Source: TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY submitted to
SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF INSECTS AND MITES IN CROP AND VEGETABLE SYSTEMS IN TEXAS PANHANDLE
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1009570
Grant No.
(N/A)
Project No.
TEX09638
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Program Code
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Apr 28, 2016
Project End Date
Apr 1, 2021
Grant Year
(N/A)
Project Director
Szczepaniec, AD, .
Recipient Organization
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
750 AGRONOMY RD STE 2701
COLLEGE STATION,TX 77843-0001
Performing Department
Amarillo-TAMU Agr Res Center
Non Technical Summary
Insects and mites that attack crops and vegetables pose significant risks to profitability of agricultural production owing to direct losses to yield (Pimentel et al. 2005) and indirect expenditures related to pest suppression (Pimentel et al. 1993). These threats pose substantial risks to profitability of agriculture in Texas given that 130 million acres of land are in agricultural production in Texas and market value of agricultural production exceeds $25 billion (USDA NASS 2012). Moreover, common agricultural practices that include infrequent crop rotation, increasing farm size, preventative insecticide applications, and continuous use of crops genetically engineered to express limited diversity of anti-pest toxins commonly contribute to increased risk for pest outbreaks (Bianchi et al. 2006, Hendrickx et al. 2007, Landis et al. 2008, Gardiner et al. 2009, Gassmann et al. 2011). These practices require recurrent monitoring of instances of insect and mite outbreaks, incidence of insecticide resistance and development of tactics that prolong effectiveness of insecticides through proper rotation and adherence to guidelines for chemical suppression of pests. Taken together, these sustainable approaches to management of insect and mite pests promote long-term profitability of crop and vegetable production in the region and contribute to securing safe and nutritious food supply produced with lower environmental costs.Moreover, propensity for arthropod outbreaks in such highly managed system is especially relevant in context of arthropods that vector plant diseases, where direct feeding injury caused by the herbivore is coupled with a systemic injury brought about by the pathogen they vector. In many cases, the indirect impact of arthropod vectors, i.e., transmission of plant pathogens, outweighs the direct feeding injury thereby elevating the negative consequences of arthropod infestations (Stout et al. 2006). While some basic research on mechanisms underlying plant responses to arthropod and pathogen attack has been recently done (Huot et al. 2013), little is known about the physiological and molecular mechanisms governing plant responses to simultaneous arthropod and pathogen attack in conditions of drought and under conventional crop production regimens. Expanding our basic knowledge of these mechanisms will improve precision of the practical recommendations developed to suppress arthropod pests and mitigate their environmental and economic costs.Already established insects and mites pose quantifiable risks to agriculture. However, emerging new pests that arise through expansion of host or geographical range (e.g., sugarcane aphid) and introductions of invasive species (e.g., saltcedar) present new and largely unknown threats (Pimentel et al. 2005). Timely research focused on early effects of invasions by emerging pests and tactics to mitigate their impact is necessary to limit their negative effects on agricultural production. Recent emergence of sugarcane aphid as a significant pest of sorghum, for example, prompted extensive and thorough research of biology and management of this pest on its new host plant in southern Texas (Brewer et al. 2013, Bowling et al. 2015), but has not been researched in High Plains yet. Experiments focused on describing basic natural history traits of new pests in the dry and hot climate of the High Plains in order to establish economic injury levels and action thresholds that account for their population dynamics constitute the basic research-based tactics that will improve resilience of crops to these threats. Likewise, quantifying effectiveness of biological control in alleviating the impact of invasive weeds on native vegetation and associated arthropod communities remains one of the significant research needs in the Texas High Plains.Crop production in Texas High Plains is also affected by an additional challenge of inherent water limitation. Drought stress often renders plants more susceptible to injury caused by some arthropods and pathogens (Thaler and Bostock 2004, Stout et al. 2006, Asselbergh et al. 2008), thereby intensifying economic losses caused by insects and mites. Thus, assessing the impact of arthropods and the diseases they vector in the context of drought stress, which often exacerbates injury caused by these pests, is vitally important to sustainability and profitability of crop production in the High Plains. In addition, research on variable irrigation regimes that promote reduced water use in agricultural production without compromising plant resilience to arthropod pests and associated diseases is critical given the global awareness of the need to intensify our efforts to conserve water.The significant gaps in knowledge listed above have not been comprehensively addressed in the Texas High Plains in recent years. The over-arching goal of this project is to contribute to sustainability of arthropod management in the Texas High Plains through basic and applied research coupled with effective communication of the outcomes and their implications to peers and stakeholders.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
40%
Applied
60%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
2111310113030%
2111520113030%
2111540113020%
2111510113010%
2112300106010%
Goals / Objectives
The over-arching goal of this project is to contribute to sustainability of arthropod management in the Texas High Plains through basic and applied research coupled with effective communication of the outcomes and their implications to peers and stakeholders. The specific objectives are:Objective 1. Insecticide resistance management in field crop and vegetable production in Texas:The goal of this objective is a comprehensive approach to detection and management of insecticide resistance. The research will focus on vegetable (e.g., potato and tomato) and field crops (e.g., corn and sorghum) in Texas. The short-term objectives include 1) identification of pesticides (and Bt toxins) currently used in insect management that no longer provide sufficient suppression of pests; 2) examining non-lethal properties of chemicals that deter pests and in effect prevent them from colonizing plants; and 3) describing the major predators of key pests and their relative impact on pest suppression. A long-term goal is a region-specific, if possible, recommendation for chemical (and Bt) rotation plans that delay onset of insecticide resistance and provides sufficient control of key pests while minimizing the impact on natural enemies.Objective 2. Impact of water availability on plant-arthropod vector interactions and plant resilience to pests:This objective is mainly focused on the impact of variable irrigation on susceptibility of crops to arthropods (vector and non-vector) and mechanisms involved in plant-arthropod interactions. The goals include 1) characterization of plant responses at molecular and physiological level to key arthropod pests (vector and non-vector) under water deficit and ample irrigation in greenhouse and field; and 2) assessment of the impact of variable irrigation on susceptibility of crops to insect and mite attack and resulting plant injury. The long-term objective is to formulate irrigation recommendations based on severity of insect and mite infestations in order to reduce water use without compromising plant productivity and maintaining acceptable plant resilience to pests.Objective 3. Sustainable management approaches to emerging pest invasions:The goal of this objective is to address issues related to management of new pests in the Texas High Plains. The major aims include 1) characterization of the timing and intensity of new insect pest infestations; 2) quantifying economic losses caused by new pests by evaluation of crop performance and yield; 3) research on integrated management tactics to suppress the impact of new insect (e.g., sugarcane aphid) and weed (e.g., saltcedar) pests to agricultural production in the Texas High Plains; and 4) ecology and mechanisms of invasion in the context of their relevance to management of the new pest.
