Entomologist

2019-08-21 15.43.26

Vincent Dethier once wrote, “…there has never seemed to be a taboo against pulling off the legs or wings of flies. Most children eventually outgrow this behavior. Those who do not either come to a bad end or become biologists.”

Three decades ago, Ted took the latter of the Dethier’s two paths, and ended up as a Board Certified Entomologist with a Master’s Degree in urban entomology.

Along the way he has worked as a senior manager at a large, regional pest control company, where he lead strategic and operational projects related to training, technical services, and quality assurance.

Ted has had his writing on pest management published in many popular and trade magazines.

In addition, he has served as an entomology officer in the US Army, setting up the Department of Defense’s primary entomology laboratory in the Pacific Area of Command. He also ran the Department of Defense Pesticide Applicator Training Center for the Western Pacific, which provided training and entomological support to military preventive medicine personnel and foreign national pest management professionals.

He learned the industry working as a technician at his grandfather’s pest control company in Southern California while he studied entomology at college.  After all these years, he still enjoys solving tough pest problems and providing training to pest management professionals and the public.

He has degrees from two of the top entomology schools in the United States, is a Board Certified Entomologist, and is a regularly published writer on entomology and pest management. Internationally experienced, he has worked in six different countries, and has trained hundreds of pest control technicians.

Board Certificated Entomologist

  • Specialties: Urban and Industrial Entomology; Medical and Veterinary Entomology; Pesticide Development, Analysis, & Toxicology

Education

  • Master of Entomology, 1998.  North Carolina State University
  • Bachelor of Science, 1996, Biochemistry (major) and Entomology (minor).  University of California, Riverside

Experience

  • 30 years experience in pest management
  • Fourth generation pest management professional
  • Experience working in pest management in the United States, Haiti, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and the British Indian Ocean Territory (Diego Garcia)
  • Over 40 TV and radio appearances
  • Over 20 publications in popular magazines and trade journals
  • 2010 Winner of the Entomology Educational Project Award from the Board Certified Entomologists of Mid-America
  • Experience with disaster relief and outbreaks: 2010 Haiti Earthquake, 2014 Tokyo Dengue Fever Outbreak, 2015 Leptospirosis Outbreak in an undisclosed military installation

Pest Control Publications

Ted has also published extensively on how to safely and effectively control pests in and around homes and businesses. Known for his down-to-earth writing style and practical insights, his philosophy is that the science and technology in an article should complement the reader’s understanding of the material, not undermine it.

Show Entomology and Pest Control Publications

      • Q&A: Finding Small Flies in the Bathroom. Cabin Life Magazine. August 2015.

    Tooling Around: Protecting Log Cabins and Wood Siding From Pests. Cabin Life Magazine. May 2015.

    Q&A: Finding Mice in the Cabin After Building an Addition. Cabin Life Magazine. April 2015.

    Tooling Around: Closing Up Your Cabin for the Winter and Keeping Critters Out. Cabin Life Magazine. October 2014.

    Tooling Around: Dealing with Critters at the Cabin. Cabin Life Magazine. April 2014.

    Auditing Your Pest Control Supplier’s Work. Food Safety Magazine. December 2012 / January 2013.

    Using Public Speaking for Sales. Pest Control Technology Magazine. December 2012.

    Rapid Identification of Challenging Insects. Pest Control Technology Magazine. April 2012.

    Evicting Insects and Pests from the Cabin. Cabin Life Magazine. May 2012.

    Is Your Training Mistake Free? Developing a Performance Based Training Program. Pest Control Technology Magazine, February 2012.

    The Small Carpenter Ant. Pest Control Technology, February 2011.

    The Lady is a Tramp. Executive Housekeeping Today, June 2010.

    The Secret Code of Pest Management. Executive Housekeeping Today, November 2009.

    Rethinking Spot Treatments. NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2007.

    Roach Baiting: Feast or Famine? NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2007.

    Creating a Teaching Pest Collection. Pest Control Technology, December 2005.

    Stick it to Them: Insect Espionage. Pest Control Technology, July 2005.

    The Little Ant That Could. Pest Control Technology, April 2005.

    Subslab Ant Infestations. NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2005.

    Ants in Warehouses. NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2005.

    Exclusion as Part of an Integrated Pest Management Program. NPMA Commercial Division e-Newsletter, 2005.

    Web Removal Works. Pest Control Magazine, August 2001.

    What to Do When Ants Call for Improved Pest Management. Pest Control Magazine, May 2001.

    Doing Pest Management in a Vacuum: Using This Tool Can Make Yellowjacket Control More Simple and Less Risky. Pest Control Magazine, June 2000.

    Make a Clean Sweep of Old Methods: Using a Vacuum Cleaner can Enhance an IPM Program. Pest Control Magazine, May 2000.