Entomology Commons^™

An Intergrative Ecological And Taxonomic Assessment Of The Stoneflies (Insecta, Plecoptera) Of The Black Mountains, North Carolina, Usa, Madeline Lake Metzger

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The Black Mountains are a part of the Blue Ridge region of the Appalachian Mountains and include Mount Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Mississippi River at 2,037 m (= 6,684 ft). A comprehensive inventory of the stonefly fauna was conducted between 2014-2019 within Mt. Mitchell State Park and adjacent Pisgah National Forest. Collections occurred seasonally from 44 unique locations, covering a broad range of stream sizes and elevations in the region. Sequencing of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (mtCOI) gene was completed to assist with making positive determinations to species for females of taxonomically challenging genera …

Nebline, April 2020

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Preparing Water for Use in an Emergency

Extension Postponements, Cancellations & Changes

Census Reminder

Create a Culture of Wellness with Nebraska Extension

RECIPE OF THE MONTH

Warm Spring and Weed Growth

Creating Capable Children

Empathy Over Sympathy

Those Pesky Fruit Flies

Preventing Conflicts With Tree Squirrels

Six Annual Flowers for Sunny Locations

Hiring a Lawn & Landscape Professional

Garden Guide: Things to Do This Month

HEART OF 4-H

At 4-H Lock-In, Teen Council 4-H’ers “Inspire Kids to Do”

New in 4-H at Super Fair

4-H/FFA Livestock Identification Help Nights, June 2 & 9

4-H Senior Ellie Babcock’s Third Year Showcasing …

An Annotated Bibliography Of Archaeoentomology, Diana Gallagher

Department of Entomology: Distance Master of Science Projects

For my Master’s Degree Project, I have undertaken to compile an annotated bibliography of a selection of the current literature on archaeoentomology. While not exhaustive by any means, it is designed to cover the main topics of interest to entomologists and archaeologists working in this odd, dark corner at the intersection of these two disciplines. I have found many obscure works but some publications are not available without a trip to the Royal Society’s library in London or the expenditure of far more funds than I can justify. Still, the goal is to provide in one place, a list, as …

A Phenotypic Comparison Of Regional Populations Of Hemileuca Maia (Drury, 1773) With Designations Of New Subspecies (Bombycoidea, Saturniidae, Hemileucinae), Harry Pavulaan

The Taxonomic Report of the International Lepidoptera Survey

Following refinement of the type locality of Hemileuca maia to the Long Island Pine Barrens of New York State by the author (Pavulaan, 2020), an evaluation of phenotypic characters of regional populations of H. maia is presented. The Long Island population is the nominotypical subspecies. Populations in southeastern coastal New England and offshore islands are presently considered nominotypical maia. However, several continental inland populations show evidence of subspecific variation. Four new subspecies are designated. Detailed phenotypic information of other interior regions is lacking.

Ecological And Economic Benefits And Risks Of Using Botanical Insecticides In Tanzanian Farms, Lilia Garcia

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Insect damage is a major concern for smallholder farmers in developing countries like Tanzania. Synthetic insecticides can tame infestations, however they can be expensive, inaccessible, and their misuse can threaten farmer health and ecological conditions. Botanical insecticides are cheap alternatives to treat infestations while preserving beneficial insects such as pollinators, predators, and parasitoids. This study assesses how both synthetic and botanical insecticides affect beneficial insects, crop yield and profit/costs. This study finds botanical insecticides slightly less harmful towards non-target insects. Botanical insecticides seldomly improve crop yields but usually result in a higher profit/lower cost. Due to high variation in ecological …

Comparative Physiology Of Honey Bees (Apis Mellifera L.) Exposed To Chlorantraniliprole, Jennifer Williams

Department of Entomology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

One outstanding threat to the honey bee, Apis mellifera L., is the unintended exposure of these pollinators to agricultural pesticides. Anthranilic diamides, such as chlorantraniliprole, work in target pests through activation of the ryanodine receptor causing rapid feeding cessation, lethargy, paralysis, and eventual death. Chlorantraniliprole exhibits low acute toxicity to honey bees but relatively little information exists regarding effects of chlorantraniliprole exposure beyond mortality. The acute toxicity and metabolic detoxification enzyme activities following oral exposure were determined in the honey bee and the model crop pest, the fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda, J.E. Smith). Additionally, chlorantraniliprole effects on honey bee …

Optimization Of Methods For Cross-Species Infection Of Cell Cultures With Wolbachia, Sarah J. Lane

Honors Thesis

The common intracellular endosymbiont genus of bacteria called Wolbachia is of interest due to the promise it shows for playing a role in disease control. Wolbachia have a number of widely variable effects on its many species of host insects. In combination with these roles, Wolbachia largely affects reproduction and development of its host species. It can lead to feminization and cytoplasmic incompatibility (Werren et al. 2008). Furthermore, this species is vertically transmitted which means that it passes from mother to offspring (Caragata et al., 2016). In combination with its effects on reproduction, which can allow Wolbachia to propagate through …

