ICUP 2017 programme and don’t miss early bird deal

Conference presentations
The event starts on 10 July with a plenary session which includes six presentations. Kicking this off will be representatives from the California Academy of Sciences, speaking about arthropod communities in homes. This is followed by independent consultant, Partho Dhang from the Philippines, who will review one of the most important topics of all – the impact of climate change on urban pests.

Mosquitoes and houseflies are also included in this plenary session, as is a paper addressing environmental light conditions and the effects on aquatic insects.

Over the next two and a half days concurrent sessions will run which include 60 sessions delegates can pick from, plus 38 poster papers. The programme covers a great spread of speakers from all over the world – USA, UK plus many countries from continental Europe, Brazil, Colombia, Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, Philippines, Russia, Iran, Pakistan and Australia.

As in Zurich 2014, ICUP events always attract a wide international audience

As to be expected bed bugs and rodents feature prominently with three dedicated sessions each.

Within the bed bug sessions are papers reviewing the current problems encountered from an overall management perspective, the role of international travellers, to the use of heat, colour preferences, chemical ecology and the use of monitors. Resistance to pyrethroid and carbamate insecticides is discussed plus the emerging reduced susceptibility of this species to neonicotinoids.

Birmingham – an easy place to access for all delegates © Jimmy Guano

There is also to be a full session on rodenticide resistance during which Mark Hoppá© (Chair IRAC Public Health Team, Syngenta Crop Protection) will discuss the latest recommendations regarding resistance management.
Of particular interest throughout Europe will be the paper addressing the efficacy of reduced concentration rodenticides, presented by Erik Schmolz of the German Environment Agency.

Mice also feature with papers debating control within the food industry, the use of ultra-sonic devices and the use of two new alternative rodenticide actives.

Flying insects
Mosquitoes attract the attention they deserve with papers on Aedes albopictus, the Asian tiger mosquito, provided by Ruben Bueno of Departamento de Investigaciá³n y Desarrollo, Laboratorios Lokimica, Spain. Various novel methods of control are also addressed covering barrier and water surface applications.

Two sessions cover insects and developments in the field of medical entomology and rounding the sessions off are presentations concerning termites, new concepts in cockroach baiting, IGRs for cat fleas and pests within museums. Various methods of both chemical and non-chemical control against a variety of pest species make up a further two sessions.

Speakers from the UK
Speakers from the UK include a paper covering systematic surveys in English dwellings presented by Mark Lambert of the National Wildlife Management Centre Animal and Plant Health Agency, UK. Delegates are also taken back to basics to understand the way forward as presented by Andy Brigham of Rentokil. The recently introduced UK rodenticide stewardship regime will be discussed as a model for anticoagulant risk mitigation by Alan Buckle representing the Campaign for Responsible Rodenticide Use (CRRU).

Kayleigh Hansford from Public Health England will examine the significance of the introduction of the brown dog tick into the UK. ICUP conference chairman, Matthew Davies of Killgerm Chemicals, will detail his new findings regarding non-biting flies and disease transmission. Another ICUP organiser also taking to the floor is poster manager, Matt Green of Rentokil, who will discuss the role of LEDs in the design of ultra-violet light flytraps for house fly monitoring and control.

Workshops and discussion sessions
Delegate participation also forms an important part at ICUP events. This is not only mingling and networking during the breaks and non-formal sessions, but also at a bed bug workshop to be held on the afternoon of the third day – 12 July. Delegates will divide into groups, each led by one of the bed bug experts, discuss some topical issues and then all come back together to present their findings.

All inclusive registration fee
At first sight the registration fee might appear high – but bear in mind it covers not only attendance at the event, but also three nights of on-campus accommodation, at either the business class hotel or modern student accommodation at Aston University.

Don’t miss early bird registration
Those thinking of attending are encouraged to take advantage of the ‘early bird’ registration rate which lasts, officially, until 31 January, but check the site to see if it has been extended. The least expensive package is the campus student accommodation at £526 at the early bird rate, rising to £613 after this. The early bird rate in the hotel accommodation is £598 rising to £685.

A special student rate is also available at only £324.

Business class hotel accommodation

Comfortable student accommodation

The ICUP 2017 conference website has full details and is updated regularly. On the central ICUP website interested parties can view all presentations from the previous conferences.

This will be the ninth in the series of ICUP conferences. The previous conferences have been held in Cambridge, England (1993), Edinburgh, Scotland (1996) Prague, Czech Republic (1999), Charleston, USA (2002), Singapore (2005) Budapest, Hungary (2008), Ouro Preto, Brazil (2011) and Zurich, Switzerland (2014).