INFLUENCE OF SPATIAL PROCESSES ON THE POPULATION DYNAMICS OF INSECT PESTS IN MINNESOTA

• Sponsoring Institution: State Agricultural Experiment Station
• Project Status: COMPLETE
• Funding Source: STATE
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 1010581
• Project Start Date: Aug 4, 2016
• Project End Date: Jun 30, 2021
• Program Code: [(N/A)]- (N/A)

Recipient Organization
UNIV OF MINNESOTA
(N/A)
ST PAUL,MN 55108

Performing Department
Entomology

Non Technical Summary
Most insects pests are not uniformly distributed within fields, but application of pesticides are typically applied in a uniform manner across fields. This discontinuity results in application of crop inputs to areas where they are not needed. Unnecessary inputs increase production costs and adversely affect the environmental and economic sustainability of production. Precision agriculture is the use of site-specific knowledge to target crop inputs (pesticides, fertilizer, etc.) to specific areas of need. This more effectively utilizes inputs, reduces costs, and decreases environmental impacts and exposure risk to producers and consumers.The basis of Precision Agriculture is applying agrochemicals only where necessary. The goal of Integrated Pest Management is to apply pesticide only when it is necessary. By combining Precision Agriculture and IPM, we can implement "site specific IPM", only applying pesticides where and when it is necessary. For this to work, it is necessary to have detailed information on the spatial and temporal distribution of insect pests within fields. Unfortunately, it is very time consuming to develop detailed maps of insect populations using standard scouting techniques. The effort required to develop such maps is onerous and not economically sustainable and the resulting map when compiled may well be too late to guide targeted application of inputs. Remote sensing may provide a solution to this problem.Remote sensing is the collection of information about an object from a distance and has long been used to assess plant health. Both insects and disease cause responses that affect a plant's spectral reflectance (the ratio of reflected radiation to the amount of incident radiation from the sun). The affected wavelengths can be measured using a variety of instruments, thereby facilitating the evaluation of plant stress. Spectral reflectance can be measured with both multispectral or hyperspectral sensors. Multispectral sensors measure reflectance at a few selected bandwidths, or a broad grouping of light wavelengths (most cameras used in remote sensing tend to be muilti-spectral). Hyperspectral sensors, conversely, measure a continuous range of very narrow bands or even individual wavelengths. While hyperspectral cameras are available, they are expensive and unlikely to be used by individual producers. Hyperspectral ground-based instruments, however, are both more affordable and available. Recent advancements in the technology, affordability and size efficiency of visible, ultraviolet and near-infrared (NIR) sensors have increased the potential of using remote sensing to economically and accurately assess insect populations. When combined with the rapidly developing abilities and functionality of small unmanned aerial systems (UAS), there are now very feasible systems to rapidly and accurately define the distributions of insect and disease pests in agricultural fields in near real time.This project will assess remote sensing as a technique for scouting insect populations. Objectives will include investigating and comparing methods of remotely scouting for soybean aphid (a photosynthate feeder) in soybean, Colorado potato beetle (a defoliator) in potato, wild rice worm (a direct feeder on grain) in wild rice, and sugarbeet root maggot (a root feeder) in sugarbeet. These 4 insects are indicative of the 4 major methods whereby insects damage plant hosts and cause yield loss. We will use hyperspectral spectroradiometers and a variety of multispectral imaging systems in a variety of field trials using both ground and aerially obtained data. Sensors will be flown using a variety of multi-rotor small UAS.

Animal Health Component

100%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

(N/A)

Applied

100%

Developmental

(N/A)

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
216	7210	1130	40%
211	1310	1130	20%
211	1820	1130	20%
211	2010	1130	10%
211	1599	1130	10%

Knowledge Area
211 - Insects, Mites, and Other Arthropods Affecting Plants; 216 - Integrated Pest Management Systems;

Subject Of Investigation
1310 - Potato; 2010 - Sugar beet; 1599 - Grain crops, general/other; 1820 - Soybean; 7210 - Remote sensing equipment and technology;

Field Of Science
1130 - Entomology and acarology;