Project Methods
Methods used to achieve the objectives will include surveys, experimental manipulations, and laboratory and field studies at molecular, organismal, and population levels. Data will be analyzed using statistical analyses and summarized using graphical representations of results. In order to evaluate the impact of the project on change in practices and knowledge, the short and mid-term outcomeswill be measured through targeted surveys of stakeholder groups at outreach events.

Progress 04/28/16 to 04/01/21

Outputs
Target Audience: Target audience included university scientists reached through presentation of research at professional meetings, submitted publications, and conferences attended. Target audience also included stakeholders in the state and region with vested interest in sustainable management of insects and mites attacking field crops and vegetables. The stakeholder audience was of diverse socioeconomic background and varied from professionals affiliated with private companies to individual small- and large-scale producers. A portion of the stakeholders were women, an under-represented group in the agro-business industry. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This project has provided opportunities for training of a postdoctoral associate, technical staff, and two undergraduate students (one of them is a minority). These individuals increased their skills and knowledge pertaining to management of insects and mites associated with field crops, vegetables, and natural system. This project also facilitated participation in several conferences and meetings, which were an opportunity to present the research, network with peers, and establish new collaborations. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Outcomes of this research have been actively disseminated to the communities of interest through reports submitted to stakeholder groups, individual interactions during meetings and teleconferences, professional conferences that included stakeholder participation and involvement of agro-business professionals. Radio interviews with local stations and popular media articles have also been used to disseminate the outcomes of the work. Research outcomes have also been published in peer-reviewed journals. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Over the course of the project we collected data that will improve sustainable management of insect and mite pests that affect production of grain crops and vegetables in an arid envornment.Data on abundance, population dynamics, and species identify of thrips in high-value vegetables across vegetable-producing regions of Texas have been collected over the past three seasons. These data will aid in predicting and mitigating the impact of thrips, vectors of several vegetable diseases, on profitability of vegetable production. We also demonstrated widespread resistance to neonicotinoid insecticides in populations of potato psyllid across Texas and beyond, and we collected data regarding the mechanisms of neonicotinoid resistance in potato psyllidusing ddRAD sequencing approaches. This will advance our understanding of the mechanisms of resistance development and contribute to mitigating it with respect to other insecticides. We have also explored the interactions between wheat curl mite and wheat possesing natural resistance to the mite. We quantified transcriptome changes in resistant wheat and whis project has been recently submitted for publication. A significant portion of this project focused onpopulation dynamics of sugarcane aphids in sorghum. Sugarcane aphids of a new, invasive haplotype have devasted sorghum production in the region. We have established their population dynamics with respect to sorghum ontology in the region, which coincide with sorghum anthesis. This knowledge will be essential to timely management of the aphids using insecticides, because producers now have the knowledge of the most vulnerable period for sugarcane aphid outbreaks. We have also established effective cultural control practices for sugarcane aphid management, and validated the action thresholds used elsewhere for their effectiveness in the northernranges of the aphid impact. Lastly, we have collecteddata regarding the economic injury level inflicted by sugarcane aphid to post-bloom sorghum.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Submitted Year Published: 2021 Citation: Transcriptional responses of resistant and susceptible wheat exposed to wheat curl mite. Submitted. Kiani, M., B. Bryan, C. M. Rush, and A. Szczepaniec. International Journal of Molecular Sciences.


