Entomology Commons^™

Correcting Class Imbalance Through Synthetic Training Data And 3d Modeling For Carabid Pitfall Trap Sampling, Blair Mirka

Geography ETDs

Crowdsourced biodiversity data provide an accessible foundation for large-scale ecological monitoring, but class imbalance limits automated species identification, particularly for rare taxa. This research explores the use of synthetic training data generated from 3D models of carabid beetle museum specimens to improve detection and classification performance for underrepresented species in crowdsourced datasets. High-resolution 3D models were created to simulate variation in lighting, orientation, and background. These synthetic images were incorporated into convolutional neural network training datasets at varying synthetic-to-real ratios to assess their impact on classification accuracy. Models were evaluated using controlled pitfall-trap imagery to examine the influence of scene …

Spatio-Temporal Dynamics Of Malaria Vector Niche Overlaps In Africa, Eric Ali Ibrahim, John Odindi, Mark Wamalwa, Henri E.Z. Tonnang

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Malaria remains a significant public health challenge in sub-Saharan Africa, with transmission heightened by the dynamics of primary and secondary mosquitoes infected with Plasmodium parasites. Regions where both vector types co-exist face heightened likelihood of intensified malaria transmission. Hence, understanding vectors' ecological interactions, especially their niche overlaps in geographic or environmental space, is crucial for targeted malaria control and elimination strategies. We employed a dynamic cellular automata (CA) model to map niche overlaps among primary (Anopheles gambiae complex, An. funestus group) and secondary (An. pharoensis, An. coustani) malaria vectors across African, using open-access environmental and vector occurrence datasets sourced from …

Tetrigidae Of Ethiopia: First Species Delimitation Via Dna Barcoding And Description Of Three New Species †, Tarekegn Fite, Hendrik Devriese, Dustin Kulanek, Josip Skejo, Niko Kasalo, Manaye Misganaw, Tadele Tefera, Jandouwe Villinger, Martin Husemann

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Tetrigidae is a caeliferan family of Orthoptera constituting a diverse and relatively ancient lineage of small Orthopterans, which has its greatest diversity in tropical and subtropical areas. However, to date, few studies have been conducted on the identification and description of Tetrigidae species in Ethiopia, and even fewer molecular data are available. Hence, we performed the first species delimitation study via DNA barcoding of species belonging to the genera Paratettix, Leptacrydium, Dasyleurotettix, and Morphopoides from Ethiopia. We provide 35 new sequences of the COI gene belonging to six species of these genera. We show that Ethiopian Tetrigidae can be successfully …

Longitudinal Surveillance Of Aedes Aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) In Urban Coastal Kenya: Population Dynamics, Blood Feeding Frequency And Dengue Virus Infection Rates, Josephine Osalla, Louis Clement Gouagna, Gilbert Rotich, Maureen Nzilani, Penina Safari, Kennedy Senagi, Francis Mutuku, Baldwyn Torto, David P. Tchouassi

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

The coastal region of Kenya has emerged as a focal point for urban dengue virus transmission driven by Aedes aegypti as the primary vector. To gain a deeper understanding of the epidemiological situation, we carried out a year-long longitudinal study (December 2021- November 2022) of the population dynamics of A. aegypti through weekly mosquito surveys using ovitrap and CO2-baited Biogents (BG) mosquito traps in Ukunda, an urban township in the coastal region. Aedes eggs laid in ovitraps were exclusively A. aegypti with 80.8% mean hatch rate. A total of 35,109 adult A. aegypti were captured, with twice as many females …

A Battle Of Armies: Massive Attack Of Natural Enemies To The True Armyworm Mythimna Unipuncta (Haworth, 1809) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) In Forage Crops, Armando Falcon-Brindis, Raul T. Villanueva

Insecta Mundi

Understanding the interactions between plant-host-parasitoid plays a major role in insect pest management. Farmers in the southeastern United States rely on pasture systems for cattle milk and beef production, but the benefits of parasitoids and predators on major lepidopteran pests on pasture lands are still overlooked. Here, we aimed to identify and quantify the effect of parasitism on the true armyworm Mythimna unipuncta (Haworth, 1809) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) attacking teff grass Eragrostis tef (Zucc.) Trotter (Poaceae) and crabgrass Digitaria sanguinalis (L.) Scop. (Poaceae) in western Kentucky. In early August of 2023, 547 larvae of M. unipuncta were collected from experimental …

The Link Between Environmental Change And Invasive Species, Marion Murray, Meg Kast

All Current Publications

Climate change and invasive species represent two pressing environmental challenges facing our planet. Each poses a threat to global biodiversity and ecosystem stability, and together, they amplify the impacts of the other. As global temperatures rise and ecosystems are disrupted, new conditions are created that allow invasive species to spread more easily, establish themselves in new areas, and outcompete native species.

