Performing Department
Entomology
Non Technical Summary
Agriculture in the Northeast is valuable and productive, relying on a mix of growing practices that range from heavy reliance on pesticides to integrated pest management and adopting organic practices. To support this diverse base of food production, innovations are needed that reduce the risks of pesticides in conventional agriculture and enhance the productivity in organic systems. On behalf of stakeholders, the Northeast IPM Center states that they "are enthusiastic about alternative, non- pesticidal strategies that unite several disciplines and lead to sustainable solutions."They continue to say, "the demand for organic fruit and vegetables continues to grow, and producers are demanding holistic, ecology-based systems."Northeast regional priorities for fruit, vegetable and specialty crops are replete with calls for research and sustainable practices to reduce the impacts of insect pests and to protect valuable pollinators. This multi-state project seeks to harness innate properties of crops and agroecosystems to address pest and pollinator priorities. Although the project does not advance specific research questions restricted to particular crops, the broader umbrella allows for dynamic groups to form, meet annually, and address pressing questions in applied pest and pollinator management across the region.The purpose of this multistate project is to provide a framework and opportunity for collaboration for diverse land grant researchers to work together to solve pressing problems in pest and pollinator management. The project aims to bring people together around a set of general goals. This broad umbrella allows us to coalesce a dynamic group of researchers from different locations and funding situations. The multistate project itself does not have funding for participants, which means that the project must be broad in order to bring in as many chemical ecologist participators as possible. Participants fall into three categories from which they may garner funding to participate in the project: 1) Researchers at a subset of Agricultural Stations that can apply for multistate funding to conduct a specific research project, 2) Researchers who can bring in external funding to conduct a project in support of the multistate project goals, and, 3) Researchers who have no funding other than a small amount to cover the cost of travel to the annual multistate meeting. Even in New York, a state where researchers can receive funding through the multistate project, the individual researchers must apply for separate funding by submitting an individual proposal with a specific set of questions and methods that must be peer reviewed before funding is received.
Animal Health Component
20%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
70%
Applied
20%
Developmental
10%
Goals / Objectives
Develop chemical ecology tools, information, and deployment strategies to support sustainable agriculture by reducing damage by pests in crops and ornamentals such as potatoes, brassicas, cucurbits, apples, blueberries, and sweet corn, while maintaining pollinator health in economically important agricultural systems.
Work to find ways to minimize the impact of pesticides and discover new pesticides that reduce the impact on pollinators, herbivores, microbes and natural enemies of pests.
Explore and exploit microorganisms (including bacteria, fungi and nematodes) that mediate crop â¿¿ pest interactions.
Identify the importance of local and landscape diversity on interactions between crops, pests, and beneficial organisms.
Broaden utilization of a chemical ecology analytical facility for the Northeast to allow researchers ready access to equipment and technical expertise and increase training of High Quality Personnel.
Conduct Extension and Outreach to facilitate adoption and awareness of science-based chemical ecology to support sustainable crop production and promote human health and welfare.
Exploit knowledge of domestication and breeding history to deploy better strategies to improve crop resilience to novel stressors such as climate change and emerging pests.
Project Methods
1) Develop chemical ecology tools, information, and deployment strategies to support sustainable agriculture by reducing damage by pests in crops and ornamentals while maintaining pollinator health in economically important agricultural systemsWe will be analyzing and identifying the chemical signals that mediate interactions between plants and insect herbivores.We will also be elucidating the genetic and biochemical mechanisms by which these chemical signals regulate the plant-insect interactions. (Ali/Felton/Tumlinson/Renner)We will examine performance of Spotted Lantern Fly (SLF) and host preferences to determine whenand what host trees need protection from SLF as it develops from egg to adult. Physiological measurements will be taken at different densitieson common trees. We monitored photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance and transpiration rate in leaves, and total carbohydrates in stem tissues before sampling. Data and sample analyses are ongoing. (Hoover)To isolate/identify prospective insect sex pheromones that can be used as safe biorational tools for detection, monitoring and for mating disruption against pests of these important crops, we will employ time-tested techniques for affirming both neurophysiological and behavioral activity, in addition to high-resolution GC/MS. In this area we will also work on isolating/identification of volatile chemicals to be used in agroecosystems to disrupt pest behaviors that lead to crop losses. Specificallywe will assess the role of predatory odors in reducing pest damage in crops. (Hermann/Baker)2) Work to find ways to minimize the impact of pesticides and discover new pesticides that reduce the impact on pollinators, herbivores, microbes and natural enemies of pestsWe are investigating how multiple management components can be integrated to enhance plant resilience to stressors