Progress 10/01/19 to 09/30/20

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience included university and USDA scientists reached through multiple in-person and virtual presentations delivered durign professional meetings and workshops. Target audience also included stakeholders and commodity groups affiliated with crops and vegetables produced in semi-arid production regions. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This project has provided extensive profesional development opportunities for one post-doctoral researcher and a graduate sutdent who completed his thesis at the end of 2019. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Outcomes of this research have been actively disseminated to the communities of interest through research publications (3), individual interactions during meetings and teleconferences, professional conferences that includedstakeholder participation and involvement of agro-business professionals. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1.Insecticide resistance management in field crop and vegetable production in Texas: Work on sustainable management of insects and mites associated with vegetables will continue in 2021. The work will include assessment of vegetable germplasm for resistance to insects and associated diseases; IPM of thrips in high tunnel vegetable production using integrative cultural and biological control measures; and IPM of the potato psyllid using risk prediction tools and biological control. Objective 2.Impact of water availability on plant-arthropod vector interactions and plant resilience to pests: Transcriptome analyses of sorghum exposed to sugarcane aphids will be conducted with focus on transcripts involved in water stress; impact of water use efficiency in vegetables grown in high tunnels as opposed to open field will be correlated with their resistance to arthropod pests; and impact of dryland sorghum production on sorghum-sugarcane aphid interactions will be explored. Objective 3.Sustainable management approaches to emerging pest invasions: Field experiments focused on determining dynamicaction threshold of sugarcane aphid in post-bloom sorghum will be carried out; field experiments designed to validate dynamic action threshold that incorporate natural enemies into management of sugarcane aphids will be conducted in Central Texas and the High Plains.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? OBJECTIVE 1: - The major accomplishment under this objective was completion of ddRAD sequencing to uncover mechanisms of neonicotinoid resistance in populations of potato psyllids collected across Texas and neighboring states andbioinformatics analyses of these outcomes. We are in the process of completing a manuscript summarizing our findings. - Experiments designed to test several new insecticides for suppression of potato psyllids were carried out in greenhouse experiments and were supported in part by industry sponsors. We reported high efficacy of several of the tested pesticides. - Fourth year of sampling predator and pest communities associated with high-value vegetable production (tomato and pepper, seed production of several salvia species) has been completed. Wealso completed a second year of data to document the effect of reflective mulches on insect pest suppression. - Outcomes of the research have been presented at national and regional meetings of the Entomological SOciety of America. OBJECTIVE 2: - In 2020 research under this objective has focused on high-tunnel production of tomato and pepper and several salvia speciesusing drip irrigation, which was compared to production of these cropsin open field. - Transcriptome of wheat exposed to wheat curl mite has been sequenced, and subsequent analyses focused on identifying transcripts affected by the mite that may play a role in wheat responses to drought stress. A manuscript summarizing our findings is in final stages of preparation for submission to J. Mol. Sci. OBJECTIVE 3: - Research under this objective has focused on management of the invasive sugarcane aphid in sorghum. - Two-year experiment designed to quantify economic injury level of sugarcane aphids in post-bloom sorghum and the effect of sorghum age and resistance on natural hisotry traits of sugarcane aphids were completed, analyzed, and the first publication was submitted and published at the begining of 2020. This work was part of a M.S. thesis of a graduate student, who defended his thesis inDecember 2019. - We continue to assess the effects of sugarcane herbivory on molecular mechanisms of sorghum defense against this invasive insect. We completed bioinformatics analyses using network analysis to relate gene expression to aphid and natural enemy recruitment, preference, abundance in the field, and suppression of aphids in the field. These data were obtained through multidisciplinary collaborations with sorghum breeders and chemical ecologists and served as preliminary data for a USDA NIFA AFRI grant submitted in July.

Publications

  • Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: SUGARCANE APHID MANAGEMENT AND HOST PLANT INTERACTIONS IN POST-ANTHESIS GRAIN SORGHUM. Subin Babu Neupane. Submitted to the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Nalam, V.J., J. Han, P. Nachappa, and A. Szczepaniec. 2020. Drought stress and pathogen infection alter feeding behavior of a phytopathogen vector. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 168(8): 588-598, doi.org/10.1111/eea.12937
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Neupane*, S.B., D. Kerns, and A. Szczepaniec. 2020. The impact of sorghum growth stage and resistance on life history of sugarcane aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Journal of Economic Entomology 113(2): 787-792, doi: 10.1093/jee/toz310
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. 2020. Gene expression in sorghum resistant to sugarcane aphids. Sorghum Improvement Conference of North America. Virtual format
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. 2020. Biological control of sugarcane aphids and its application to IPM. USDA ARS Areawide Project Annual Workshop
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Koralewski, T.E., H.H. Wang, W.E. Grant, M.J. Brewer, N.C. Elliot, J.K. Westbrook, A. Szczepaniec, A. Knutson, K.L. Giles, and J.P. Michaud. 2020. Integrating models of atmospheric dispersion and crop-pest dynamics: Linking detection of local aphid infestations to forecast of region-wide invasion of cereal crops. Annals of Entomological Society of America 113(2): 79-87, doi: 10.1093/aesa/saz047
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Szczepaniec, A., and M. Kiani. 2020. Transcriptional responses of resistant wheat exposed to wheat curl mite. Entomological Society of America National Meeting, virtual format
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: Szczepaniec A., and M.D. Eubanks. 2020. Biological control of sugarcane aphids and its application to IPM. Souther Region IPM Center Webinar, virtual format


Progress 10/01/18 to 09/30/19

Outputs
Target Audience: Target audience included university scientists reached through several presentation of research at local and nationalprofessional meetings, submitted publications, and conferences attended. Target audience also included stakeholders (producer commodity groups) in the state and region with vested interest in sustainable management of insects and mites attacking field crops and vegetables. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project has provided an opportunity for training of a graduate student (M.S.), who is defending his M.S. research in December. He workedprimarily on the sugarcane aphid surveys andtheir economic threshold in post-bloom sorghum. The student has collected data, summarized data, graphed and analyzed the data, and was first author on a publication stemming from his work. Hepresentedthe outcomes of the first replicate of greenhouse experiments at a local conference. The project also provided extensive opportunity for training and professional development of the postdoctoral scientist, who published two manuscripts and participated in one national conference. