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Museums protect collections from pests most effectively with an ongoing integrated pest management (IPM) program—not a one-time extermination. IPM combines prevention, monitoring, investigation and treatments chosen for the affected objects. The practical sequence is to reduce entry and attractants, check incoming materials, map pest activity, and respond to verified risks while correcting the conditions that allowed them.
Why pests threaten collections
Risk depends on the pest’s access to food and shelter, as well as favorable conditions. Fur, textiles, feathers, wood, basketry, herbarium specimens, books and archives can provide food. Dust, quiet or rarely accessed spaces, damp, leaks and building defects can make an infestation more likely. Pests may arrive with objects or packaging, shop stock, props, deliveries, plants, staff or visitors, or enter through gaps and ventilation. National Museums Scotland’s IPM overview and prevention guidance describe these risks.
Build a prevention plan around the building and collection
Start with a walk-through that connects building conditions, collection materials and pest entry routes. Record susceptible organic materials; seldom-visited rooms; food, waste and loading areas; external doors and windows; cracks and service openings; roof and basement spaces; damp or leaking locations; and places where incoming materials are unpacked or stored.
Then reduce both access and attractants: maintain doors, windows and building fabric; repair gaps and water ingress; manage damp; keep food contained and away from collection areas; remove waste; and clean overlooked spaces. Consider deliveries, event materials, plants, props and packaging as potential introduction routes. Environmental adjustments should fit the collection’s needs: there is no single temperature or humidity prescription suitable for every museum.
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Quarantine incoming materials before they reach collections
Set a written, risk-based procedure for acquisitions, loans, returns and other materials that could carry pests. The need for inspection, isolation or treatment depends on an item’s composition, storage history, packaging and destination. Assign responsibility for checks and provide a clean, separate inspection space. National Museums Scotland lists a bench or table, labels and pens, unpacking and repacking tools, clean packing material, polythene and sealed waste bins as useful provisions; a work light and magnifier can help inspection.
Some materials may be cleared after visual inspection; others may warrant isolation or specialist-approved treatment. National Museums Scotland describes six months of isolation in sealed polythene as one approach used in its own practice, not a universal museum requirement. Base the duration and method on the risk and the object’s needs.
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Use traps to monitor, not to exterminate
Sticky insect traps can help reveal which insects are present, their life stages, where activity occurs and how catches change over time. A blunder trap is a sticky card that catches insects wandering across it. The National Park Service is explicit: “Traps are strictly a monitoring tool and do nothing to prevent or control an infestation.” Its Conserve O Gram 3/7: Monitoring Insect Pests with Sticky Traps was last updated January 28, 2026.
- Place traps where pest movement and collection risk make monitoring useful, rather than distributing them without a plan.
- Label each trap and mark its location on a floor plan or map.
- Inspect traps and conduct visual checks on a consistent schedule; record dates, identifications and catch counts.
- Compare results over time and retain the records. Patterns can reveal seasonal emergence, vulnerable locations and whether an intervention changed activity.
Trap catches concern insect monitoring. Rodents, birds, bats and other vertebrate pests require a different response; follow local rules and qualified advice. Museums Galleries Scotland notes that protected-species rules and contractor health-and-safety requirements can apply in its jurisdiction.
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A single catch is a reason to investigate, not proof that an infestation is active. Identify the organism, check whether evidence is fresh, look for damage or insects on additional objects, and assess whether activity is localized or spreading. Check for larvae, repeated catches, damp and possible entry points. Insects’ life stages and distribution matter: larvae may indicate a nearby active source because they move little, while a small number of brittle insects confined to one object may reflect an older problem. National Museums Scotland recommends additional mapped traps when needed to investigate spread.
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Document findings with dates, photographs and mapped locations. Notify relevant collections and facilities staff, isolate affected objects where appropriate, and consult a conservator or qualified pest specialist when identification or treatment is uncertain. A treatment that leaves moisture, food, access gaps or poor housekeeping unaddressed can be followed by reinfestation.
Choose a response that fits the object
There is no universally safe treatment for every collection material. Consider the object’s composition, condition and documented infestation, as well as staff and visitor safety and whether monitoring can verify the outcome. National Museums Scotland describes low-temperature treatment as common in museums and gives two sets of conditions: -30°C for a minimum of 72 hours maintained throughout the object, or -18°C for at least two weeks maintained throughout the object. The object core must reach the target temperature. NMS reports that its own practice is to freeze for at least five days at -30°C to ensure the required duration is met. These are NMS treatment parameters, not a universal recipe.
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NMS warns against freezing damp or wet materials, objects under tension whose components may respond differently, and layered or delaminating objects, including mother-of-pearl, ivory and impasto painting. Have a conservator assess suitability and handling before treatment. Museums Galleries Scotland recommends considering non-toxic options first and limiting pesticide use; its guidance discusses housekeeping, freezing, desiccants and anoxia among possible approaches. The method still needs to be selected for the object and situation.
Keep building work and contractors within collections-care controls
Room or building remediation may be needed alongside object treatment when the source is a leak, entry gap, food residue or other environmental condition. Avoid routine sprays, mothballs or household remedies in collection spaces unless they have been reviewed and approved by appropriate specialists and the institution. For pest-control contractors, Museums Galleries Scotland advises checking relevant registration, ensuring chemicals are not applied to collections, documenting inspections and treatments, supervising work and assessing risks. Its contractor guidance is jurisdiction-specific; verify applicable local laws, protected-species requirements and health-and-safety rules.
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