Keywords

remote sensing

uas

uav

precision agriculture

insects

colorado potato beetle

soybean aphid

Goals / Objectives
This project will assess remote sensing as a technique for scouting insect populations. Objectives will include investigating and comparing methods of remotely scouting for soybean aphid (a photosynthate feeder) in soybean, Colorado potato beetle (a defoliator) in potato, wild rice worm (a direct feeder on grain) in wild rice, and sugarbeet root maggot (a root feeder) in sugarbeet. These 4 insects are indicative of the 4 major methods whereby insects damage plant hosts and cause yield loss. We will use hyperspectral spectroradiometers and a variety of multispectral imaging systems in a variety of field trials using both ground and aerially obtained data. Sensors will be flown using a variety of multi-rotor small UAS.Specific Objectives:1) Assess the potential for using reflectance of incident electromagnetic radiation as a mechanism to rapidly scout for insect damage using 4 specific types of insect feeding as models.2) Assess the ability of UAS based remotely sensed data to create high resolution maps of the within field spatial and temporal distribution and density of insect pests.

Project Methods
Objective 1) Experimental designs will be randomized complete blocks with plots containing cages or insecticide manipulated pest populations. Populations will be manipulated to create a gradient of pest-induced stress among replicated plots. Statistical analyses will be used to relate reflectance data to pest abundance data. Soybean: Replicated pairs of caged plots (1m2 plots) will be established in experimental fields, one cage in each pair will be infested with soybean aphids (=aphid plots) and the other cage in each pair will be left uninfested (=no-aphid plots). Plots will be infested with aphids by early June and data acquired through harvest (Sept.). Developing populations of soybean aphids will be monitored and spectral data obtained bi-weekly until mid-July when acquisition intervals will change to weekly (soybean aphid populations tend to build in later July in MN). Cages will be opened long enough for data acquisition and then re-sealed. Should soybean aphid populations develop in the no-aphid plots, insecticides will be applied to eliminate aphid populations.Potato: Replicated sets of three open plots (2X7-m plots) will be established in experimental potato fields. Natural populations of beetles will be allowed to colonize plots. Insecticides will be used to establish plots of low, moderate and high levels of Colorado potato beetle pressure. The low-pest-pressure plots will be treated with an at-plant application of insecticide and later foliar applications. The moderate-pest-pressure plots will be treated with 1-2 foliar applications of insecticide. High-pest pressure plots will remain untreated. Management data indicates at-plant treated plots with later foliar applications will suffer little defoliation, while foliar only treatments will have moderate defoliation. Untreated plots are expected to be rapidly defoliated. Spectral data of plots, beetle populations, and defoliation rates will be obtained weekly (or twice weekly if defoliation rates require) from emergence of overwintering adult beetles (mid-June) until vine kill (generally late Aug - early Sept).Wild rice: Replicated pairs of plots with and without wild rice worm will be created in experimental wild rice paddies by randomly selecting 1m2 plots within fields and treating half of them with insecticide weekly from early June (prior to adult wild rice worm emergence) through early August (when adults are no longer active). Spectral data, insect populations and grain loss will be obtained bi-weekly throughout the growing season from establishment of the plots until harvest.Sugarbeet: Replicated plots (3x10-m plots) of varying levels of sugarbeet root maggot damage will be established in