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Outcomes of this research have been actively disseminated to the communities of interest through research publications (6), individual interactions during meetings and teleconferences, professional conferences that includedstakeholder participation and involvement of agro-business professionals. Radio interviews (2) with local stations and one popularmedia articlehave also been used to disseminate the outcomes of the work. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1.Insecticide resistance management in field crop and vegetable production in Texas: Work on analyses of sequencing data to describe mechanisms of neonicotinoid resistance in potato psyllids will continue in 2020. The goal is a publication submission by the end of the year. Work on management of thrips and whiteflies in vehetable production using integrative approaches will also be carried out in 2020. Objective 2.Impact of water availability on plant-arthropod vector interactions and plant resilience to pests: Transcriptome analyses of wheat exposed to wheat curl mitewill be conducted with focus on transcripts involved in water stress; impact of water use efficiency in vegetables grown in high tunnels as opposed to open field will be correlated with their resistance to arthropod pests will also be explored. Objective 3.Sustainable management approaches to emerging pest invasions: In the coming year activities under this objective will be focused on the impact of dryland sorghum production on sorghum-sugarcane aphid interactions inlcuding direct and indirect defenses. Some of the planned projectswill explore validation of dynamic action thresholds to manage the aphids using more sustainable and integrated approaches (funded USDA NIFA CPPM project), and correlating expression of specific gene networks with ecological interactions between sugarcane aphids and their predators that result in meaningful suppression of the aphids.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Accomplishments forObjective 1.Insecticide resistance management in field crop and vegetable production in Texas: - The major accomplishment under this objective was completion of ddRAD sequencing to uncover mechanisms of neonicotinoid resistance in populations of potato psyllids collected across Texas and neighboring states. We are in the process of bioinformatics analyses. - Experiments designed to test several new insecticides for suppression of potato psyllids were carried out in greenhouse experiments. We reported high efficacy of several of the tested pesticides. - Third year of sampling predator and pest communities associated with high-value vegetable production (tomato and pepper) has been completed. This year we were also able to implement experimental assessment of cultural tactics to suppress major insect vectors of vegetables using reflective mulch. - Outcomes of the research have been presented at national and regional meetings of the Entomological SOciety of America. Accomplishments forObjective 2.Impact of water availability on plant-arthropod vector interactions and plant resilience to pests: - In 2019research under this objective has focused on high-tunnel production of tomato and pepper using drip irrigation, which was compared to production of these vegetables in open field. - Extensive data regarding population dynamics of the most prevalent insect vector of solanaceous vegetables, thrips, has been collected, and it will serve as preliminary data for specific risk prediction models, which will be initiated with the collaboration of plant pathologists and epidemiologists. - Transcriptome of wheat exposed to wheat curl mite has been sequenced, and subsequent analyses will focus on identifying transcripts affected by the mite that may play a role in wheat responses to drought stress. Accomplishments forObjective 3.Sustainable management approaches to emerging pest invasions: - Research under this objective has focused on management of the invasive sugarcane aphid in sorghum. - Two-year experiment designed to quantify economic injury level of sugarcane aphids in post-bloom sorghum were completed, analyzed, and are under preparation for publication. This work was part of a M.S. thesis of a graduate student, who will be defending it at the end of December. - We continue to assess the effects of sugarcane herbivory on molecular mechanisms of sorghum defense against this invasive insect. We completed bioinformatics analyses using network analysis to relate gene expression to aphid and natural enemy recruitment, preference, abundance in the field, and suppression of aphids in the field. These data were obtained through multidisciplinary collaborations with sorghum breeders and chemical ecologists and served as preliminary data for a USDA NIFA AFRI grant submitted in July. - Greenhouse experiments designed to quantify longevity and reproduction of sugarcane aphid in susceptible and resistant sorghum across sorghum ontology have been completed and were recently published.This work was part of a M.S. thesis of a graduate student, who will be defending it at the end of December. - Extensive field surveys were conducted in 2019to describe sugarcane aphid colonization patterns and population dynamics in late-planted and post-bloom sorghum. This research is part of a large collaborative effort to model sugarcane aphid population movement across regions, with a goal of formulating a risk prediction model.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Wulff, J.A., M. Kiani, K. Regan, M.D. Eubanks, and A. Szczepaniec. 2019. Neonicotinoid insecticides alter the transcriptome of soybeans and decrease plant resistance. International Journal of Molecular Science 20 (3): 783-800.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Szczepaniec, A., and D. Finke. 2019. Plant-vector-pathogen interactions in the context of drought stress. Frontiers of Ecology and Evolution 7: 262-269. doi: 10.3389/fevo.2019.00262.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2019 Citation: Koralewski, T.E., H.H. Wang, W.E. Grant, M.J. Brewer, N.C. Elliot, J.K. Westbrook, A. Szczepaniec, A. Knutson, K.L. Giles, and J.P. Michaud. 2019. Integrating models of atmospheric dispersion and crop-pest dynamics: Linking detection of local aphid infestations to forecast of region-wide invasion of cereal crops. Annals of Entomological Society of America, Accepted  doi: 10.1093/aesa/saz047
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Neupane, S.B., D. Kerns, and A. Szczepaniec. 2019. The impact of sorghum ontology and resistance on life history traits of sugarcane aphids, Melanaphis sacchari (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Journal of Economic Entomology, doi: 10.1093/jee/toz310
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2019 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. 2019. Invasive aphid strikes sorghum in the U.S. Outlook on Pest Management, 30(6): 250-253
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2019 Citation: Szczepaniec, A., and C.M. Rush. 2019. Outbreaks of black blister beetle (Coleoptera: Meloidae) in the Texas Panhandle. American Entomologist, 65(4)
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Szczepaniec A, and CM Rush. 2019. Can we blind, confuse, or outnumber them? Cultural and biological control tactics to manage insect pests in organic vegetable production. Entomological Society of America National Meeting, St. Louis, MO.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Kiani M, and A Szczepaniec. 2019. Mechanisms of potato psyllid resistance to neonicotinoid insecticides. Entomological Society of America National Meeting, St. Louis, MO.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Eubanks MD, and A Szczepaniec. 2019. When the rubber meets the road: Incorporating natural enemies into sugarcane aphid thresholds. Entomological Society of America National Meeting, St. Louis, MO.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Neupane*, S. B., D. Kerns, and A. Szczepaniec. 2019. The impact of sorghum phenology and variety on population growth and longevity of sugarcane aphid (Melanaphis sacchari, Zehntner (Hemiptera: Aphididae)). Texas Plant Protection Conference, College Station, TX
  • Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2019 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. 2019. Mechanisms driving interactions between an invasive aphid and its host plant (i.e., how the aphids get to win, again). Invited seminar, Colorado State University, Ft. Collins, CO


