Life Sciences Commons^™

The Emerging Contribution Of Social Wasps To Grape Rot Disease Ecology, Anne A. Madden, Sean D. Boyden, Jonathan-Andrew N. Soriano, Tyler B. Corey, Jonathan W. Leff, Noah Fierer, Philip T. Starks

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Grape sour (bunch) rot is a polymicrobial disease of vineyards that causes millions of dollars in lost revenue per year due to decreased quality of grapes and resultant wine. The disease is associated with damaged berries infected with a community of acetic acid bacteria, yeasts, and filamentous fungi that results in rotting berries with high amounts of undesirable volatile acidity. Many insect species cause the initial grape berry damage that can lead to this disease, but most studies have focused on the role of fruit flies in facilitating symptoms and vectoring the microorganisms of this disease complex. Like fruit flies, …