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Request for Info on Killing Insects



At the Library of Virginia's new State Records Center we have a Pest
Eradication Chamber to treat incoming archival records that happen to be
infested with insects.  The chamber is actually a specialized blast freezer
which will reach temperatures of -40 degrees F.  The treatment cycle is -40
degrees F for 48 hours then back up to room temperature for 24 hours and
then we plunge the temperature back down to -40 for an additional 48 hours.
We think that the chamber is effective in killing any critters that we
encounter but we want to make sure.  A biology professor from the College of
William and Mary and a graduate student are going to study the chamber and
help determine how effective it is in an upcoming research project.  The
professor has asked for a listing of the types of paper-eating insects that
we have encountered over the years.  My partial list is speculative and if
any of you (especially from the Mid-Atlantic / Southeastern US region) can
add to the list please do so.  My list includes:

- Termites
- Silverfish
- Cockroaches
- Booklice (although not sure if it is really a paper-eater)
- Case-bearing Clothes Moth
- Powder Post Beetles
- Deathwatch Beetles
- Carpet Beetles

The professor hopes to then order the insect specimens from a bio-supply
company for the study.

Thanks for your help.

C. Preston Huff, CRM, CA,
State Records Administrator
The Library of Virginia
804-692-3607
http://www.lva.lib.va.us/index.htm

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