and improve productivity. The goal of research is to discover mechanisms that control the cascade of interactions linkingcrops, microbes, and corn pest management. (Ali/Felton/Hermann/Tooker)How pesticides affect mating behavior is unknown, and could have disproportionately large impacts on insect fitness. To study this, we chose the abundant native pollinator Bombus impatiens as a model, and the neonicitinoid imidacloprid. We propose that exposure to imidacloprid detrimentally affects mating behavior, and describe experiments to determine possible mechanisms. Understanding how pesticide exposure affects insect mating will inform pesticide use and guide the development of possible remedies. (Amsalem)We will expand on extensive field and laboratory testing of the efficacy of new FIFRA 25b-exempt insecticide products that use essential oils as their active ingredient against the phorid fly Megaselia halterata.All of the products we will work with are registered for pests on other crops. For efficacious field application, our approach is to use the "Eaves Tubes" method of installing electrostatic mesh or windows or openings spanning air ducts, with the mesh being impregnated with these FIFRA 25b-exempt products. (Baker)We will identify which genes are essential for the formation of chemicals that provide defense against predators, which could be harnessed as the basis for new pesticides. We will use methods in tissue-specific comparative transcriptomics to identify genes highly expressed within specialized tissues and organs, which are generally thought to be sites of chemical biosynthesis. (Renner)3) Exploit knowledge of domestication and breeding history to deploy better strategies to improve crop resilience to novel stressors such as climate change and emerging pestsPlants use an array of defensive chemicals and proteins to protect themselves against microbial pathogens, herbivorous insects, and other environmental stressors. These include chemicals andproteins that are induced in response to microbe-associated molecular patterns and insect herbivory, and those that are constitutively expressed in tissues vulnerable to attackWe are identifying expansions of defense response and secondary metabolism genes that are highly expressed in leaves. (Renner/Acevedo)4) Explore and exploit microorganisms (including bacteria/fungi/nematodes) that mediate crop-pest interactionsWe are studying chemical cues that play important roles in ecological interactions, especially among plants/invertebrates. A relatively recent and exciting discovery is that plants perceive and respond to chemical cues, often detecting herbivore-associated cues as a warning to prepare for future attack. Finding novel ways to harness these natural cues and organismal responses for enhancing crop protection represents a new frontier in agroecology. A major goal of this project is to elucidate indirect benefits of EPNs for plant protection against herbivores. (Ali)Besides the mechanical damage cues that accompany feeding, plants perceive and integrate an array of herbivore cues - originating with the initial contact of the herbivore on the plant, followed by feeding cues that include the secretion of saliva, and culminating with the excretion of their wastes. Plants rely on rapid and accurate recognition of herbivore feeding cues to mobilize induced defenses.Our project focuses on the salivary proteins from Helicoverpa zea that are potent elicitors of defenses in tomato fruit and in foliage. (Felton/Hoover/Acevedo)5) Identify the importance of local and landscape diversity on interactions between crops, pests, and beneficial organismsBlack cherry is the highest value timber species in the US and the majority of it is grown in this region of PA. We selected plots that have shelterwood cutsand plots that had closed canopies. Prior, during, and after flowering we set up traps in clusters of flowers and on the ground. Data analysis will include which potential pollinators visited high traps, while ground traps sampled the background population of pollinators. These variables, combined with trapping results, will be used in multi-variate analyses to determine if there is a pollination deficit contributing to black cherry regeneration decline, and which pollinator species appear to be the most important for black cherry pollination. (Hoover)To enhance biological control in agricultural systems we investigate manipulating natural enemy diversity/abundance/chemical presence in cropping systems. By increasing the efficacy of natural enemies in these systems we can reduce chemical inputs that harden the environment and other beneficial organisms that utilize the habitat. (Hermann/Tooker/Avecedo)6) Broaden utilization of a chemical ecology analytical facility for the Northeast to allow researchers ready access to equipment and technical expertise and increase training of High Quality Personnel.By further establishing ties between Cornell's and Pennstate's Chemical ecology Core groups and facilities we have begun to work out funding structures and pipelines to process samples and/or analyze behavior.The shared expertise among members of this multistate have allowed for the availability of shared equipment across the NE, fulfilling this objective. (Ali)7) Conduct Extension and Outreach to facilitate adoption and awareness of science-based chemical ecology to support sustainable crop production and promote human health and welfareWe will integrate findings and datasets into undergraduate/graduate-level courses. Each coursealready contains modules designed to introduce students to chemical ecology tools/approaches to studying plants and insects. Laboratory memberswill participate annually in the Department of Entomology's "Great Insect Fair." We will give a series of seminars to the active and large local master gardener group in PA on use of insect semiochemicals in pest management. We will also create factsheets for Extension distribution as products are available for use in agroecosystems. (Renner/Hermann/Acevedo)