Vertebrates PCA exam Questions and Answers 2024/2025 Verified Answers

Vertebrates PCA exam Questions and Answers 2024/2025 Verified Answers Which vertebrate pest girdles trees above ground? - answerroof rat, jack rabbit Which vertebrate pest girdles trees below ground? - answerMeadow vole (mainly), ground squirrel, pocket gopher Which vertebrate pest does vegetable seedling damage? - answerGround squirrel, horned lark, roof rat Which vertebrate does disbudding of deciduous fruit trees? - answerHouse finch which vertebrate does damage to ripening fruit? - answerHouse finches, skunk which vertebrate does damage to drip irrigation systems? - answerPocket gopher, ground squirrel, jackrabbit, meadow vole Differentiate between the types of damage caused by the following vertebrate pests: mole, pocket gopher, and meadow vole in turf - answerDamage: Mole hills and tunnels disfigure lawns. Vole does not harm turf as much, but will make tunnels and chew irrigation. Gophers also gnaw and damage flexible plastic water lines and irrigation systems, particularly those types used for drip irrigation. Their tunnels can divert and carry off irrigation water, which leads to soil erosion. Mounds on lawns interfere with mowing equipment and ruin the aesthetics of well-kept turfgrass Differentiate between the types of damage caused by the following vertebrate pests: carnivore and rodent damage to drip irrigation. - answer? Differentiate between the types of damage caused by the following vertebrate pests: pocket gophers and ground squirrels in field crops - answerPocket gophers often invade yards and gardens, feeding on vines, shrubs, and trees. In snow-covered regions, gophers can feed on bark (called girdling) several feet up a tree by burrowing through the snow, although most girdling damage to trunks and large roots occurs belowground.Gophers also gnaw and damage flexible plastic water lines and irrigation systems, particularly those types used for drip irrigation. Their tunnels can divert and carry off irrigation water, which leads to soil erosion While herbaceous cover crops are their preferred food, pocket gophers also feed on the bark of tree crowns and roots, particularly when cover crops or weeds dry up Ground squirrels feed on Certain vegetables and field crops such as sugar beets, alfalfa, and cotton are taken at the seedling stage. Young orchards are sometimes damaged by gnawing of the bark. Ground squirrels significantly reduce the amount of green forage available to grazing cattle during the winter period when plant growth is slow They can damage young shrubs, vines, and trees by gnawing bark, girdling trunks (completely removing a strip of bark from a tree's outer circumference), eating twigs and leaves, and burrowing around roots. Ground squirrels will gnaw on plastic sprinkler heads and irrigation boxes and lines. List the vertebrate pests that are associated with damage to levees and earthen dams. - answer[beaver, ground squirrel, muskrat, pocket gopher] Which pests are not native to cali? - answerdomestic pigeons, rats (Norway and roof, eastern fox squirrels, Starlings, house mice, turkeys, house sparrows, wild pigs. ,opossums; ground squirrel burrows? - answerground squirrels; The burrows of California ground squirrels average about 4 inches in diameter, and individual burrows are 5 to 30 feet or more in length. Most tunnels are within 2 to 3 feet of the ground surface meadow vole burrows? - answerThey dig short, shallow burrows with numerous openings about 1.5 to 2 inches across (Fig. 2). Runways (1 to 2 inches wide) of trampled vegetation or bare ground are often observed that connect various burrow openings mole burrows? - answerto distinguish which animal is responsible is by looking at the burrow mounds. Moles create volcano shaped hills, made from clods of soil. The mole hills are pushed up from deep tunnels and may be 2 to 24 inches tall. h develops complex tunnel networks. Shallow tunnels close to the surface, which the mole utilizes for food gathering, are responsible for major damage pocket gopher burrows - answerpocket gophers; In contrast, pocket gopher mounds are crescent shaped made from sifted and cloddy soil. Pocket gophers live alone in an extensive underground burrow system that can cover an area of several hundred to several thousand square feet. kangaroo rat burrows - answerThe burrows are generally shallow and of various lengths, depending on soil type and species. Burrows have one or several openings. Besides its home burrow, some kangaroo rats use a number of outlying burrows which serve as emergency shelters when the animal is foraging. Burrow entrances are usually closed with earth during the day. Difference between an active and inactive burrow? - answerThey are active by day and night throughout the entire year. Note that a lack of fresh mounding is not an indication that pocket gophers are not present and active, since gophers at times fail to produce mounds and in turn backfill old tunnels with excavated soil from other tunnel branches. This is particularly prevalent during summer when hot, dry conditions make mound creation more difficult. . Describe how to determine if a ground squirrel burrow is being used by a target pest species or by one of the following non target species: burrowing owl and kit fox - answera. burrowing owl [white wash]; b. kit fox [key hole shape] . Identify the pest(s) most often associated with the following diseases: - answera. plague [ground squirrels and chipmunks]; b. histoplasmosis [pigeons]; c. leptospirosis [rats]; d. hantavirus [deer mouse]; e. lyme disease [western gray tree squirrel]; f. rabies [skunks and bats]; g. salmonellosis [rats and mice]. Identify the most common methods of human exposure for each of the following diseases: plague, histoplasmosis, tularemia, salmonellosis, hantavirus, lyme disease, rabies - answera. plague; Circumstantial evidence points to ground squirrels as the host to plague-infected fleas in over half the reported human plague cases in California in the last 40 years Chipmunks and their ectoparasites may carry bubonic plague and Rocky Mountain spotted fever as well as other diseases. Being fairly numerous and often quite tame, chipmunks can readily transmit diseases to man if their populations are allowed to become excessively high or if allowed into close contact. b. histoplasmosis; Histoplasmosis and cryptococosis are systematic fungus diseases in humans which can be contracted from dusty pigeon manure. c. tularemia; Tularemia is relatively rare in humans but can be contracted by handling an infected rabbit with bare hands or by eating insufficiently cooked rabbit meat. d. salmonellosis; rats and mice can transmit diseases like salmonellosis to humans by contaminating food. (fecal matter on food). e. hantavirus; s. This virus causes hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) in people. Although human cases are rare, HPS can cause severe respiratory disease in humans, with a fatality rate of about 30%. Infected deer mice shed the virus in their saliva, urine, and droppings. A person may be exposed to hantavirus by breathing contaminated dust after disturbing or cleaning infectious rodent droppings or nests, or by living or working in rodent-infested settings. f. lyme disease; spread by ticks by western gray squirrel and deer g. Rabies: skunk and bat can transmit rabies an infectious disease caused by a virus that is found in the saliva of infected animals. It affects only mammals and is transmitted most commonly by a bite Describe the importance of ectoparasite control: - answera. when carrying out ground squirrel and chipmunk management in areas of high plague potential; b. in association with commensal rodent management or bat exclusion Describe the steps taken to assess a vertebrate pest problem. - answer[ID species, location of damage, survey extent, severity and type of damage, trapping] List the factors that must be considered in determining whether a management action should be taken. - answer[pest population, management costs, efficacy of the management strategy, time of year, cost of damage and risk of future damage, seasonal stage of the crop, environmental concerns, human health concerns] Describe several key management options available for the following vertebrate pests in nut crops: ground squirrel, crows, meadow vole, jay - answer6 a. ground squirrels; Habitat modification: Good housekeeping by eliminating debris and removing abandoned irrigation pipes, farm equipment, and piles of rocks from field margins will assist as squirrels like to burrow beneath items. This will also make detection of squirrels easier. Flood irrigation in orchards, alfalfa, and pasture land does discourage ground squirrels but will not eliminate them completely. Fumigant, bait, toxicant, trappi