Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/17
Outputs
Target Audience:American Legion Post in Epsom, one of research sites, 20 individuals NH State Nursery in Boscawen. Workers and visitors at the nursery. 10 individuals ZOOL 400, presentation on research, 25 undergraduate students ZOOL 745, presentation on research, 7 undergraduate and 2 gradutate students Department of Biological Sciences graduate informal research presentation, 20 graduate students Bear Brook State Forest, research site, 15 individuals University of New Hampshire, Horton Hall research site, 100 individuals University of New Hampshire, graduate research seminar for thesis defense, 25 individuals UNH Graduate Research Conference, 100 individuals Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The two graduate students have been the leaders in project design, testing protocols, and execution in the field. Fifteeen undergraduate students have participated in observations and data collection, and have been instrumental in successful completion of the research plan during the summers, and for preparing materials for the study during the school year. Through participation at an International Congress, the second graduate student has been exposed to national and international research programs and protocols through presentations and posters, and established contacts with those working in her field, leading to accepting a technical position at the University of Kentucky. The first graduate student participated in several regional national and international conferences to present her research, and successfully obtained a position with the NH State Department of Agriculture working in pest control surveys. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results have been disseminated via a presentation at an international congress, as a thesis defense seminar, an accepted paper for publication by an earlier graduate student, and through conversations with passing or interested parties at the research sites. Some of the results and research protocols have been presented for several classes at the university, for students who are interested in the types of research being done here. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The goal is to determine how effective a parasitic wasp, the Smoky wing beetle bandit (Cerceris fumipennis),is in finding buprestid beetles within the wasp'srange.This wasp may be utilized to monitor for the presence and abundance of Emerald ash borer, a beetle that is an extremely important factor in ash tree death.1) Most species of buprestids encountered were active when the parasitic wasps emerged in late June/early July, and theadult wasp activity carried on through the 6 weeks when the wasps were actively foraging. Abundances of beetles varied between years, with overall beetle abundance being by far the highest in 2014, and the least abundant in 2016. In 2016 Emerald Ash Borer appeared at the Boscawen research site, and in 2017 EAB were commonly collected there by the parasitic wasps. This supports observations elsewhere that the wasps are very effective for surveillance in catching/parasitizing the beetles as they spread into new areas, and indicates that infested trees are now nearby. Beetle prey abundances were equivalent in both deciduous and coniferous forests, though the proportions of the species taken reflected to some extent the types of trees in the surrounding forest. 2) Foraging distances cannot be determined at this time (the distance the wasps can potentially fly to find beetles), but homing distances of the wasps were determined (how far may they be released from their nest and still find their way back). This is assumed to be the maximum foraging distance of the wasps. In 2016 there was a very high level of return by the end of the day from releases at 0.2, 0.4 and 1.0 km from the nest, ranging from 90% at 0.2 km to 78% at 1 km. Similar results were found in 2017 for 0.4 km distance that was repeated, with release distances of 1.5, 2, 2.5, and 3 km being added. Return sucess for the two shortest distances (0.4 and 2.5 km) were high at 91-95%, while the two furthest distances (2.5 and 3 km) ranged from 77-52%. The highest return rates were from the 0.2, 0.4, 1.0, 1.5, and 2 km distances (77%+), indicating that the wasps were familiar with the geography of the area within that range, and members of the colony were then potentially thoroughly surveying an area of 3.14 km2, Considering that there were returns from all distances within a day, a foraging distance of 2 km would indicate that a large wasp colony could effectively search for buprestid beetles over an area of 3.14 km2, and if with a foraging distance of 3 km then a large wasp colony could conceiveably cover 8.35 km2. In terms of constancy in locating prey beetles, females for 8 of the 23 nests monitored through the season (one day per week) were constant - they brought back only a single prey species, Females of 12 nests brought back 1-3 beetle species, while at the other extreme one wasp brought back 9 species. Those females that were locating large buprestid species (species of Dicerca and Chrysobothris), were the most constant, while those locating smaller beetle species that provided fewer resources for development of young were the least constant.
