Triops: Pests?

Did you know that you can have Triops as pets? Some kids tend to care for Triops and this is an excellent way to see the two characteristics of these small animals - incessant diggers and voracious eaters. Because of these characteristics, the Triops are considered pests in Europe and in the United States, particularly in rice farming contrary to the view of Japanese farmer (who considered Triops as helpers). Triops tend to dig for the seeds. Some chew the roots or the leaves while others uproot the seedlings which can cause death of the rice plants. Once the population of the Triops is established, they are quite persistent and may remain on the rice plantation for years.

Triops are controlled using organic methods and pesticides. To control the Triops, farmers tend to flood the paddies and after a couple of days, the paddies are drained to kill the eggs of the Triops. Within two weeks, the paddies are again flooded. With this method, most of the Triops are killed.

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