is expected global biodiversity loss,” says Don Stewart, dents.” 12 snaps.” to span over 20 years and 48 islands, requir- Director of BirdLife Pacific. “Introduced While this untraditional approach worked to With the combined trigger sensitivity and ing more than 16 million pounds of bait alone are believed to be responsi- capture some rodents, Perez’s mechanical traps the exact trap velocity needed to capture and spread across almost 100,000 hectares of is- ble for 90% of all extinctions since were failing the job. Buying an average of hold rats, its patented interlocking teeth make land land. It’s an ambitious undertaking - 1500, and are presently the main cause of 7,000 wood traps a year to use outdoors, the rat escapes virtually impossible. With its im- with the hope that the island groups will be decline for nine out of 10 globally threat- traps were not getting the job done in the field. pressive grip, T-Rex provides superior trapping free of invasive rodents and the native ani- ened birds within the Pacific.” The wood traps did not last long in the chal- power for both rats and mice for every type of mals and plants will return to their fabled Without intervention by Island Conserva- lenging environment of heat, sun exposure and account. beauty and abundance. tion with support from Bell, these famed and rain, amongst other obstacles. “So far it has been over 150 days and not a In particular, the project aims to restore endangered species would be driven to ex- “The wood snap traps were yielding no single trap has broken in the field,” said De the populations of one of the world’s most tinction. more than one kill for every 12 snaps,” said Poli. It’s a true testament to the vigorous re- rare and endangered birds, the Polynesian Bell’s De Poli. “Bell’s T-Rex was built to tackle search and development that went into the T- The Road Ahead Ground-dove. Found only in French Poly- such a challenging job.” Rex - manufactured for a powerful snap and a nesia, invasive rodents nearly wiped out the The completion of Phase 1 is a remarkable Continued on back page