The Enigmatic Samuel Aughey: Nebraska’S Pastor Naturalist, Hugh H. Genoways, Margaret R. Bolick, Mary Anne Andrei

Zea E-Books Collection

Samuel Aughey at age 39 became the first Professor of Natural Science at the new University of Nebraska in Lincoln, serving from 1871 to 1883. He was an ordained pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, with an addendum degree from Pennsylvania College (now Gettysburg College) in 1856 and an A.M. degree two years later. His early pastoral work was in Pennsylvania, but in 1864 he became a home missionary to a church in Dakota City, Nebraska. Aughey’s career at the university was marked with successes and honors, but also criticism and questions about his basic knowledge of the sciences. While …

Modelling The Environmental And Terrestrial Drivers Of The Spread Of The Invasive Fall Armyworm Spodoptera Frugiperda In Africa, Marian Adan, Henri E.Z. Tonnang, Klaus Greve, Christian Borgemeister, Georg Goergen

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

The Fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) (Lep.: Noctuidae) a destructive invasive pest, poses a significant threat to maize cultivation in Africa, highlighting the need for a better understanding the factors affecting its prevalence. In this study we utilized the Maxent modelling approach to assess the impact of environmental and terrestrial parameters on the spread of FAW in Africa. We compared four different models based on their predictive accuracy: the most comprehensive model, which included bioclimatic factors, landscape structure, and FAW phenology, achieved an accuracy of 0.902. In contrast, models using only single categories of variables yielded lower accuracies, …

Landscape Effects On The Beneficial Arthropod Community In Agriculturally Dominated Environments, Hannah E. Stowe

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Ecosystem services in agriculturally dominated regions rely, at least in part, on arthropods. Environment and biodiversity influence beneficial arthropods in population size, community structure, diversity, and ecosystem service provisioning. Predation is among the most important services provided by arthropods in agroecosystems. Understanding what alters predation and predator activity can support the successful application of biological control and, more broadly, integrated pest management. Land use and edge adjacency, field characteristics, landscape, seasonality, and diel period all alter predatory behavior. Crop fields dominate Nebraska agroecosystems, although interspersed perennial grasslands persist through the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Such grasslands supply crucial resources and …

Constructing An Attractive Targeted Sugar Bait For Reducing Mosquito Populations, Xi Xian Ng

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Mosquito-borne pathogen transmission continues to pose a significant burden to global public health, well-being, and economic productivity. In the absence of universally available vaccines and amidst rising insecticide resistance that leads to product failures, there is an urgent need to develop new tools to mitigate mosquito-borne disease risk. Two general strategies exist to reduce transmission risk: personal protective measures and area-wide chemical interventions. Attractive Targeted Sugar Bait (ATSB) systems leverage the sugar-feeding behavior of mosquitoes—critical for sustaining their flight, metabolism, development, and fecundity—by delivering oral toxicants through attractively formulated sugar baits. This study aimed to develop an optimized ATSB formulation …

Maggot Mass Effect On The Development And Survival Of Forensic Blow Flies, Akomavo Fabrice Gbenonsi

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Forensic entomology scientists use blow flies' developing patterns to estimate the postmortem interval (PMI). However, larval aggregations produce metabolic heat, resulting in complex microclimates that may change growth timetables. This study investigates how larval density and associated temperature changes affect the development and survival of two forensically essential blow fly species, Lucilia sericata and Calliphora vicina.