Progress 10/01/17 to 09/30/18

Outputs
Target Audience: p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica} Target audience included university scientists reached through presentation of research at professional meetings, submitted publications, and conferences attended. Target audience also included stakeholders (producer commodity groups) in the state and region with vested interest in sustainable management of insects and mites attacking field crops and vegetables. The stakeholder audience was of diverse socioeconomic background and varied from professionals affiliated with private companies to individual small- and large-scale producers. A portion of the stakeholders were women, an under-represented group in the agro-business industry. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project has provided an opportunity for training of a graduate student (M.S.), who is working primarily on the sugarcane aphid surveys andtheir economic threshold in post-bloom sorghum. The student has collected data, summarized data, graphed and analyzed the data. He presentedthe outcomes of the first replicate of greenhouse experiments at a local conference. The project also provided extensive opportunity for training and professional development of the postdoctoral scientist, who published two manuscripts and participated in one national conference. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 10.0px Helvetica} Outcomes of this research have been actively disseminated to the communities of interest through research publications (5), reports submitted to stakeholder groups (United Sorghum Checkoff, Texas Grain Sorghum Producers Board), individual interactions during meetings and teleconferences, professional conferences that included stakeholder participation and involvement of agro-business professionals. Radio interviews (2) with local stations and popular media articles (2) have also been used to disseminate the outcomes of the work. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1.Insecticide resistance management in field crop and vegetable production in Texas: Work on sustainable management of insects and mites associated with vegetables will continue in 2019. The work will include assessment of vegetable germplasm for resistance to insects and associated diseases; IPM of thrips in high tunnel vegetable production using integrative cultural and biological control measures; and IPM of the potato psyllid using risk prediction tools and biological control. Objective 2.Impact of water availability on plant-arthropod vector interactions and plant resilience to pests: Transcriptome analyses of sorghum exposed to sugarcane aphids will be conducted with focus on transcripts involved in water stress; impact of water use efficiency in vegetables grown in high tunnels as opposed to open field will be correlated with their resistance to arthropod pests; and impact of dryland sorghum production on sorghum-sugarcane aphid interactions will be explored. Objective 3.Sustainable management approaches to emerging pest invasions: Field experiments focused on determining economic threshold of sugarcane aphid in post-bloom sorghum will be carried out; field experiments designed to validate dynamic action threshold that incorporate natural enemies into management of sugarcane aphids will be conducted in Central Texas and the High Plains; surveys of the aphids in post-bloom sorghum across the High Plains will be continued; and greenhouse experiments testing the longevity and reproduction of the aphids across sorghum phenology will be completed in 2019.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Accomplishments forObjective 1.Insecticide resistance management in field crop and vegetable production in Texas: - The major accomplishment under this objective was completion of bioassays designed to test resistance to neonicotinoid insecticides in populations of the potato psyllid across southwestern US. This work was completed and recently published. - Experiments designed to test non-toxic, deterrent properties of chemicals, and the role of predators in reducing colonization of potato psyllid were conducted and served as preliminary data for USDA NIFA Crop Protection and Pest Management grant proposal submitted in 2018. - Second year of sampling predator and pest communities associated with high-value vegetable production (tomato and pepper) has been completed. - Outcomes of the research have been presented at national and regional meetings of the Entomological Society of America. Accomplishments forObjective 2.Impact of water availability on plant-arthropod vector interactions and plant resilience to pests: - In 2018 research under this objective has focused on high-tunnel production of tomato and pepper using drip irrigation, which was compared to production of these vegetables in open field. - Extensive data regarding population dynamics of the most prevalent insect vector of solanaceous vegetables, thrips, has been collected, and it will serve as preliminary data for specific risk prediction models, which will be initiated with the collaboration of plant pathologists and epidemiologists. - Transcriptome of sorghum exposed to sugarcane aphid herbivory has been sequenced, and subsequent analyses will focus on identifying transcripts affected by the aphid that play a role in water regulation in susceptible and resistant sorghum varieties. Accomplishments forObjective 3.Sustainable management approaches to emerging pest invasions: - Research under this objective has focused on management of the invasive sugarcane aphid in sorghum. - Two-year experiments describing the population dynamics and best management strategies were completed, analyzed, and published in two separate publications in 2018. - Field experiments (year 1) were carried out in 2018 to identify economic threshold for sugarcane aphids colonizing sorghum in post-bloom stage. - Greenhouse experiments designed to quantify longevity and reproduction of sugarcane aphid in susceptible and resistant sorghum across sorghum ontology have been completed (first replication). - Extensive field surveys were conducted in 2018 to describe sugarcane aphid colonization patterns and population dynamics in late-planted and post-bloom sorghum. This research is part of a large collaborative effort to model sugarcane aphid population movement across regions, with a goal of formulating a risk prediction model. - A model predicting the potential impact of natural enemies on sugarcane aphid suppression has been developed and published. It also served as preliminary data to support a funded USDA NIFA Crop Protection and Pest Management grant proposal to incorporate natural enemies into a dynamic action threshold to suppress the aphids. - Transcriptome of sorghum exposed to sugarcane aphid herbivory has been sequenced and the general outcomes were published in 2018. Data obtained through this sequencing will be further analyzed to examine post-translational changes in plants following exposure to the aphids.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. 2018. Interactive effects of crop variety, insecticide seed treatments, and planting date on population dynamics of sugarcane aphid (Melanaphis sacchari) and their predators in late-colonized sorghum. Crop Protection 109: 72-79.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. 2018. Assessment of a density-based action threshold for suppression of sugarcane aphids, Melanaphis sacchari (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in the southern High Plains. Journal of Economic Entomology 111(5): 2201-2207.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2018 Citation: Kiani, M, and A. Szczepaniec. 2018. Effects of sugarcane aphid herbivory on transcriptional responses of resistant and susceptible sorghum. BMC Genomics 19: 774.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hewlett, J., A. Szczepaniec, and M. D. Eubanks. 2018. The effects of sugarcane aphid density in sorghum on predation by lady beetles and lacewings. Biological Control, doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2018.10.015.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Szczepaniec, A., K. Varela, M. Kiani, L. Paetzold, and C. Rush. 2019. Incidence of neonicotinoid resistance in Bactericera cockerelli across the Southwest U.S. Crop Protection 116: 188-195.
