On that same line of thought Pat brought up, booklice are also pests of insect collections and will consume pinned specimens, so not restricted to molds and fungi. I worked on a case where the cleaning media in coffee grinders was infested by booklice. The media is corn-based. Very dry, no mold or fungi.
Louis N. Sorkin, B.C.E. Entomologist, Arachnologist Division of Invertebrate Zoology American Museum of Natural History Central Park West at 79th Street New York, New York 10024-5192 sor...@amnh.org<mailto:sor...@amnh.org> 212-769-5613 voice 212-769-5277 fax The New York Entomological Society, Inc. www.nyentsoc.org<http://www.nyentsoc.org/> n...@amnh.org<mailto:n...@amnh.org> ________________________________ From: pestlist@museumpests.net [pestlist@museumpests.net] Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2014 3:51 PM To: pestlist@museumpests.net Subject: RE: [pestlist] RE: Booklice - Pest List Digest Mode Hilary, Although it has thought for many years that psocids feed solely on microscopic molds, recent research out of Oklahoma State University suggests otherwise. Their research focused on psocids in grain storage facilities. They found that the psocids are actually feeding on the germ of the grain itself rather than only molds. They are likely able to feed on a wide variety of materials. Pat Kelley Insects Limited, Inc. From: pestlist@museumpests.net [mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net] Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2014 3:40 PM To: pestlist@museumpests.net Subject: Re: [pestlist] RE: Booklice - Pest List Digest Mode Please correct me if this is incorrect, but I seem to recall being told a very long time ago that "book lice" appear when feeding on mold invisible to the naked eye. Yes, a reliable indicator of high RH, but I'm just curious to corroborate whether or not the "feeding on mold" part of the explanation is accurate. Many thanks, Hilary On Wed, Nov 12, 2014 at 12:05 PM, <pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net>> wrote: Nicely put Carolyn, Megan, as mentioned below psocids (aka. book lice) are an indicator of problems with relative humidity - not that you would want a huge infestation. As Carolyn mentions, they can lead you to the localized problem. Improved management of RH and improving housekeeping is the best way to control the situation. That is how I have dealt with it in the past. Gretchen Anderson Conservator Carnegie Museum of Natural History -----Original Message----- From: pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net> [mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net>] Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2014 10:43 AM To: pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net> Cc: Luci Cipera Subject: [pestlist] Booklice - Pest List Digest Mode Hi Megan My practical experience agrees with Richards email. We occasionally get outbreaks of booklice that seem to grow quickly and then disappear in our Archives storage. Consultation with CCI has convinced us not worry about these as a risk of major damage, because the mouth parts of the booklice are so small it would take a major prolonged infestation to cause damage. For that reason we have rebranded them as "Psocids" not book lice, just to keep them it in perspective. However, they are a real indicator of RH issues that could lead to more significant pest damage from silverfish or springtails. In our case we simply could not figure out how we would have a pest that was an indicator of high RH in a storage vault with good RH control 35% plus/minus 5% winter, 45% plus/minus 5% summer. We then started looking for sources of "localized high RH" and sure enough with that perspective we found it (a plastic tube, designed to carry overflow water from a drip pan under an localized HVAC unit carries overflow water into a bucket "inside" the storage room e.g. occasional wet damp bucket breeds booklice). With this knowledge we are trying to get the wet damp bucket to be located outside the storage room. Hope this helps Carolyn Leckie -----Original Message----- From: pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net> [mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net>] Sent: November-11-14 7:35 PM To: pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net> Subject: Pest List Digest Mode PestList Digest From: Richard Pollack <r...@identify.us.com<mailto:r...@identify.us.com>> Date: Thu, 6 Nov 2014 10:42:16 -0500 Subject: Re: [pestlist] Book Lice Megan, Book lice should be expected in and around any museum, library, office or home. A few in a library setting shouldn't necessarily cause alarm, but it would be wise to continue monitoring the archived materials as well as the general environment. If you see book lice more than occasionally in the archived materials, then consider trying to reduce the overall humidity in the facility. That is usually the most practical and acceptable means to maintain the population of book lice at or below an acceptable threshold level. I realize this can be challenging in Bremerton, but it is possible.Good luck. -Rich Richard Pollack, PhD. CEO & Chief Scientific Officer IdentifyUS, LLC 320 Needham Street Suite 200 Newton, MA 02464-1593 ------------------ 617.600.6360 (W) 617.513.9266 (M) HARVARD UNIVERSITY Environmental Health, Safety and Emergency Management (EHSEM) Senior Environmental Public Health Officer 46 Blackstone St., South Cambridge, MA 02139 Office: 617-495-2995 Cell: 617-447-0763 www.ehs.harvard.edu<http://cp.mcafee.com/d/avndz8A83gwrhohvujouppdTdEThovpphhjdEThovpph7c6QrEIfIIEEICQrEIfzHITsdHslYY_OMaB2DSDg-iIF-xOVKkavqt3VaODW7bC_8fSpsovW_9IEIffFZuVt5NVDChPwVMsDORQr8FGTuhVkffGhBrwqrhdL6XCXCM0nAWsjS9DoEtW3pJrWjfBipswWWUWMwCVGbz5Qk3hPXVEVd7dzhOWUzqW2bH8alrFXqGTQDjwqrhuKMedwLQzh0qmRLFc-l9CBQQg0Iqid40PmFk-lLd41sQg1rWjd40lBipEw3F4vFcQg3tkfdLECR7JcFYQf> richard_poll...@harvard.edu<mailto:richard_poll...@harvard.edu> On Nov 5, 2014, at 10:30, pestlist@museumpests.net<mailto:pestlist@museumpests.net> wrote: > > Hello everyone! > > I am wondering if anyone has experience dealing with Book Lice. We have been > finding them in our traps, but we have not been able to find out where they > are coming from or what they are feeding on. The area we found them in has a > number of large map cases and file drawers, but I could not find any traces > of them inside the actual cabinets. Aside from setting more traps throughout > the area and placing silica gel inside certain cabinets(to bring down the > relative humidity), I have no idea what to do. > > Any help at all would be much appreciated! > > Thank you, > > Megan Jablonski > Collections Manager > Puget Sound Navy Museum > Naval History & Heritage Command > 251 1st Street > Bremerton, WA 98337 > p. (360) 627-2272<tel:%28360%29%20627-2272> > f. 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