This study examined how larval density and associated thermal profiles affect the development of both blow fly species. Using a split-plot design, we tested four larval densities at 25°C and 30°C, with temperature gradients measured via thermocouple at four mass positions three times …

Thermal Performance Drifts Between The Egg Parasitoid Telenomus Remus And The Fall Armyworm May Threaten The Efficacy Of Biological Control Under Climate Change, Macdonald Mubayiwa, Honest Machekano, Brighton M. Mvumi, Winnifred A. Opio, Bame Segaiso, Frank Chidawanyika, Casper Nyamukondiwa

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

The fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda J.E. Smith, is a significant global agricultural pest known for its rapid invasion and devastating impact on crops. While pesticides may be effective for controlling the pest in the short-term, they cause several socioeconomic and ecological costs that highlight the need for more sustainable management strategies. Telenomus remus (Nixon) is a promising egg parasitoid for its biological control. For the parasitoid to provide effective ecosystem services, it should be able to survive and coexist within the same ecological niches as its host. However, there is limited information regarding the potential responses of T. remus to …

A System Dynamics Model For Predicting African Armyworm Occurrence And Population Dynamics, Bonoukpoè Mawuko Sokame, Brian Kipkorir, Komi Mensah Agboka, Saliou Niassy, Yeneneh Belayneh, Maged Elkahky, Henri E.Z. Tonnang

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

This study develops a comprehensive system dynamics model to predict and manage African armyworm (Spodoptera exempta) outbreaks, a major threat to cereal crops across Africa. We applied system dynamics approache with its archetypes (causal loop diagram (CLD), reinforcing (R) and balancing (B)) to analyse the population dynamics of the pest. The VENSIM modelling platform (Ventana Systems Inc., DSS 8.2) was used to implement the models and carry out the simulations. The research integrates extensive data from 1980 to 2023, encompassing the African armyworm's life cycle stages, climatic variables, and intervention strategies, to simulate potential outbreak scenarios and evaluate the impacts …

Too Much Of A Good Thing: Lessons From Compromised Rootworm Bt Maize In The Us Corn Belt, Ziwei Ye, Christina Difonzo, David A. Hennessy, Jinhua Zhao, Felicia Wu, Shawn P. Conley, Aaron J. Gassmann, Erin W. Hodgson, Bryan Jensen, Janet J. Knodel, Bradley Mcmanus, Lance J. Meinke, Andrew Michel, Bruce Potter, Nicholas J. Seiter, Jocelyn L. Smith, Joseph L. Spencer, Kelley J. Tilmon, Robert J. Wright, Christian H. Krupke

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

Widespread use of genetically engineered maize targeting the corn rootworm complex (Diabrotica species) has raised concerns about insect resistance. Twelve years of university field trial and farm survey data from ten United States Corn Belt states indicate that maize hybrids expressing toxins derived from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt maize) exhibited declining protection from rootworm feeding with increased planting while pest pressures simultaneously decreased. The analysis revealed a tendency to overplant Bt maize, leading to substantial economic losses; this was particularly striking in eastern Corn Belt states. Our findings highlight the need to go beyond the “tragedy of the …

Spatiotemporal Trends In Anopheles Funestus Breeding Habitats, Grace R. Aduvukha, Elfatih M. Abdel-Rahman, Bester Tawona Mudereri, Onisimo Mutanga, John Odindi, Henri E.Z. Tonnang

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Effective identification and control of malaria vector larval breeding habitats are crucial for the management and eradication of malaria. Despite its importance, the last decade has seen a decline in data availability and intervention efforts due to reduced attention and prioritization. This study addresses the geographic data scarcity concerning Anopheles funestus larval breeding habitats in a malaria-prone region of western Kenya. Employing a two-step methodological approach, we integrated multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) and rule-based fuzzy logic analysis to evaluate the spatiotemporal similarity or divergence of these habitats. The analysis spanned a five-year interval, 2008, 2013, and 2018 with 2013 serving …

Aquatic Invertebrate Populations In Roadside Wetlands In Relation To Water Characteristics, Ellen P. Isakson

Journal of Earth and Life Science

The continual habitat destruction and draining of wetland systems makes the need to understand the ecology of roadside wetlands all the more necessary. Roadside wetlands provide valuable habitat to countless aquatic invertebrates, which can provide insight into the health of the wetland system due to their diversity. The objective of this study was to analyze the populations of aquatic invertebrates in roadside wetlands in relation to water characteristics such as pH, salinity, conductivity, water depth and temperature, and dissolved oxygen. This was done by collecting samples of invertebrate populations from roadside wetlands, in addition to data on water quality characteristics …

Restoring Rattlesnake Creek: Using Citizen Science To Assess The Ecological And Morphological Impacts Of Dam Removal In Western Montana, Bethany Blakey