experiemental fields using various insecticide treatments. The efficacy of sugarbeet insecticides has been established over several years of product testing and this information will be used to construct plots of varying root maggot pressure. Spectral data of all plots will be obtained bi-weekly from mid-June through to September. Random beets will be dug at each sample period and visual root maggot damage ratings assessed.Data Collection - On each sample date, reflectance of individual leaves and of plot canopies will be measured using a hyperspectral spectroradiometer (Flame Mini Spectroradiometer, Ocean Optics Inc.). Individual leaves will be taken with a contact probe, canopy reflectance will be measured by attaching a cosine defuser to the spectroradiometers fiber-optic and suspending the sensor over the canopy. The Flame Mini spectroradiometer has a wavelength range of 350 to 1150 nm, accuracy of ±1.5 nm. Its leaf clip provides active sensing (i.e., its own light source). In addition to radiometry data, mulitspectral imagery will be obtained using a purpose built sensor incorporating a visible (VIS) RGB camera, a purpose built NIR camera (TetraCam ADC, TetraCam Inc Chatham CA), a 3 narrow-band NIR wavelength camera (Sentera Quad, Sentera LLC, Minneapolis, MN) and traditional digital cameras modified with narrow pass filters to create cameras sensitive to green, blue and specific NIR wavelengths. The Sentera Quad camera will be supplemented with an incident light sensor and prior to all image collection, data will be collected from a white panel facilitating vicarious calibration if necessary. The sensors will be mounted on a 1-m-long pole over the plants and oriented using a 'bulls eye' level to ensure 90° downlook for ground based observations and on a compensating gimbal mounted on a multi-rotor UAS for aerial imagery.Data Analyses - Resulting images will be stitched together using either AgiSoft (Agisoft LLC, St Petersburg, Russia) or Pix4D (Pix4D SA, Lusanne, Switzerland). Images will be analyzed using a variety of image analysis software including ENVI (Harris Geospatial Information Solutions INC, Herndon VA). The University of Minnesota and our team have all FAA permissions for research-based UAS operations in all study site locations. Spectral response data will be analyzed using the image analysis software ENVI (Harris Geospatial Information Solutions INC, Herndon VA). hyperspectral data and multispectral imagery will be analyzed to identify other more specific wavelengths that can identify insect damage. Spectral response curves will be constructed from radiometer data for visual inspection. Moment Distance Index (MDI) will be used to examine and compare the shapes of spectral curves. These Consequently, multispectral imagery can be responsive to the results of spectral analysis.Objective 2) Using similar methods outline above, artificial populations of insect pests will be established and maintained in commercial fields. Fields will be sampled with UAS mounted sensors. Using algorithms developed in Objective 1, attempts will be made to precisely map insect population distribution and densities within the fields. When mapping techniques are perfected, commercial fields will be flown attempting to identify naturally occurring insect populations. Population estimates will be ground-truthed and results will be used to refine the predictive algorithms.Outreach - Results will be prepared and published in peer-reviewed journals, commodity targeted publications and UMN Extension publications. Results will be presented to target audiences at UMN Extension events, commodity and grower meetings, and agricultural educational events. IN addition, because of the technological nature of this project, progress and results will be recorded and disseminated using digital technologies such as social media (e.g. UMN blogs and twitter channels) and digital media (e.g. UMN YouTube channels).

