Quiz Insecticide Basics for the Pest Management Professional

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a decision-making process driven by information collected during an inspection.   True or False

Pest management professionals (PMPs) committed to an IPM mindset make decisions about pest management that are logical reactions to the information gathered during the inspection process.   True or False

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines a pesticide as “any substance or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating any pest.”      True or False

It is uncommon for multiple products to have the same active ingredient.    True or False

Active ingredient. The chemical substance(s) responsible for achieving a product’s desired effect.      True or False

Inert ingredient. Inert ingredients are biologically inactive chemicals (i.e., they typically have no pesticidal properties) that are mixed with active ingredients to produce an end-use, for-sale product.    True or False

Stickers allow active ingredients to stick or adhere to the treated surface.     True or False

Wetting agents (e.g., spreaders, dispersants, penetrants) are inert chemicals that are added to water to increase spreading and/or penetration by eliminating or reducing surface tension.    True or False

Contact toxicants are chemicals that penetrate the target organism on contact.      True or False

Oral toxicants are chemicals that act after having been crawled over by the target organism.    True of False

Labels are specific about how a product can and cannot be used.     True or False

Use of a product in a manner that is not permitted by the label is a violation of federal law and can carry state- and/or federally-imposed penalties.   True or False

The insecticidal activity of pyrethrins can be enhanced by applying them in the presence of an otherwise non-toxic chemical called a synergist.     True or False

Adult insects exposed to IGRs usually suffer the same adverse consequences as juveniles’.     True or False

German cockroaches exposed to JHAs during the last-instar molt into either adult males that are physically incapable of mating or adult females with deformed ovaries.    True or False

Silica gels and diatomaceous earth are inorganic (i.e., do not contain carbon) dusts composed of silicon dioxide.                  True or False

Ants engage in a social behavior known as tropholloaxis, or food sharing, during which food (including bait) is distributed among nestmates.     True or False

Granular products are a ready-to-use formulation typically applied around the perimeter of the structure to mulch, leaf litter, lawns, thick vegetation, etc. to control a variety of crawling pests.    True or False

Dust should be applied so that a very light film settles on treated surfaces.    True or False

Emulsifiables are formulations that allow a water-insoluble insecticide to be suspended in water.     True or False