  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Resistant varieties, beneficial predators can help producers win sugarcane aphid battle. AgriLife Today. 2018. Written by K. Ledbetter. https://today.agrilife.org/2018/05/16/resistant-varieties-beneficial-predators-can-help-producers-win-sugarcane-aphid-battle/
  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Texas A&M AgriLife high tunnel study expands. AgriLife Today. 2018. Written by K. Ledbetter. https://today.agrilife.org/2018/09/11/texas-am-agrilife-high-tunnel-study-expands/
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2018 Citation: Kiani, M., and A. Szczepaniec. 2018. Transcriptional responses of susceptible and resistant sorghum to sugarcane aphid herbivory. Entomological Society of America, Annual Meeting, Vancouver, Canada.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2018 Citation: Hewlett, J., A. Yanez, M. Kjeldegaard�, A. Szczepaniec, and M.D. Eubanks. 2018. Interactive effects of predators and host plant resistance on sugarcane aphids in sorghum. Entomological Society of America, Annual Meeting, Vancouver, Canada.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2018 Citation: Neupane, S. B., D. Kerns, and A. Szczepaniec. 2018. The impact of sorghum phenology and variety on population growth and longevity of sugarcane aphid (Melanaphis sacchari, Zehntner (Hemiptera: Aphididae)). Texas Plant Protection Conference, College Station, TX


Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience included university scientists reached through presentation of research at professional meetings, submitted publications, and conferences attended. Target audience also included stakeholders (producer commodity groups)in the state and region with vested interest in sustainable management of insects and mites attacking field crops and vegetables. The stakeholder audience was of diverse socioeconomic background and varied from professionals affiliated with private companies to individual small- and large-scale producers. A portion of the stakeholders were women, an under-represented group in the agro-business industry. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project has provided multiple opportunities for professional development for myself and scientists and students involved in it. I attended several conferences that were uniquely focused on plant-insect interactions (Gordon Research Conference) and plant-hemipteran interactions (International Symposium on Plant-Hemipteran Interactions).This project has also provided opportunities for training of a postdoctoral associate, who has expertise in plant biology and bioinformatics but has not had prior training in crop production and insect and insect vector management, technical staff, and sixundergraduate students (threeof them were from underrepresentedminority groups). These individuals increased their skills and knowledge pertaining to management of insects and mites associated with field crops, vegetables, and natural system. This project also facilitated participation of the postdoctoral associate, technician, and undergraduate studentin several conferences and meetings, which were an opportunity to present their research, network with peers, and establish new collaborations. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Outcomes of this research have been actively disseminated to the communities of interest through reports submitted to stakeholder groups, individual interactions during meetings and teleconferences, professional conferences that included stakeholder participation and involvement of agro-business professionals. Radio interviews (2) with local stations and popular media articles have also been used to disseminate the outcomes of the work. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?The vast amount of data collected to date will be prepared for submission to peer-reviewed journals. This will include one publication related to Objective 1, one publication from our activities in Objective 2, and two publications from activities accomplished under Objective 3. Moreover, activities necessary to complete analyses of transcriptome changes in sorghum and solanaceous crops exposed to their respective insect pests will continue in 2018. Follow-up bioinformatics analyses and assays needed to confirm the outcomes will be carried out. Field research will continue to focus on the invasive sugarcane aphid in sorghum and population dynamics studies as well as integrative management tactics will be tested. We will also continue the work on characterizing insect vector populations associated with high value vegetable production and evaluation of germplasm best suited to HIgh Plains growing conditions and resistant to key insects and diseases they transmit.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1.Insecticide resistance management in field crop and vegetable production in Texas; goals1) identification of pesticides (and Bt toxins) currently used in insect management that no longer provide sufficient suppression of pests; 2) examining non-lethal properties of chemicals that deter pests and in effect prevent them from colonizing plants; and 3) describing the major predators of key pests and their relative impact on pest suppression. Accomplishments: All populations of potato psyllid from major potato producing regions in Texas and populations collected from isolated regions of Colorado and New Mexico were tested for resistance to two neonicotinoid insecticides, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam. All populations were found to be resistance (using IRAC definition of resistance), with all populations exibiting especially strong and uniform resistance to imidacloprid. Additionally, non-toxic approaches to supressing potato psyllids were tested in the greenhouse and we found that both fish-based fertilizer and a highly mobile predator significantly reduced the proportion of adult psyllids settling on plants. Lastly, in field surveys we were able to characterize major predators of psyllids and non-focal pests that sustain those predators. We collected data that provide significant backbone for field projects planned for the future to integrate non-chemical tactics to suppress the potato psyllids and delay development of resistance to other chemistries. This work will benefit producers by minimizing their economic expenditures on chemistries that no longer suppress the psyllids and incorporating non-chemical approaches to suppress the psyllids and the bacterial diseasethey transmit. Objective 2.Impact of water availability on plant-arthropod vector interactions and plant resilience to pests; goals:1) characterization of plant responses at molecular and physiological level to key arthropod pests (vector and non-vector) under water deficit and ample irrigation in greenhouse and field; and 2) assessment of the impact of variable irrigation on susceptibility of crops to insect and mite attack and resulting plant injury. Accomplishments: Transcriptome of a key dryland agriculture crop, sorghum, in response to sugarcane aphids has been sequenced with a goal of characterizing sorghum genes involved in primary metabolism related to water use and secondary metabolism related