Sorghum Tolerance Of Phloem-Feeding Aphids, Earl Agpawa, Sajjan Grover, Joe Louis

UCARE: Research Products

Aphids are phloem sap-feeding insects that negatively affects plant productivity. With short generation times, new aphid biotypes may arise either in response to pesticide use or through other factors. Additional biotypes can cause serious damage to plants compared to others. Whereas others can become highly resistant to methods of pest control. One possible solution to this problem is to focus on the plant itself, or host plant resistance. Plant tolerance is one of the plant resistance categories in which the plant is capable of functioning normally and remain relatively unharmed and stable in response to insect herbivory without harming the …

Factors Influencing Wheat Curl Mite Aceria Tosichella Keifer Dispersal, Lindsay M. Overmyer

Department of Entomology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The wheat curl mite (Aceria tosichella Keifer) (WCM) is a vector of three plant viruses to wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) including: Wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV), Triticum mosaic virus (TriMV), and High Plains wheat mosaic virus. This wheat-mite-virus complex causes significant yield loss in winter wheat across the Great Plains. Management of WCM host plants during the time between wheat harvest and planting of the new wheat crop (the green bridge) is critical in reducing potential risk and loss from this complex. The primary green bridge host, in the central Great Plains, is volunteer wheat. If volunteer …

Double-Stranded Rna Technology To Control Insect Pests: Current Status And Challenges, Olivier Christiaens, Steve Whyard, Ana M. Vélez, Guy Smagghe

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

Exploiting the RNA interference (RNAi) gene mechanism to silence essential genes in pest insects, leading to toxic effects, has surfaced as a promising new control strategy in the past decade. While the first commercial RNAi-based products are currently coming to market, the application against a wide range of insect species is still hindered by a number of challenges. In this review, we discuss the current status of these RNAi- based products and the different delivery strategies by which insects can be targeted by the RNAi-triggering double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) molecules. Furthermore, this review also addresses a number of physiological and cellular …

Effect Of Temperature On Plant Resistance To Arthropod Pests, James R. Nechols, Ashley R. Hough, David C. Margolies, John R. Ruberson, Brian P. Mccornack, Brett K. Sandercock, Leigh Murray

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

Temperature has a strong influence on the development, survival, and fecundity of herbivorous arthropods, and it plays a key role in regulating the growth and development of their host plants. In addition, temperature affects the production of plant secondary chemicals as well as structural characteristics used for defense against herbivores. Thus, temperature has potentially important implications for host plant resistance. Because temperature directly impacts arthropod pests, both positively and negatively, distinguishing direct effects from indirect effects mediated through host plants poses a challenge for researchers and practitioners. A more comprehensive understanding of how temperature affects plant resistance specifically, and arthropod …

Distortion Of The Local Magnetic Field Appears To Neither Disrupt Nocturnal Navigation Nor Cue Shelter Recognition In The Amblypygid Paraphrynus Laevifrons, Daniel D. Wiegmann, Patrick Casto, Eileen Hebets, Verner P. Bingman

Eileen Hebets Publications

Many arthropods are known to be sensitive to the geomagnetic field and exploit the field to solve spatial problems. The polarity of the geomagnetic field is used, for instance, as an orientation cue by leafcutter ants as they travel on engineered trails in a rainforest and by Drosophila larvae as they move short distances in search of food. A ubiquitous orientation cue like the geomagnetic field may be especially useful in complex, cluttered environments like rainforests, where the reliability of celestial cues used to navigate in more open environments may be poor. The neotropical amblypygid Paraphrynus laevifrons is a nocturnal …

Conservation Efforts Concerning Native Bee Species Of Michigan, Thomas Hellman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Bee species all over the world are declining at concerning rates. However, it is good to see the public rallying behind the “save the bees!” movement even though most efforts from this movement have been on the conservation of the European honeybees. This is because most people often associate the honeybee, which is only one of 20,000 known bee species in the world, to all other bees. Therefore, conservation efforts should be broadened and aimed towards the many native bee species that can be found locally in North America. In the state of Michigan, there are over 450 species, and …

Decision Support System For Fitting And Mapping Nonlinear Functions With Application To Insect Pest Management In The Biological Control Context, Ritter A. Guimapi, Samira A. Mohamed, Lisa Biber-Freudenberger, Waweru Mwangi, Sunday Ekesi, Christian Borgemeister, Henri E.Z. Tonnang

