Fungal Contamination of Rat Baits

Abstract:
The rats control in environment involves the chemical control using poison baits that are composed by paraffin blocks, mixture of seeds or pellets in packs. Some products used in pest control are natural organic certified rodent. These materials can be distributed externally or around the places using indoor system or boxes, called bait stations. However, the climatic conditions during the year in tropical areas, could affect the quality of baits during the control period. Fungal growth on surface of these baits could change the attractive smell or odour. The moulds are common in the areas that show high humidity, mainly in rainy seasons. The objective of this present study was analyzed the fungal occurrence in baits spread in external environment during spring. The samples collected showed high percentage of moulds after samples incubation on Sabouraud agar in Petri dishes and the results demonstrated that baits suffer the fungal attack mainly in environmental conditions during spring season.