to plant defenses against aphids. This work has been initiated already and will be continued. We have also started organismal-level assays to investigate sorghum physiologcial responses to sugarcane aphid feeding in order to quantify changes in sorghum that affect water use efficiency. Moreover,the vegetables IPM project wasexpanded to investigate the impact of key insect-transmitted viruses on tomatoes, peppers, onions, and melons under field conditions in a statewide collaborative project. The goal of this research wasto test how interactions between abiotic (water and heat) and biotic (insect vectors and the pathogens they transmit) stresses affect yield and quality of these crops in all major regions in Texas where they are currently produced or could be produced in the near future. The ultimate aim of this research was to enhance the available Texas A&M vegetable/fruit germplasm by identifying high-yielding lines with plastic responses to the major stress factors common across the vegetable production regions in the state. The first year of the project was completed and funds were awarded to continue the work in 2018. Objective 3.Sustainable management approaches to emerging pest invasions; goals:1) characterization of the timing and intensity of new insect pest infestations; 2) quantifying economic losses caused by new pests by evaluation of crop performance and yield; 3) research on integrated management tactics to suppress the impact of new insect pests to agricultural production in the Texas High Plains; and 4) ecology and mechanisms of invasion in the context of their relevance to management of the new pest. Accomplishments: Extensive and collaborative research efforts were accomplished with respect to biology, management, and economic relevance of the invasive sugarcane aphid associated with sorghum. We completed the second full year of field research designed to collect data on effectiveness of planting date, insecticide seed treatments, resistant varieties, and at threshold rescue sprays to effectively and economically manage this pest. Moreover, we gathered data on several application means of insecticides throughout sorghum development to suppress the aphids, and collected extensive population dynamics data to inform a model that will be used to predict the movement and spread of the aphids in their northern ranges. Field experiments were carried out (first year data) to quantify the economic injury level of aphids colonizing sorghum in its reproductive rather than vegetative stages, which is of unique importance to sorghum producers in HIgh Plains. Lastly, detailed data were collected on abundance, diversity, and (indirectly) biological controlof predators of sugarcane aphids. The wealth of data that we just collected will allow us to formulate recommendations to producers based on research outcomes.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2017 Citation: Regan, K., D. Ordosch, K.D. Glover, K.J. Tilmon, and A. Szczepaniec. 2017. Effects of a pyrethroid and two neonicotinoid insecticides on population dynamics of key pests of soybean and abundance of their natural enemies. Crop Protection 98: 24-32
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Varela, K., and A. Szczepaniec. 2016. Neonicotinoid insecticide resistance in populations of the potato psyllid (Bactericera cockerelli) in Texas. Texas Plant Protection Conference, College Station, TX
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. 2016. Impact of planting date, seed treatments, and sorghum variety on population growth of sugarcane aphid (Melanaphis sacchari) in the Texas Panhandle. . Texas Plant Protection Conference, College Station, TX
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Szczepaniec, A., J. Wulff, and M.D. Eubanks. 2017. Neonicotinoid insecticides alter plant transcriptome and affect plant-arthropod interactions in crop plants. Gordon Research Conference on Plant-Insect Interactions, Ventura, CA
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Varela, K., and A. Szczepaniec. 2017. Neonicotinoid insecticide resistance in populations of the potato psyllid (Bactericera cockerelli) across Texas. Southwest Branch Meeting of the Entomological Society of America, Austin, TX
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Huff, E., and A. Szczepaniec. 2017. Abundance and diversity of sugarcane aphid (Melanaphis sacchari) predators in the Texas Panhandle. Southwest Branch Meeting of the Entomological Society of America, Austin, TX
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. 2017. Population dynamics and management of sugarcane aphid (Melanaphis sacchari) in sorghum in the Texas Panhandle. Southwest Branch Meeting of the Entomological Society of America, Austin, TX
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. and K. Varela. 2017. Neonicotinoid insecticide resistance in populations of the potato psyllid (Bactericera cockerelli) across Texas. International Symposium on Plant-Hemipteran Interactions, Madrid, Spain
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Nalam, V., P. Nachappa, and A. Szczepaniec. 2017. Drought stress modulates potato psyllid feeding behaviors associated with Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum transmission. Entomological Society of America, Annual Meeting, Denver, CO
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Rush, C. M., Workneh, F., Szczepaniec, A. and Paetzold, L. 2017. Zebra Chip: Where Weve Been -Where We Are - Where We Need to Go. Materials Innovation for Sustainable Agriculture, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Kiani, M. and A. Szczepaniec. 2017. Changes in sorghum transcriptome in response to sugarcane aphid herbivory. Entomological Society of America, Annual Meeting, Denver, CO
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Szczepaniec, A. and M. Kiani. 2017. Incidence of insecticide resistance and its impact on the potato psyllid-host plant interactions. Entomological Society of America, Annual Meeting, Denver, CO
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: Varela, K., and A. Szczepaniec. 2017. Neonicotinoid insecticide resistance in populations of the potato psyllid (Bactericera cockerelli) across Texas. Entomological Society of America, Annual Meeting, Denver, CO


