Biological control of horn flies

Details Biological control of horn flies Biological control of horn flies

2001-09-26

2004-06-08

Wityskyn, Mike (Department: 1651)

Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions

Preparations characterized by special physical form

Biocides; animal or insect repellents or attractants

C449S001000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06746682

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the biocontrol of pests and more particularly refers to a method for controlling flies and, more specifically the invention refers to the biocontrol of flies of the species
Haematobia irritans
, horn fly, by managing wasps, preferably of the species
Polybia scutellaris
, in an area with a population of such flies. The managing of wasps generally comprises the installation of honeycomb or hives containing wasps.
To the purpose of the present specification the terms honeycomb device must be understood, unless otherwise indicated, as comprising wasps's honeycomb, wasp's hives or any other container, house or device providing the necessary conditions, as natural as possible, for the housing and living of the desired wasps.
While the present specification will make reference to the horn flies as the preferred insect for the biocontrol, the invention must be understood as applied to any kind of undesired flies.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is well known to control pests through biocontrol, that is by using a pest predator for controlling the pest development by killing the pest, for example. Biocontrol seeks to attain a balance between a pest insect and its natural enemies, thereby reducing or eliminating the need for chemical control.
Among the several pests, the fly is an undesired insect either for human beings as well as for some animals such as the livestock, such as the cattle, which is particularly attacked by the horn fly. Horn fly occurs from Canada to Argentina in the Western Hemisphere, and Europe to North Africa in the other Hemisphere. Horn flies and stable flies were introduced from Europe, presumably along with cattle at the time of early settlement. Horn flies do not bite man but are almost exclusively associated with cattle and sometimes with horses and game elk. They spend almost their entire adult lives on and among the hair of their hosts, females leaving for only a few minutes to oviposit. They can feed whenever they wish, which they do often to the distress of cattle.
Horn fly larvae develop only in fresh cow dung. In hot weather horn flies develop rapidly, completing a generation every 3 weeks or so at 30° C., or monthly at 25° C. The young larvae, which cannot survive desiccation, live at the moist surface of the dung; older larvae live within tunnels made in drier dung by beetle larvae. Pupation takes place in the soil under the dung or nearby. Larvae are yellow-white maggots about 2-12 mm long. These are cylindrical in cross section, and taper from the rear to the head. Pupae are reddish-brown and 3-4 mm long.
Adult horn flies average 5 mm long and are about ½ to ⅔ the size of a typical house fly. They are charcoal gray in color with two dark stripes on the thorax and a few diffuse spots on the top of abdomen. The mouthparts are visibly extended forwards from the head as a piercing proboscis and the palps are longer than ½ the length of the proboscis.
Congregating on those areas of the body where they are not likely to be disturbed (base of horns, neck, throat, belly, thighs, back etc.), horn flies suck blood from livestock through their needle-like mouthparts. Such feeding causes weight loss, reduced milk production, and reduced vitality. Furthermore, animals become so annoyed that they may injure themselves while attempting to dislodge the flies. Infestations of 4,000 to 10,000 flies per animal are common in some parts of the countries. It has been calculated that a cattle herd infested with horn flies has a weight loss of about 10% to 15% for pasture bovines, a weight loss of about 7% to 8% for weaning calves and the looses of milk production is about 10% to 20% in a milk cow.
On finding a host, horn flies remain on it and others in the same herd for life, moving to different anatomical sites for regulating their temperature and minimizing exposure to the wind. Both horn fly sexes suck blood, males feeding approximately 20 times and female approximately 40 times daily.
Favored by warm, moist weather, horn flies emerge in spring and seek out host animals. Although they locate hosts successfully during the day, they usually disperse at night, sometimes traveling as far as 5 miles.
During the spring and summer months, a new brood of flies emerges 5 to 7 days later and repeats the cycle. As winter approaches, newly formed pupae overwinter giving rise to a new generation of flies the following spring. Although most prevalent in spring and summer, horn flies continue to produce a new generation approximately every 2 weeks well into autumn.
Insecticidal control options for horn flies include whole-animal sprays, self-applicating devices, feed-through insecticides and growth regulators, and controlled-release devices, such as ear tags and tapes. Not all products are effective against horn flies, and some products cannot be used on lactating dairy cattle.
Whole-animal sprays provided rapid relief from fly pressure. Animal sprays are applied either as a dilute coarse spray, often applied under high pressure to soak the skin, or as a fine low-volume, more concentrated mist.
Self-applicating devices include back rubber covered with an absorbent material treated with an insecticide-oil solution, or dust bags filled with an insecticidal dust. Back rubbers and dustbags should be placed in gateways, near water and feed source, and in other areas where animals will make frequent contact with them.
Feed-throughs include insecticidal feed additives, treated mineral blocks, and bolus formulations. Unless the farm was very isolated or participating in an area-wide management program, feed-throughs may not provide satisfactory fly suppression.
Controlled-release ear tags and tapes are generally very effective for horn fly control in certain farm areas.
Pour-on treatments involves the application of an insecticide along the backline of the animal at a prescribed dosage of topical products.
The topical products that are currently approved for control and available fit into three major categories: Organophosphates (OP's), pyrethroid and endectocides.
In Argentina sprays and pour-ons are generally used to control horn flies. Dairy cattle are treated more frequently than beef cattle. The increased treatment frequencies against horn fly populations may be one of the factors responsible for the development of pyrethroid resistance. It is known that if a horn fly population develops resistance to one synthetic pyrethroid it is resistant to all of them. Once established, resistance will persist for a number of years.
When resistance of insecticide is established the use should be stopped. Cattle should be treated before and at the end of fly season by another class of insecticide to reduce the number of resistant flies that will produce overwintering generation. The ability to alternate between insecticide classes may be limited due to the type of cattle or compatibility of the treatment method with the herd management system.
The use of organophosphated compounds is prohibited in many countries as long as it causes important risks for the human health and ecosystem. Continued use of chemical insecticides over a long period of time has resulted in public concerns of the possible risk of chemical residues in meat and milk.
It is known that horn flies are attacked by a number of parasites and predators in the manure pats. Unfortunately, practical means of utilizing this natural control has not been successful. Producers, therefore, rely on chemical means of protecting their cattle from horn flies. The use of alternate methods of pest control such as the application of biological control agents is desirable to minimize the use of insecticides.
In recent years, commercial insectaries have reared and sold fly parasites as wasps which deposit eggs on fly pupae. The wasp larvae feed on the developing fly and kill it. Release of wasps has provided effective fly control in some poultry houses but this is ineffective as a control of pasture fly pests such as face f

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