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

The process of moving from experimental data to modeling and characterizing the dynamics and interactions in natural processes is a challenging task. This paper proposes an interactive platform for fitting data derived from experiments to mathematical expressions and carrying out spatial visualization. The platform is designed using a component-based software architectural approach, implemented in R and the Java programming languages. It uses experimental data as input for model fitting, then applies the obtained model at the landscape level via a spatial temperature grid data to yield regional and continental maps. Different modules and functionalities of the tool are presented with …

Modelling The Effect Of Temperature On The Biology And Demographic Parameters Of The African Coffee White Stem Borer, Monochamus Leuconotus (Pascoe) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), Abdelmutalab G.A. Azrag, Abdullahi A. Yusuf, Christian W.W. Pirk, Saliou Niassy, Ephantus K. Guandaru, Guillaume David, Régis Babin

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

The African coffee white stem borer Monochamus leuconotus (Pascoe) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) is a destructive insect pest of Arabica coffee trees in African highlands. Our study aims to provide information on the pest biology as influenced by temperature, determine thermal thresholds, and provide life table parameters for M. leuconotus reared in the laboratory. The life cycle of M. leuconotus was studied at seven constant temperatures in the range 15–35 °C, with 80 ± 5% RH and a photoperiod of L:D 12:12. Linear and nonlinear models were fitted to laboratory data to describe the impact of temperature on M. leuconotus development, mortality, …

Temperature-Dependent Development And Survival Of Immature Stages Of The Coffee Berry Borer Hypothenemus Hampei (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), A. G.A. Azrag, A. A. Yusuf, C. W.W. Pirk, S. Niassy, K. K. Mbugua, R. Babin

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Although the coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) is the most destructive insect pest of coffee worldwide, there is much to learn about its thermal biology. This study aimed to develop temperature-based models for H. hampei development and to provide the thermal requirements of immature stages in the laboratory. Using a new observation method, larval development and survival were monitored daily on fresh Arabica coffee seeds, under seven constant temperatures in the range 15-35°C, with 80 ± 5% RH and 12:12 L:D photoperiod. Linear and non-linear functions were fitted to the development data plotted against temperature, using …

Olfactory Behavioral Responses Of Mosquito Vectors To Select Attractants And Floral Scents As Related To Circadian Rhythms And Photoperiod Regimes, Bernadette A. Ferraro

Biomedical Sciences Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation discusses mosquito behavioral activities involving circadian rhythms defined as insect sensitivity to select of chemical volatiles that vary throughout the 24-hour day. Circannual rhythms occur over seasons varying in photoperiod, defined as the seasonal cycle of light and darkness. These cycles can be endogenously controlled by circadian clocks. The impetus for this research was initiated when reading about the neglected temporal dimension in the context of insect chemical ecology, including insect olfaction. It was proposed that sensitivity to odors does not change in general, but specific sensitivities could vary according to time of day. Chemical scents emitted by …

Insect Diversity And Association With Plants: A Case Study In Rural Areas Of Dhirkot, Azad Kashmir Pakistan, Abu Ul Hassan Faiz, Mehboob Ul Hassan, Mikhail F. Bagaturov, Majid Mahmood, Ghazal Tariq, Lariab Zahra Faiz

Journal of Bioresource Management

Insects play a vital role for proper functioning of forest ecosystem, including positive roles as pollinators, seed dispersers, genetic linkers and detrimental effects by feeding on and/or killing trees. The present study was conducted to find insect association with plants in rural areas of Dhirkot. The study was conducted from March, 2019 to September, 2019. The sampling was carried out by line transect method. Thirty transects were taken for sampling insects. Sixty-five species of insects in association with 150 plants were recorded.

Catalogue Of Species-Group Names Assigned To Copris Geoffroy, Coptodactyla Burmeister, Litocopris Waterhouse, Microcopris Balthasar, Paracopris Balthasar, Pseudocopris Ferreira, Pseudopedaria Felsche, Sinocopris Ochi, Kon And Bai, And Thyregis Blackburn (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae: Coprini), Jiri Zidek

Insecta Mundi

Presented are species-group names published in the nine coprine genera (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae: Coprini) having only one lateral carina on each elytron. The data include authorships, dates and pages of original descriptions, geographic distributions, and references to works pertinent to the topic.

The following catalogue is a compilation intended to serve for orientation in the vast number of species names, their original generic / subgeneric assignments and pertinent references. A word of caution is in order concerning the dates of Ferreira’s papers in the Instituto de Investigação Científica de Moçambique periodicals, especially the Revista de Entomologia de Moçambique, which were …

Host Plant List Of The Scale Insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) In South Korea, Soo-Jung Suh

Insecta Mundi

The scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) are one of the most successful groups of plant-feeding arthropods. Most species of shade trees, fruit trees and ornamental shrubs are subject to scale insect attacks. Based on the review of the literature and survey results, the host plant list of the scale insects in South Korea was developed and updated. Herein, an updated list of 253 species of host plants in 71 families associated with scale insects is provided and 162 species in 15 scale insect families are listed.