Progress 08/04/16 to 06/30/21

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience included academic researchers and professionals, agricultural professionals, producers and the general public. Information specific to integrated pest management tends to be directed primarily at agricultural professionals and producers. Research findings and information on the assesment of spatiotemporal distribution of insect pests has a broad interest and all of the above groups are represented in audiences reached by the outreach efforts of this project. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Competitive funding proposals will be submitted to funding agencies for research that will continue in project AES project # MIN-17-110.

Publications

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

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience included academic researchers and professionals, agricultural professionals, producers and the general public. Information specific to integrated pest management tends to be directed primarily at agricultural professionals and producers. In addition, we have initiated a new project, collaborating with the Minnesota Dept. of Agriculture, we are working to incorporate UAS scouting of Potato Virus Y (PVY) in their seed potato certification field inspections. Consequently, state personnel are now also part of our Target Audience. Research findings and information on the use of Unmanned Aerial Systems (i.e. drones) in agriculture has a much broader reach and interested parties from all of the above groups are represented in audiences reached by the outreach efforts of this project Changes/Problems:Opportunity / Change- an additional project was added wherein the potential was assessed to use UAS to apply insecticides to research plots of riceworm was initiated. This project is desgiend to develop new research methods that more accurately reflect management tacticoutcomes in production. Utilizing backpack sprayers in flooded wild rice plots is very difficult and often not representative of outcomes encountered in commercial rice production. It was hypothesized that applying insecticides with a spray drone might be more reflective of commercial aerial applicatoin and provide outcomes similar to those that would be encountered in commercial settings. Problem 1) The MN Dept. of Agricultureseed potato winter grow out area on the north shore of Oahu does not have sufficient Differentially Corrected GPS signal to accurately geolocate PVY infected plants in the field. Solution 1) We utilized the inexpensive portable within-field Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) system (EMLED Ltd) identified l;ast year as a withing-field TRK signal, geolocating it via a chain of USGS survey markers. By establishing the exact location of the EmLid unit in the field, we were then able to initiate a RTK signal from EmLid that could be used for high-resolution geolocation by all equipment used in the research. Problem 2) Covid-19 restrictions on in-person meetings made tranfer of information to stakeholders difficult. Solution 2) Using Zoom for Exntesion meetings and utilizing streaming video for Field Days did address some of these problems but was not perfect. Efforts will continue beyond the granting period to ensure results are disseminated to stakeholders. These resutls will be made part of ongoing UMN Extension efforts. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?In a collaborative project, we trained one Minnesota Dept. of Agriculture Seed Certification Program personnel in flight operations, data collection and image analyses. This accomplishment will aid inthe adoption of UAS based scouting into the state seed potato certification program. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?One peer-reviewed journal article was prepared for publication (and published during the period of this report), three presentations were presented at professional meetings, presentations were presented at stakeholder conferences prior to COVID-19 , plot tours and field days, including one virtual presentation. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Competitive funding is being pursued, field research planned, additional equipment will be obtained and existing equipment maintained and upgraded. Competitive funding has already been obtained to investigate the potential to incorporate UAS for Potato Virus Y in state seed certification effrts. This is a collaborative project with the Minnesota State Dept. of Agriculture and will involve development and transfer of technology into the seed certification program. And separate funding has been obtained to examine the potential of Unmanned Aerial System application of insectiicide for Rice Worm control.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Research was conducted on the use of donres to apply to wild rice plots, insecticides targeted at wild rice worm. This research is part of additoinal funding obtained from the UMN Rapid Response Agricultural Fund. Plots were flown at the North CentralResearch & Outreach Center in Grand Rapids, MN ad at grower cooperators fields in Gully, MN. These trials estrablished that aerial applicatoin using Unmanned Aerial Systemsprovided omre consistent restuls than does applying by hand using a backpack applicators. Research will be repeated in 2021. One member of MN dept of Agriculture was trained in the operation o UAS to obtain, analyse and interpret aerial imagery to identify PVY infected plants.

Publications

• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2020 Citation: Detection of Stress Induced by Soybean Aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) Using Multispectral Imagery from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Journal of economic entomology, 113(2), pp.779-786.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Cira, T., Marston, Z., MacRae, I., Hodgson, E., Koch, R. 2019. Remote sensing for soybean aphid. Entomol. Soc. Amer. Nat Meeting. Nov 17-20, 2019. St Louis, MO.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: MacRae, I.V. 2019. Aphid Alert  a potential early warning for seed potato growers. Idaho Potato Conference, Pocatello, ID, Jan 22-24, 2020.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: MacRae, I.V. 2019. Scouting for Insects in Potato. Potato Scout School, Grand Forks, ND. Feb 21, 2020.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2020 Citation: MacRae, I.V. 2019. Precision application of insecticide. MN Wild Rice Growers Field Day, UMN NCROC, Grand Rapids, MN. Mar 09, 2020.