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

As dam removals increase in frequency across the U.S., most research has focused on the impact of larger dam removals, despite the removal of small dams being much more common. Given the hundreds of small dams in Montana, this research uses citizen science data collected over eight years spanning before and after a 2020 small dam removal in Rattlesnake Creek, Montana, to investigate impact on stream ecology and morphology. We analyzed pebble count grain size distributions and aquatic macroinvertebrate biotic indices from 2017 to 2024 to assess changes in sediment transport and macroinvertebrate population as well as evaluate the efficacy …

Impacts Of Southern Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus Frontalis Zimmerman) On Loblolly Pine (Pinus Taeda L.) Canopy And Water Use In The Homochitto National Forest, Mississippi, Usa, Sasha Goodnow, Yun Yang, Hui Liu, Ashley Schulz

Endeavors: Mississippi State Undergraduate Research Journal

Abiotic and biotic forest disturbances can have many impacts to forest ecosystem services, including to forest water use. Studies on impacts to forest evapotranspiration have been conducted on the mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) in western North America, but not on the southern pine beetle (Dendroctonus frontalis), which is a native pest of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) and shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata), in the southeastern United States. Stressed pine trees produce pheromones that attract southern pine beetles and, with enough stressed trees, beetle populations can quickly grow to epidemic levels and attack healthy trees, which results in widespread tree mortality. …

Integrated Pest Management: State Infrastructure Status After 50 Yr Of Federal Support (1973 To 2023), Daren S. Mueller, Laura C. Iles, Carol L. Pilcher, Adam J. Sisson, Roger Magarey, Ryan Adams, Wanda I. Almodovar, Diane Alston, Patrick Beauzay, Ricardo Bessin, Mandy Bish, Mary Burrows, Alejandro Calixto, Rakesh Chandran, Jed B. Colquhoun, Mary Concklin, Amy J. Dreves, Peter C. Ellsworth, Paul D. Esker, James J. Farrar, Alfred Fournier, Daniel Frank, Kelly Hamby, George Hamilton, Anthony Hanson, Ann Hazelrigg, Natalie Hein-Ferris, David Held, James Jasinski, Heather M. Kelly, David Kerns, Miranda Kersten, Lauren Kerzicnik, Janet Knodel, Glen Koehler, Heidi Kratsch, Christian H. Krupke, Norman C. Leppla, Erin Lizotte, Casey Matney, Rebecca A. Melanson, Frannie Miller, Marion Murray, David Owens, Diane Plewa, Francis P. F. Reay-Jones, Silvia I. Rondon, Tom A. Royer, Philip A. Rozeboom, Hilary A. Sandler, Scott P. Schell, Marissa Schuh, Timothy Seipel, Danesha Seth Carley, Ashfaq Sial, Raghuwinder Singh, Damon L. Smith, Tim Stock, Glenn Studebaker, Adrianna Szczepaniec, Lisa Tewksbury, John Tooker, Adam J. Varenhorst, Amber Vinchesi-Vahl, Doug Walsh, Desiree Wickwar, Robert J, Wright, Simon Zebelo

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

Integrated pest management uses a variety of tools coupled with historical, current, and projected information for economical pest protection of crops and other resources while accounting for risk to humans and the environment. Following the 1972 US Federal IPM Policy, funding for integrated pest management programming has continued for 50+ years. However, multifaceted changes during this time have significantly affected state-level integrated pest management infrastructure, prompting a comprehensive survey to assess conditions, limitations, and growth potential of US integrated pest management programs. A survey was sent to 50 US states and 3 territories with integrated pest management programs in November …

Global Strategies To Manage Huanglongbing (Hlb) And Its Vectors: Insights And Implications For The Mediterranean Region, Meritxell Pérez-Hedo, Mark S. Hoddle, Fernando Alferez, Lochy Batista, George A.C. Beattie, Shourish Chakravarty, Paul Holford, Fathiya Mbarak Khamis, Inusa Jacob Ajene, Aruna Manrakhan, Paul H. Fourie, Maritza Luis, Eduardo Osorio-Hernández, Mamoudou Sétamou, Alejandro Tena, Pedro Takao Yamamoto, Tara Wade, Changyong Zhou, Nian Wang, Lukasz L. Stelinski, Alberto Urbaneja