Publications
- Type:
Theses/Dissertations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Mccabe, Eleanor A. Nest Provisioning and Homing Behavior of Cerceris Fumipennis (Hymenoptera, Crabronidae): A Useful Tool in the Biosurveillance of Buprestid Beetles, University of New Hampshire, Ann Arbor, 2017, Dissertations & Theses @ University of New Hampshire; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses A&I, http://libproxy.unh.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1983460805?accountid=14612.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
McCabe, E.A. and D.S. Chandler. 2016. The nest provisioning behavior of the wasp Cerceris fumipennis. XXV
International Congress of Entomology, Orlando FL.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Dube, M.C. and D.S. Chandler. 2017. Biology, prey, and rates of prey paralyzation by Cerceris fumipennis Say (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae) for beetles in New Hampshire. Entomological News 126: 342-350.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
Chandler, D.S. and K.G.A. Hamilton. 2017. Biodiversity and ecology of the leafhoppers (Homoptera: Auchenorrhyncha: Cicadellidae) of New Hampshire. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 143: 773-971.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
McCabe, E.A. 2017THE NESTING AND HOMING BEHAVIOR OF CERCERIS FUMIPENNIS (HYMENOPTERA, CRABRONIDAE): A USEFUL TOOL IN THE BIOSURVEILLANCE OF BUPRESTID BEETLES. Thesis Defense Presentation, University of New Hampshire. Aug. 11, 2017.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
McCabe, E.A. 2017. Homing range of Cerceris fumipennis. UNH Graduate Research Conference, April 11, 2017.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2017
Citation:
McCabe, E.A. 2017. Smokey-Winged Beetle Bandit; A Useful Tool in Monitoring Emerald Ash Borer. NH Farm and Forest Expo, Manchester, NH. Feb., 2017
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Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16
Outputs
Target Audience:American Legion Post in Epsom, site of one of research sites, 30 individuals Visitors to Epsom Town Park, adjacent to the American Legion Post, 30 individuals NH State Nursery in Boscawen. Workers and visitors at the nursery. 10 individuals Presentation at International Congress of Entomology, Orlando FL, 60 professional entomologists ZOOL 400, presentation on research, 25 undergraduate students ZOOL 745, presentation on research, 10 undergraduate students Department of Biological Sciences graduate informal research presentation, 20 graduate students Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The graduate student has been the leader in project design, testing protocols, and execution in the field. Five undergraduate students have participated in observations and data collection, and been instrumental in successful completion of the research plan for the summer. Through participation at an International Congress, the graduate student has been exposed to national and international research programs and protocols through presentations and posters, and established contacts with those working in her field. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results have been disseminated via a presentation at an international congress, an accepted paper for publication by an earlier graduate student, and through conversations with passing or interested parties at the research sites. Some of the results and research protocols have been presented for several classes at the university, for students who are interested in the types of research being done here. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The plan is to extend the distances at which the wasps are released, to see at which point they substantively cannot find their way back to their next, which will be an indicator of the potential foraging distance. Distances will be 0.4, 1, 1.5, and 2 km.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The Emerald ash borer, a wood-boring beetle, has appeared in the southern New England states.This species kills all ash tree species, affecting the timber industry, as well ashes planted in landscapes of cities and suburban areas. A parasitic wasp finds these beetles at low population levels, but its basic biology for New Hampshire and foraging distance from the colony is not known. Determination of periods of activity and prey choices in different forest types, as well as the foraging distances from colonies in these forests, will allow development of a plan to utilize these wasps as an early-warning system for detection of any introduced beetles. Early detection will allow a rapid response for eradication or suppression at a time when the initial beetle population is most susceptible to theseThe goals for this year were to determine the period of activity for the wasps that prey on Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), how many cells will be produced, and the number and types of prey beetles that will be placed in the cells. Another goal was to develop an effective protocol for capture of the wasps at the nest, and to release them at specific distances to determine the point at which they fail to return to their nests as an indicator of potential foraging range. The protocol for release of the wasps at different distances and recapture of the wasps at their nests was developed. There were high levels of return success at all distances utilized: 0.2, 0.4, and 1 km. This establishes