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

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience included academic researchers and professionals, agricultural professionals, producers and the general public. Information specific to integrated pest management tends to be directed primarily at agricultural professionals and producers. In addition, we have initiated a new project, collaborating with the Minnesota Dept. of Agriculture, we are working to incorporate UAS scouting of Potato Virus Y (PVY) in their seed potato certification field inspections. Consequently, state personnel are now also part of our Target Audience. Research findings and information on the use of Unmanned Aerial Systems (i.e. drones) in agriculture has a much broader reach and interested parties from all of the above groups are represented in audiences reached by the outreach efforts of this project Changes/Problems:Opportunity / Change- an additional project was added wherein the potential was assessed to incorporate UAS based remote scouting in state efforts to inspect seed potato fields for viral diseases. This is a collaborative project with the Minnesota State Dept. of Agriculture's Seed Inspection Service and is supported with a MN Specialty Crop Block Grant. We are refining uing UAS-based sensors to identify individual potato plants infected with PVY (and potentially other diseases) within field. The project also includes training of and technology transfer to State personnel to adopt the technology into state efforts and thereby make it self-sustaining. Problem 1) The sensor packages used in UAS-based remote sensing generally utilize the vehicle's onboard GPS units to georectify imagery (assign geographic coordinates to individual pixels on the digital image). It was found that the onboard GPS unit's resolution of ~1m / pixel, while fine enough to record problem areas within a field, lacked the precision to locate individual plants (a neceissity when attempting to identify indivudal plants infected with virus) Solution 1) An inexpensive portablewithin-field Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) system (IMLED Ltd) was identified and purchased that, with the incorporation of a receiver onboard the UAS, could provide cm/pixel resolution for the digital images. Testing indicated individual plants were now not visible but their geographic location within fields was precise to cm resoultion. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?A series of in-field workshops for agricultural professionals was expanded. We repeated our original workshop demonstrating the impact of shadow and wind on the reflectance of ambient light energy and on the architecture of plant canopies and how these two confounding factors influence results and interpretation of remotely sensed data. We added issues related to sensor wavelength and stitching imagery prior to analyses. In addition, in a new, collaborative project, we are training Minnesota Dept. of Agriculture personnel in flight operations, data collection and image analyses to facilitate the adoption of UAS based scouting into the state seed potato certification program. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Two journal articles were prepared for publication (and published shortly after the period of this report), multiple presentations were presented at stakeholder conferences, plot tours and field days. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Competitive funding is being pursued, field research planned, additional equipment will be obtained and existing equipment maintained and upgraded. Competitive funding has been obtained to investigate the potential to incorporate UAS for Potato Virus Y in state seed certification effrts. This is a collaborative project with the Minnesota State Dept. of Agriculture and will involve development and transfer of technology into the seed certification program.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? This project will assess remote sensing as a technique for scouting insect populations. Objectives will include investigating and comparing methods of remotely scouting for soybean aphid (a photosynthate feeder) in soybean, Colorado potato beetle (a defoliator) in potato, wild rice worm (a direct feeder on grain) in wild rice, and sugarbeet root maggot (a root feeder) in sugarbeet. These 4 insects are indicative of the 4 major methods whereby insects damage plant hosts and cause yield loss. We will use hyperspectral spectroradiometers and a variety of multispectral imaging systems in a variety of field trials using both ground and aerially obtained data. Sensors will be flown using a variety of multi-rotor small UAS. Specific Objectives: 1) Assess the potential for using reflectance of incident electromagnetic radiation as a mechanism to rapidly scout for insect damage using 4 specific types of insect feeding as models. 2) Assess the ability of UAS based remotely sensed data to create high resolution maps of the within field spatial and temporal distribution and density of insect pests.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: MacRae, I.V., R. Koch, & T. Baker. 2018. Utilizing drones. Great Lakes Expo  Ag Tech. Grand Rapids, MI Dec 4-6, 2018.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: MacRae, I.V., T. Baker, & R. Koch. 2018. Practical applications of UAS in crop production and research. Int. Sweet Corn Dev. Assoc. & Sweet Cap (SCRI 006394) Ann. Meet., Wisconsin Dells, WI, Nov 26-27, 2018.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: MacRae, I.V., R. Koch, T. Baker. 2019. Use of drones in scouting and treatment. Wild Rice Field Day, UMN NCROC, Grand Rapids, MN Aug 1, 2019.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Alves, T.M., Moon, R.D., MacRae, I.V. and Koch, R.L., 2019. Optimizing band selection for spectral detection of Aphis glycines Matsumura in soybean. Pest management science, 75(4), pp.942-949.. DOI: 10.1002/ps.5198
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2019 Citation: Marston, Z.P., Cira, T.M., Hodgson, E.W., Knight, J.F., Macrae, I.V. and Koch, R.L., 2019. Detection of Stress Induced by Soybean Aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) Using Multispectral Imagery from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Journal of economic entomology. https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toz306

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

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience included academic researchers and professionals, agricultural professionals, producers and the general public. Information specific to integrated pest management tends to be directed primarily at agricultural professionals and producers. Research findings and information on the use of Unmanned Aerial Systems (i.e. drones) in agriculture has a much broader reach and interested parties from all of the above groups are represented in audiences reached by the outreach efforts of this project Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?We initiated a series of in-field workshops for agricultural professionala dna will expand this. Our original workshop demonstrated he impact of shandow and wind on the reflectance of ambient light energy and on the architecture of plant canopies and how these two confounding factors influence results and interpretation of remotely sensed data. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results are regularly presented and discussed at stakeholder meetings, we have produced training and extension materials and are editing videos filmedin 2018. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Competitive funding is being pursued, field research planned, additional equipment will be obtained and exuisting equipment maintained and upgraded.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? 1) The defoliation model for Colorado POtato Beetle was improved and will be ported to farm equipment GIS packages in 2019. flights were conducted over potato, wild rice and soybean in 2018. Data is still being analyzed. 2) Defoliation maps provided high correlation with ground based defoliation estimates. The best fit was with visual data rather than NIR reflectance data. This is expected as ground based estimates are made with visual data (the human eye). NIR data may well be more accurate in assessing defoliation but existing thresholds related to defoliation levels are all calculated on visual estimates. Consequently, the use of visual and NIR cameras is recommended for using this techniology to estimates defoliation in the field.