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Huanglongbing (HLB), also known as citrus greening disease, poses a severe threat to the global citrus industry. This disease is caused by three species of bacteria, ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’, ‘C. L. africanus’, and ‘C. L. ameri-canus’. The primary pathogen vectors are the Asian citrus psyllid (Diaphorina citri Kuwayama, Hemiptera: Psyllidae) and the African citrus psyllid (Trioza erytreae Del Guercio, Hemiptera: Triozidae). The disease is incurable, and its management relies on reducing vector densities and the adverse effects of bacterial infections on host trees. Managing psyllid vec-tors, especially D. citri, has proven exceptionally challenging due to its rapid spread and subsequent …

Earth Observations Reveal Impacts Of Climate Variability On Maize Cropping Systems In Sub-Saharan Africa, Adomas Liepa, Michael Thiel, Hannes Taubenböck, Doris Klein, Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter, Marcell K. Peters, Sarah Schönbrodt-Stitt, Insa Otte, Tobias Landmann, Zeyaur R. Khan, Michael Ochieng Obondo, Frank Chidawanyika, Emily A. Martin, Tobias Ullmann

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

In Kenya, climate variability and change threaten smallholder, rainfed farms, with crop failures, yield reductions, and pest infestations. Efficient agroecological strategies, such as Push-Pull intercropping, offer documented benefits including pest control, improved soil fertility, and water conservation compared to traditional maize monocropping. To date, no studies exist comparing traditional maize monocropping and Push-Pull intercropping using earth observation tools over several growing seasons in East Africa. Our research addresses this by harmonizing Landsat 7, 8, 9 with Sentinel-2 remote sensing time series from 2016 to 2023. Phenological metrics of 15 growing seasons are extracted based on a threshold method using the …

Morphometric Characterization Of Invasive Diaphorina Citri Infesting Citrus And Orange Jasmine In Ghana, Kodwo Dadzie Ninsin, Maxwell Kelvin Billah, Bernard Agyeman Boateng, Jonathan Osei-Owusu, Fred Kormla Ablormeti, Samuel Opuni-Basoa, Aboagye Kwarteng Dofuor, George Edusei, Steve B.S. Baleba, Owusu Fordjour Aidoo

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Morphometric analysis plays a crucial role in the accurate identification and classification of insect pests, which is essential for implementing effective management strategies. The Asian citrus psyllid (Diaphorina citri Kuwayama; Hemiptera: Liviidae), an invasive species and a known vector of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’ and ‘Ca. Liberibacter americanus,’ the bacterial pathogens associated with Huanglongbing (HLB), has recently emerged as a pest of concern in Ghana. Despite its significance, little is known about the biological traits of field populations in the region. In this study, we examined morphometric variation in D. citri populations infesting citrus and orange jasmine (Murraya paniculata) across different …

Annual Diversity Of Honey Bee Pollen Sources In Two Pumpkin Growing Landscapes, Machakos County, Kenya, Marystella W. Nang’Oni, Muo Kasina, Rebecca Karanja, Mary M. Guantai, Rahab N. Kinyanjui, Evanson R. Omuse, Michael H.G. Lattorff, Elfatih M. Abdel-Rahman, Marian Adan, Samira A. Mohamed, Thomas Dubois

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Multi-floral foraging sources for honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) have been threatened by landscape changes and unsustainable farming practices. In East Africa, the biodiversity of forage resources that could support honey bees, especially in agricultural lands, remains least explored. This study investigated pollen diversity for honey bees in Yatta and Masinga Sub-counties in Machakos County, Kenya. Honey bee hives were installed on eight pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima Duchesne ex Lam) farms (one hive per farm) in two varying landscape vegetation classes (low and medium) based on normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). Pollen traps were installed at the hive entrance and pollen …

Fire And Mammal Herbivory On Arthropods In The Protected Savannas: A Systematic Review, Ludzula Mukwevho, Mduduzi Ndlovu, Frank Chidawanyika

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Protected areas in the savannas are key global reserves for biological diversity, including arthropods. Fire and mammal herbivory disrupts the diversity of biological organisms that alternately affects the functioning of the ecosystem. The study presents a global synthesis review of arthropod responses to varying intensities of fires and mammal herbivory in the protected savannas. We hypothesise that the intensity of predetermined fires and mammal herbivory has cascading impacts on abundance, species richness and diversity of terrestrial arthropods in the protected savannas. A minimum selection criteria was used to collate relevant literature from electronic databases of previous studies performed in the …