that the wasps are capable of surveying effectively within a 1 km radius of the colony. Eighteen nests were excavated to check for wasp prey constancy and productivity (number of cells excavated). Most individuals were constant in capturing a single prey species, indicating that they were targeting productive host tree species. One individual captured Emerald ash borer (EAB) for the first time at one site, and was constant in repeatedly bringing back that species. Nest productivity in number of cells that produce pupae was variable, ranging from 2-17. The number of beetles placed in each cell ranging from 1-12, which was related to prey host size - fewer larger beetles per cell (1-2) to many smaller beetles per cell (4-12). Colony activity was monitored and found to to be highest for the two week period following emergence in late June/early July, and then tapering to inactivity in mid/late August. This means that peak host searching overlaps with the earlier-emerging EAB activity for at least two weeks, and this is the optimum period to monitor wasp colonies for the detection of EAB in the vicinity of the nests. These data establish the time period for which wasp surveillance will be the most effective in terms of activity and overlap with EAB activity. They indicated that if EAB is located, then prey constancy will lead individuals to repeatedly return and enhance the detection of their presence via nest surveillance. This will useful information for those involved at the national, state, and local levels in early detection of EAB, and minimizing their impact on the ash trees of the region These data and observations have been presented at several university venues and an international congress, as well as to interested parties passing during periods of wasp monitoring. The voucher specimens used to document prey beetle identities have been placed in the UNH Insect Collection, and data captured for the in-house database.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2016
Citation:
McCabe, E.A. and D.S. Chandler. 2016. The nest provisioning behavior of the wasp Cerceris fumipennis. XXV International Congress of Entomology, Orlando FL.
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Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15
Outputs
Target Audience:Entomologists with the NH Department of Agriculture; Forest Management Scientists with the NH Deparment of Forests and Lands; freshmen Zoology majors via an introduction to research on the wasp parasitizing the Emerald Ash Borer; presentation to the Department of Biological Sciences on research conducted and planned by Ellie McCabe, new graduate student, on the wasp parasitizing the Emerald Ash Borer. Interested visitors to the adjacent town park and to the adjacent American Legion Hall. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?One new graduate student began on the project during the summer, and three undergraduates assisted with wasp monitoring, and in digging up the nests. Also, a volunteer interested in entomology participated in these activities on several days. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Personal communications to personnel of the NH Department of Agriculture and the Department of Forests and Lands on the goals and their progress for this past summer. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?A revised protocol is being planned for documenting foraging distances. In the short time span between conducting the study in the closed forest and shortly thereafter in the more open forest, enhancements in optimizing wasp activity during transport were discovered, with much better results for the study in the more open forest. Our objective will be to determine whether or not closed forests with the only visible landmarks close to the colony limit successful monitoring for Emerald Ash Borer to short distances, or if those colonies with a more expansive view of landmarks could be more successful, with success being driven by the larger potential foraging distance. To determine wasp constancy in foraging for prey, more nests undisturbed by monitoring must be dug up to determine the range of constancy when compared to that of nesting individuals that have their prey periodically harvested by researchers.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The introduced beetle species Agrilus planipennisEmerald Ash Borer (EAB) has devastated ash trees from the midwest to the Northeast. Regional focus has been on development of surveillance and detection techniques throughout the range of the ashes so that quarantines may be initiated if EAB is found. Greater success in management, such as eradication or suppression, is expected if initial, small populations are detected. While various insect traps have been explored, an alternative approach is to use Cerceris fumipennis (or "the smoky winged beetle bandit "[SWBB]), a solitary wasp that is a colonial nester in hard-packed sand. This wasp is recognized as presenting an extremely effective technique for sampling the local buprestid (wood-boring beetles) fauna, and outperforming the purple prism traps in detecting presence of target buprestid species (Marshall et al., 2005) This research is determining the potential foraging range of a parasitic wasp Cerceris fumipennis, which is important in understanding how close the colonies need to be to ash stands in order to reliably monitor for presence of EAB. At this time the effective foraging range is unknown, with the latest non-statistically