Publications

• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Alves, T.M., Marston, Z.P., MacRae, I.V. and Koch, R.L., 2017. Effects of Foliar Insecticides on Leaf-Level Spectral Reflectance of Soybean. Journal of economic entomology, 110(6), pp.2436-2442.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Hanson, A.A., Menger-Anderson, J., Silverstein, C., Potter, B.D., MacRae, I.V., Hodgson, E.W. and Koch, R.L., 2017. Evidence for soybean aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) resistance to pyrethroid insecticides in the upper Midwestern United States. Journal of economic entomology, 110(5), pp.2235-2246.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: MacRae, I., T. Baker, N. Dudycha, R. Koch. 2017. Models for estimating defoliation in cropping systems. Entomol. Soc Canada Ann. Meeting, Winnipeg MB, Oct 22-25, 2017.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: MacRae, I. 2017. Insect management. Potato Remote Sensing Conference. Madison, WI, Nov 14, 2017.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2017 Citation: MacRae, I., T. Baker, R. Koch. 2018. Remote sensing with sUAs - data acquisition workshop. UMN-NWROC Field Day, Jul 18, 2018.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2018 Citation: MacRae, I., R. Koch, T. Baker, N. Dudycha. 2018. Pest management with UAVs. Int. Crops Expo., Grand Forks, ND, Feb 21, 2018.
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Aphid Alert 2018 - Monitoring PVY Vectors in Minnesota and North Dakota. aphidalert.blogspot.com

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

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience includes academic researchers and professionals, agricultural professionals, producers and the general public. Information specific to integrated pest management tends to be directed primarily at agrulasultral professionals and producers. Research findings and information on the use of Unmanned Aerial Systems (i.e. drones) in agriculture has a much broader reach and interested parties from all of the above groups are represented in audiences reached by the outreach efforts of this project. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?A technician in the lab successfully tested for her FAA Remote Pilot Certification How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results will be disseminated during the winter extension season of 2018. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Greenhouse trials will continue in the winter of 2017/18 and field trials will resume in the growing season of 2018.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? What was accomplished under these goals? - New small vehicles were purchased and were integrated with multi-sensor arrays (1 Visible RGB digital camera and 3 cameras sensitive to specific wavelengths in the Near InfraRed associated with insect and/or disease damage. In addition, Forward Looking InfraRed thermal cameras were also incorporated into the sensor packages. Reflectance was assessed in plots in the summer of 2017. Analyses of the resulting data is still underway. - Models estimating the amount of defoliation caused by Colorado Potato Beetle in potatoes were developed based on aerial imagery of experimental plots, publications are being prepared. - The reflectance of PVY infected potatoes were assessed in greenhouse trials and the impact of foliar applied crop oils on reflectance was assessed. - The impact on canopy reflectance of soybean by high populations of soybean aphid was assessed using both multi-sensor arrays and FLIR thermal cameras. Analysis is ongoing.

Publications

Progress 08/04/16 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience included academic researchers and professionals, agricultural professionals, producers and the general public. Information specific to integrated pest management tends to be directed primarily at agrulasultral professionals and producers. Research findings and information on the use of Unmanned Aerial Systems (i.e. drones) in agriculture has a much broader reach and interested parties from all of the above groups are represented in audiences reached by the outreach efforts of this project. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results will be disseminated during the winter extension season of 2017. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Further greenhouse trials are underway and field trials will continue in 2017.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Reflectance was assessed in plots in the summer of 2016 New small vehicles were purchased and will be integrasted with sensors ans tested in the field. Defoliation models were refined. The reflectance of PVY infected potatoes were assessed in greenhouse trials and the impact of foliar applied crop oils on refelctance was assessed.

Publications