Swatting Flies: Biting Insects As Non-Invasive Samplers For Mammalian Population Genomics, Anubhab Khan, Ryan Carter, Chengetai D. Mpamhanga, Daniel Masiga, Manun Channumsin, Marc Ciosi, Oliva Manangwa, Furaha Mramba, Umer Zeeshan Ijaz, Harriet Auty, Barbara K. Mable

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Advances in next-generation sequencing have allowed the use of DNA obtained from unusual sources for wildlife studies. However, these samples have been used predominantly to sequence mitochondrial DNA for species identification while population genetics analyses have been rare. Since next-generation sequencing allows indiscriminate detection of all DNA fragments in a sample, technically it should be possible to sequence whole genomes of animals from environmental samples. Here we used a blood-feeding insect, tsetse fly, to target whole genome sequences of wild animals. Using pools of flies, we compared the ability to recover genomic data from hosts using the short-read sequencing (Illumina) …

Biological Reinforcement Learning Simulation For Natural Enemy -Host Behavior: Exploring Deep Learning Algorithms For Population Dynamics, Komi Mensah Agboka, Emmanuel Peter, Erion Bwambale, Bonoukpoè Mawuko Sokame

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

This study introduces a simulation of biological reinforcement learning to explore the behavior of natural enemies in the presence of host pests, aiming to analyze the population dynamics between natural enemies and insect pests within an ecological context. The simulation leverages on Q-learning, a reinforcement learning algorithm, to model the decision-making processes of both parasitoids/predators and pests, thereby assessing the impact of varying parasitism and predation rates on pest population growth. Simulation parameters, such as episode count, duration in months, steps, learning rate, and discount factor, were set arbitrarily. Environmental and reward matrices, representing climatic conditions, crop availability, and the …

A Mathematical Model For Mapping The Insecticide Resistance Trend In The Anopheles Gambiae Mosquito Population Under Climate Variability In Africa, Komi Mensah Agboka, Mark Wamalwa, James Mutuku Mutunga, Henri E.Z. Tonnang

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

The control of arthropod disease vectors using chemical insecticides is vital in combating malaria, however the increasing insecticide resistance (IR) poses a challenge. Furthermore, climate variability affects mosquito population dynamics and subsequently IR propagation. We present a mathematical model to decipher the relationship between IR in Anopheles gambiae populations and climate variability. By adapting the susceptible-infected-resistant (SIR) framework and integrating temperature and rainfall data, our model examines the connection between mosquito dynamics, IR, and climate. Model validation using field data achieved 92% accuracy, and the sensitivity of model parameters on the transmission potential of IR was elucidated (e.g. μPRCC = …

Red Harvester Ants Pogonomyrmex Barbatus (Smith, 1858) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Do Not Distinguish Between Sorghum Head Mold Symptomatic And Asymptomatic Seeds, Lilly Victoria Elliott-Vidaurri, Hannah J. Penn, Robin A. Choudhury

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Red harvester ants, Pogonomyrmex barbatus (Smith, 1858) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), common in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, are known to gather seeds from areas around their nests and store the seeds inside their nests for later consumption. As these ants often nest in and near agricultural fields, some of these seeds may be from crops and may also be infected with fungal plant pathogens. These pathogens can degrade seed coats and may cause the seeds to rot within the ant nests, decreasing storage time and potentially spreading the pathogen to other stored seeds. We studied how head mold, a …

European Wasp: Declared Pest, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity factsheets

The European wasp is one of the worst wasps in the world — harmful to people, outdoor lifestyles, and horticultural and agricultural industries. Early detection of wasp activity is critical to prevent the wasp establishing in Western Australia (WA). This is achieved via collaboration between residents, businesses, industry, and government.

European Wasp Information For Local Government, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity factsheets

The department’s European wasp surveillance and eradication program is a yearly campaign, aimed at detecting the presence of this destructive pest as early as possible so that nests can be found and eradicated.

The continued success of European wasp surveillance and eradication program relies on surveillance in metropolitan Perth and regional areas, strong community awareness, and participation between residents, business owners, community groups, industry, and government.