supported reports indicating about 1 to 1.5 km. Our final protocol for determination of wasp return distances has placed this distance at 1.5 km in open forested areas. This will allow a better understanding of which wasp colonies will be the most useful in monitoring for presence of EAB. Wasp constancy in finding prey items is an indicator of focus on specific tree species or closely related trees (such as pines). Based on identifications of individuals in the several cells of a nest produced by individuals, most wasp individuals focus on specific tree species/types, presumeably related to available numbers of prey. This suggests that colonies in an area where there has been selective logging or significant deaths of certain tree species may skew the search patterns of the wasps, but there are always some individuals that forage on deciduous trees such as ashes. If the EAB does infest a tree within the foraging range of the colony and begin to produce individuals, the high pattern of constancy in searching the same tree type for prey items by the wasps will lead to repeated returns to the nest with EAB individuals, and an increased chance for those monitoring the colony to discover the presence of EAB. A preliminary protocol was used to determine foraging distances (objective 2), and was pursed by looking at two forested systems: one that was densely forested and with few easily visible distant landmarks when viewed from the colony; and a second where the colony had a number of large cleared areas around it rimmed by woods. Wasps were released at measured distances up to 1.5 km from the colony, with recapture rates at the nest very low in the closed forest for releases at any distance, and around 80% for all releases for the colony with the more open area. Fortuitous bait stations (felled trees) provided by a nearby state park did not attract any wasps during periodic inspections. The wasp may prefer to forage only in standing dead/dying beetle infested trees. Wasp constancy (going to the same tree or type of tree) for specific prey species is being explored by digging up wasp nests after the foraging season is over, with the number of cells and number of prey/cell being documented. Constancy is high for most wasp individuals, but the data hasn't been completely analyzed yet.
Publications
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Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/14
Outputs
Target Audience: Verbal summaries of progress have been passed on to the State Entomologist, to the Division of Forests and Lands, and to the US Forest Service. Specific results have been transmitted to undergraduate students and professors via inclusion in courses, presentations to freshmen, and through departmental graduate student seminars. Two oral presentations and three posters have been presented at professional forest society meetings and to other graduate students and professors at the graduate research conference at UNH. A final report of the initially funded research was delivered to the Northeastern States Research Cooperative, a regional association of scientists and students that work on forest problems of the Northeast. Various interested public citizens inquired about the monitoring of the wasps when they passed by the study site near a town park in Epsom, and various personnel from the nursery were quite interested in the project and its success at Boscawen. Changes/Problems: The purple sticky traps that are commonly used in a grid througout areas of EAB infestation proved to be nearly worthless in that they collected very low numbers of buprestid beetles, and with no apparent correlation of numerical increase with increasing distance from a large wasp colony. These traps do not appear to work well in northen New England based on comments from state personnel that use them. Various other colored traps and lures have shown much promise in the more southern states, where the purple traps also work better, and in consultation with the US Forest Service and the agencies that deal with forest surveillance in other states, one or more of these alternative trapping systems may be used in an attempt to determine wasp foraging distances. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? The project has led to training of the PI in the protocols for identification of this forest pest group, using the latest literature and through use of the voucher specimens in the UNH Insect Collection. A graduate student completed a summer field season studying wasp behavior and documenting the species and abundances of these beetle prey items at two sites, documenting activity and productivity of wasp individuals, and performing the first set of identifications to species. Six undergraduate students assisted during during the summer, and the preceding academic year in mounting, labeling, and sorting the beetles to groups, prior to the verifying step of identification by the graduate student PI. The graduate student was Morgan C. Dube, MS candidate, and the undergraduate students were Alexandra Tenore-Nortrup, Devan George, Jack C. DiGeronimo, Sarah Geromini, Jonas Insinga, and Nicole Young. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? The study and prelimanary results have been used in two UNH courses, ZOOL 401 course, an introduction for new freshman to UNH Zoology research, "Entomological Research in the Department of Biological Sciences at UNH," Discussion of emerald ash borer and monitoring by use of predatory wasps to 40 freshmen; and ZOOL 745 course, Biology and Biodiversity of Insects, discussion when treating Feeding Behavior about the emerald ash borer and its predatory wasp, and other monitoring techniques, 9 juniors and seniors. Results have also been presented to the consortium of scientists involved with forest research in the Northeast [Chandler, D.S. and M.C. Dube. 2014. The prey and foraging range of Cerceris fumipennis and its use for bio-surveillance of the Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis). Final Report to Northeastern States Research Cooperative (NSRC), June 5, 2014], to forestry groups of the Northeast [Dube, M.C. and D.S. Chandler The prey and foraging range of the predatory wasp Cerceris fumipennis and its use for biosurvillance of the Emerald Ash Borer. Flash talk and poster. NESAF 94th Annual Meeting, Nashua NH. March 25-27, 2014, Nashua NH], [Dube, M.C. and D.S. Chandler 2014. The prey and foraging range of the predatory wasp Cerceris fumipennis and its use for biosurvillance of the Emerald Ash Borer. Poster. Northeast Forest Pest Council, March 18/20, 2014, Quebec, QU Canada], and to the UNH community via a presentation and poster at the Graduate Research Conference [Dube, M.C. and D.S. Chandler. 2014. The prey and foraging range of the predatory wasp Cerceris fumipennis and its use for biosurvillance of the Emerald Ash Bore. UNH Graduate Research Conference. Poster and oral presentation. April 16-17, 2014. Durham, NH]. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? The focus for next year will be to determine if there are differences in wasp constancy in terms of buprestid beetle prey and their association with specific host trees, and how productive individual wasps are. A number of alternative trapping systems were presented at the recent Annual Meeting of the Entomological Society of America in Portland OR, and after discussion with the relevant survey entomologists in the surrounding states, a new protocol of testing for foraging distance by the wasps may be developed.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Emerald ash borer (EAB), an introduced species from Asia, has become an extremely important factor in ash tree death spreading from the Midwest to the Northeastern US. The goal of this project is to determine how effective a parasitic wasp, Cerceris fumipennis, is in finding buprestid beetles, including Emerald ash borer, within the range of the wasp. Seasonality and abundance of buprestid prey species were determined for two sites, one primarily deciduous and the other primarily coniferous, in the region around Concord NH, based on a study initiated for the summer of 2013. Seasonality of the wasps, their prey preferences, times of activity, amount of time spent searching and productivity, and percent paralyzation of the beetle prey were determined. Coincidentally these sites were near the discovery site of EAB in Concord this past summer. Voucher specimens of the beetles have been retained and will be placed in the UNH Insect Collection after their identifies have been verified. A graduate student conducted the study, and has been trained in use of the wasps for sampling, and in identification protocols for this beetle group that contains a number of forest pests. Six undergraduates were involved in prey sampling, determination of prey species, and monitoring of activity of the wasps. Four of these students have been active in inventorying specimens, and working with database entry and determination of species. Foraging distance of the wasps from a known large colony were tested using a grid of purple sticky EAB traps. Numbers of specimens captured by the sticky traps were very low and there was no correlation with distance from wasp colony centers, in what was a cold year with a short season of wasp activity. The consensus of scientists in northern New England is that these traps do not work well in northern New England, though they may work well in more southern states. In contrast, the wasps are amazingly productive, providing 36 species of buprestid beetles with three new state records for New Hampshire, and over 300 specimens. The wasps have proven to be much more effective in monitoring buprestid beetle populations than any of the sticky traps used in New Hampshire at this time. No EAB were taken by the wasps at the colonies, and this pest beetle is not yet known from the area of the wasp colonies being used for surveillance, but the range of the beetle is expanding each year in New Hampshire.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
The prey and foraging range of the predatory wasp Cerceris fumipennis and its use for biosurvillance of the Emerald Ash Borer. Flash talk. NESAF 94th Annual Meeting, Nashua NH. March 25/27, 2014, Nashua NH. Talk and poster. 50 people at talk, 20 visited/discussed poster.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
The prey and foraging range of the predatory wasp Cerceris fumipennis and its use for biosurvillance of the Emerald Ash Borer. Northeast Forest Pest Council, March 18/20, 2014, Quebec, QU Canada. Poster and Talk. 70 people at talk, 15 visited/discussed poster.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
The prey and foraging range of the predatory wasp Cerceris fumipennis and its use for biosurvillance of the Emerald Ash Borer. UNH Graduate Research Conference, Durham, NH. April 16-17. 2014. Poster and talk. 20 people at talk, 30 visited/discussed poster.
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