Progress 04/28/16 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:Target audience included university scientists reached through presentation of research at professional meetings, submitted publications, and conferences attended. Target audience also includedstakeholders in the state and region with vested interest in sustainable management of insects and mites attacking fieldcrops and vegetables. The stakeholder audience was of diverse socioeconomic background and varied from professionals affiliated with private companies to individual small- and large-scale producers. A portion of the stakeholders were women, an under-represented group in the agro-business industry. Changes/Problems:I do not foresee any major changes in the project. However, field research is predicated on sufficient insect populations and environmental conditions that do not deviate from the average significantly. These two factors have repeatedly affected repeatability of field research, and they may drive the need to repeat the same experiments for more than two years. Moreover, projects that involve next-generation sequencing and transcriptomics often involve significant need for data management. Training needs in this area and delays caused by repeated bioinformatics analyses will determine feasibility and timely accomplishement of these projects. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?This project has provided opportunities for training of a postdoctoral associate, technical staff, and two undergraduate students (one of them is a minority). These individuals increased their skills and knowledge pertaining to management of insects and mites associated with field crops, vegetables, and natural system. This project also facilitated participation in several conferences and meetings, which were an opportunity to present the research, network with peers, and establish new collaborations. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?The results have been disseminated through presentations and regional, national, and international conferences, publications, and several lay media outreach efforts. Opportunities to share results were also utilized using local radio stations. Moreover, a field day organized a the location of the research facilitated a direct interaction with over 100 stakeholders. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Work will continue on all aspects of the research, and projects will be expanded to explore more basic aspects of the work as well. Specifically, we will continue testing for resistance incidence in the potato psyllid populations and establishmolecular basis of host-specific interactions between haplotypes of the bacterium responsible for Zebra Chip disease and solanaceous crops. This will be accomplished usingnext generation sequencing to elucidate mechanisms responsible for preferential outcome of infection among several solanaceous hosts. Moreover, we will screenaccessions of peppers to identify lines that are less suitable as hosts to the vectorand the pathogen Moreover, second year of field data will be collected to establish the effectiveness of integrated tactics to manage the invasive sugarcane aphid in the field, and work will be undertaken to identifymechanism driving explosive population outbreaks of the invasive SCA on sorghum using transcriptomic approaches. In 2017 the vegetables IPM project will be expanded to investigate the impact of key insect-transmitted viruses on tomatoes, peppers, onions, and melons under field conditions in a statewide collaborative project. The goal of this research is to test how interactions between abiotic (water and heat) and biotic (insect vectors and the pathogens they transmit) stresses affect yield and quality of these crops in all major regions in Texas where they are currently produced or could be produced in the near future. The ultimate aim of this research is to enhance the available Texas A&M vegetable/fruit germplasm by identifying high-yielding lines with plastic responses to the major stress factors common across the vegetable production regions in the state.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? ? The major accomplishment related toObjective 1.Insecticide resistance management in field crop and vegetable production in Texasinvolved establishinginsecticide resistance incidence in populations of an insect vector of the Zebra Chip disease, the potato psyllid (Bacericera cockerelli)across Texas. Colonies of the psyllids from all major potato-growing areas of Texas were established and tested for resistance to neonicotinoid insecticides. We found geographically-specific ratio of resistance across regions, such that the psyllids from the far south areas of Texas most proximal to Mexico have much greater incidence of resistance than the northern colonies. This will allow us to make research-based recommendations specific to each region. Surveys of predatory insects in potato were also accomplished, providing a valuable first-year data on incidence and abundance of beneficial arthropods. Moreover, surveys of both beneficial and pest insects and mites associated with tomato production in the High Plains were accomplished, and the major insects attacking tomatoes in open field and under high tunnel production were identified. Moreover, integrated methods of suppression of the invasive sugarcane aphids in sorghum were examined in the first year of a comprehensive field study that included planting date, tolerant sorghum varieties, and insecticide seed treatments. Aphid infestations were heavy and uniform, and relevant data were successfully collected. This accomplishment is related to Objectives 1 and 3, and provides a solid foundation for research-supported recommendations to sorghum producers in the High Plains. Another accomplishment pertaining to Objective 3 involved confirmation of establishment of populations ofbiological control agent of saltcedar along the Canadian River upstream of Lake Meredith. These locations were not surveyed previously and it was not clear is the chrysomelid beetles that feed on saltcedars were present at these sites as well.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Ordosch, D., R. Narem, and A. Szczepaniec. 2016. Effectiveness of Bt maize against corn rootworm and species composition of Diabrotica (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in South Dakota 10 years following the introduction of transgenic corn. Journal of Agricultural and Urban Entomology, 32(1): 59-70.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Szczepaniec, A., and N. Spomer. 2016. Effects of several insecticides on suppression of aster leafhoppers (Macrosteles quadrilineatus, Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) in spring wheat and their impact on yield of wheat. Journal of Agricultural and Urban Entomology 32(1): 25-34
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Byamukama, E., A. Szczepaniec, C. Strunk, R. Fanning, D. Deneke, and P. Johnson. 2016. Assessing integrated pest management implementation and knowledge gaps in South Dakota. Journal of Extension 54(1): 1-8
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Szczepaniec, A., J. Wulff, and M.D. Eubanks. 2016. Neonicotinoid insecticides alter plant defenses and drive changes in arthropod communities in crop plants. International Congress of Entomology, Orlando, FL
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Wulff, J., A. Szczepaniec, and M.D. Eubanks. 2016. Direct effects of insecticides on plants: soybean transcriptome responses to neonicotinoids and spider mites. International Congress of Entomology, Orlando, FL
  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Ledbetter, K. 2016. Sugarcane aphid research aimed at planting timing, variety selection. AgriLife Today. http://today.agrilife.org/2016/08/24/sugarcane-aphid-research-aimed-planting-timing-variety-selection/
  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Ledbetter, K. 2016. AgriLife Research entomologist testing potato psyllids for insecticide resistance AgriLife Today. http://today.agrilife.org/2016/04/22/agrilife-research-entomologist-testing-potato-psyllids-for-insecticide-resistance/