On The Distribution Of Phlegyas Stål (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pachygronthidae), John M. Leavengood, Jr.

Insecta Mundi

Updated distributions are provided for all three species of Phlegyas Stål (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pachygronthidae) in the New World: Phlegyas abbreviatus (Uhler, 1876), P. annulicrus Stål, 1869, and P. patruelis Berg, 1883. In total, four new state records for the United States of America, four new state records for Mexico, one new Canadian provincial record, and one new country record (Nicaragua, P. annulicrus) are presented, along with remarks and corrections.

Cankerworms, Marion Murray, Erin W. Hodgson

All Current Publications

Cankerworms, also known as inchworms, are in the order Lepidoptera and family Geometridae. Geometrid moth adults have slender bodies and relatively large, broad forewings (Figs. 1, 3). Both fall, Alsophila pometaria, and spring, Paleacrita vernata, cankerworms occur in Utah, with the fall cankerworm being most common.

Community-Wide Grasshopper Control, Marion Murray

All Current Publications

Springtime, while grasshoppers are still nymphs, is the best time for communities or neighborhoods to work together to suppress grasshopper populations. Treating as wide an area as possible is the key to success. When grasshoppers become adults, they can travel great distances and may not remain in one area long enough for an insecticide to be effective.

Soft Scales In Utah, Marion Murray, Erin W. Hodgson

All Current Publications

Soft scales are insects in the family Coccidae and are closely related to armored and felt scales and mealybugs. Scales are fluid feeders with piercingsucking mouthparts that remove plant phloem or sap. Most life stages are immobile because they anchor their mouthparts into host tissue. They are difficult to control because of their waxy covering, seasonal abundance, and high fecundity.

Critical Temperatures For Frost Damage On Fruit Trees, Marion Murray

All Current Publications

No abstract provided.

Using Degree Days To Time Treatments For Insect Pests, Marion Murray

All Current Publications

Insecticides that are applied for a perennial insect pest based on a calendar date often result in poor insect control and a waste of resources. Insect activity varies from year to year depending on weather. For example, in Logan, Utah, eggs of the apple pest codling moth began hatching on May 15 in 2005, May 5 in 2006, and April 30 in 2007.

Taxonomy And Systematics Of The New Zealand Pselaphini (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Pselaphinae), Brittany Elin Owens

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The New Zealand (NZ) Pselaphini was revised at the species level, a phylogenetic analysis was performed using morphological data, and first steps were taken towards the construction of a molecular analysis of the tribe. Eight new genera and 33 new species were discovered from specimens collected from the NZ mainland, offshore islands, Chatham Islands and the Subantarctic Islands. Of the 13 species originally described in the genus Pselaphus by Thomas Broun during the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries, all were either reassigned to the genera Pselaphaulax and Pselaphogenius, or were placed into new genera. Three names …

Non-Native Spiders Change Assemblages Of Hawaiian Forest Fragment Kipuka Over Space And Time, Julien Pétillon, Kaїna Privet, George K. Roderick, Rosemary G. Gullespie, Don K. Price

Life Sciences Faculty Research

We assessed how assemblages of spiders were structured in small Hawaiian tropical forest fragments (Hawaiian, kipuka) within a matrix of previous lava flows, over both space (sampling kipuka of different sizes) and time (comparison with a similar study from 1998). Standardized hand-collection by night was carried out in May 2016. In total, 702 spiders were collected, representing 6 families and 25 (morpho-)species. We found that the number of individuals, but not species richness, was highly correlated with the area of sampled forest fragments, suggesting that kipuka act as separate habitat islands for these predatory arthropods. Species richness was significantly lower …

Impact Of Buckwheat And Methyl Salicylate Lures On Natural Enemy Abundance For Early Season Management Of Melanaphis Sacchari (Hemiptera: Aphididae) In Sweet Sorghum, Nathan Mercer

Entomology Research Data

Tested effect of buckwheat flowers and methyl salicylate lures to attract natural enemies to sweet sorghum fields to manage Melanaphis sacchari, a recent pest of sweet sorghum.

Imported Fire Ants, Ryan Davis, Ann Mull, Lori R. Spears

All Current Publications

Imported fire ants (Order Hymenoptera, Family Formicidae) (IFA) are social insects representing two South American ant species: the red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta Buren) and black imported fire ant (Solenopsis richteri Forel), along with their hybrid offspring. IFA are native to South America, where their colonies are kept in check by native competitors, predators, and parasites. However, they have invaded other countries, including Australia, New Zealand, and the U.S., causing agricultural, ecological, economical, nuisance, and public health problems, which are described in more detail in this fact sheet. Management is also addressed.