Preliminary Findings from the Alabama Insect Pest Survey

using Pheromone Traps

Dr. Ayanava MajumdarExt. Entomologist, AL SARE Coordinator

Henry FadamiroAssoc. Prof., AL IPM Coordinator

Robert BoozerResearch Extension Horticulturist

Program objectivesResearch components:

• Efficacy of pheromone traps as a early detection tool (short-term)

• Understand activity periods for key insect pests (medium-term)

• Develop site-specific forecasting system (long-term)

Educational components (based on needs assessment):

• Early warning system for growers/consultants/Agents (short-term)

• Increase adoption of pheromone traps (medium-term)

• Thrust to vegetable/peanut IPM via IPM-CORE (long-term)

Funding (2009): Extension IPM Initiative, National Peanut Board

IPM-CORE = IPM Communication Resources…new outreach project

Background information• Pheromone trap catches indicate pest density, activity…

• Major reviews: Taylor (1963), Roelofs & Carde (1977), Meagher (2001), Cullen & Zalom (2005)

• Advantages to growers: specificity, sensitivity, simplicity, safety (4-S’s)

• Active insect monitoring programs in FIELD CROPS:

– ND: sunflower, wheat, sugarbeet

– KY, TN: 6 insect species, 2 locations

– MS: bollworms, southwestern corn borer

– IA, IL: rootworms

– AL: comprehensive survey of 16 insect sp.

• Trap network (operated by REAs):

N-S along I-65: vegetable fields

E-W along I-10: peanut fields

• Commercial traps/lures

• Trapping period: June-October (delayed start)

• Trapping interval (2009): 14 days

• Weather data for 5 sites (AWIS)

• Data analysis:

Descriptive statistics

Pearsonian correlation (P = 0.10) after square root transformation

Insect species monitored:– Beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hub.)

– Fall armyworm, S. frugiperda (J.E. Smith)

– Southern armyworm, S. eridania (Stoll)

– Corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea (Hub.)

– Tobacco budworm, H. virescens (Fabr.)

– Lesser corn stalk borer, Elasmopalpus lignosellus (Zeller)

– Cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni (Hub.)

– Soybean looper, P. includens (Walker)

– Black cutworm, Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel)

– Corn rootworm (northern, southern, western)

– Stink bugs, Euschistus conspersus (Nezara viridula?)

– European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis (Hub.)

– Tomato pinworm, Keiferia lycopersicella (Walshingham)

– Diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.)

Preliminary results 2009Insect catches (June-Oct.):

Lesser cornstalk borer (LCB) = 3,586

Fall armyworm (FAW) = 1,386

Beet armyworm (BAW) = 1,377

Corn earworm (CEW) = 589

Southern armyworm (SAW) = 393

Tobacco budworm (TBW) = 342

Soybean looper (SL) = 230

Cabbage looper (CL) = 223

Corn rootworm (CRW): Southern = 253; Western = 13

Black cutworm (BCW) = 125

Diamondback moth (DBM) = 65**

Tomato pinworm (TPW) = 4**

European corn borer (ECB) = 0**

Stink bugs (SB, Euschistus) = 0* * Trap damaged at many locations** Late collection (July-Oct.)

Total = 8,586High

Low

4

10

21

33

49

25

8

19

36

27

25

Monthly average activity (statewide)

Insect density (overall) per site

Year 2009

20

19

15

32

48

27

36

29

17

1216

13

Monthly average activity (statewide)

Insect density (overall) per site

Year 2009

6

10

25

12

16

5

3

11

8

3

8

17

7

Monthly average activity (statewide)

Insect density (overall) per site

Year 2009

3

2

7

20

15

3 6

6

3

1

3

Insect density (overall) per site

Monthly average activity (statewide)

Year 2009

119

116

7646

142

143

77

Insect density (overall) per site

Monthly average activity (statewide)

Year 2009

4

283 WCRW

12

7

1

14

2June, July

June

June

81 WCRW

June

WCRW SCRW

Source: K. Flanders (2010)

Year 2009

Impact of Weather on Trap CatchesSign. Correlation of TEMPERATURE :

County BAW FAW CEW TBW LCB CRW

Cullman NS NS NS 0.9655 (-) NA NS

Chilton 0.9989 (-) 0.9028 (-) 0.6599 (-) 0.9913 (-) NA NS

Baldwin NS NS 0.5863 (-) NS NS NS

Escambia NS 0.8603 (-) NS 0.6295 (+) NS NS

Henry NS NS NS NS NS

Numbers indicate significant correlations at P = 0.10. +/- indicates direction of relationship (preliminary findings). Rain days indicate number of days rainfall exceeded 0.1 inch.

County BAW FAW CEW TBW LCB CRW

Cullman NS 0.9905 (+) NS NS NA 0.5988 (+)

Chilton NS NS NS NS NA NS

Baldwin 0.9154 (+) 0.9838 (+) NS NS 0.8347 (+) 0.5882 (-)

Escambia 0.6661 (+) NS 0.7080 (+) NS NS NS

Henry NS 0.9851 (+) NS NS 0.7368 (+) 0.8819 (-)

Sign. Correlation of RAIN DAYS :

Year 2009

RAINFALL

Discussion• Counties along the Gulf Coast had highest insect numbers

• Unusually high trap catches: FAW, BAW, LCB

• Outbreak reports (2009): FAW, BAW, LCB, CRW

• Outbreaks consistent with high trap catches

• Variability due to weather: insects trapped near the upper activity threshold due to excessive heat (Taylor 1963)

• Appropriate weather could trigger outbreaks>>>

Project archive: www.aces.edu/go/85

Web outreach: Blogs, YouTube

AU Pest Alert (direct email): July-October

“Timely Information” on AlabamaCrops.com, AGFAX.COM

IPM Hotline (messages): 1-800-446-0375

Mobile exhibit at grower meetings, tradeshows

Timely revisions to

Peanut IPM Guide

Ext. bulletins (peanuts, vegetables)

Concept: Synchronized rapid IPM information delivery to growers

IPM-CORE

New Integrated Vegetable Entomology Website:

SUBSCRIBE TO BLOGS FOR AUTOMATIC EMAIL UPDATES

Future research on pheromones

• Add more trap sites, collaborate with other surveyors in AL

• Weekly trap counts with a dedicated team

• Weather record (data loggers) for each trap site

• Improve/test new trap design – stink bug

• Test new pheromone lures – yellow margined leaf beetle

• Strengthen IPM-CORE for grower benefit:

• Keep providing Pest Alerts farmers

• Incorporate diverse channels

Acknowledgements

• IPM Coordinators: – A. Majumdar– H. Fadamiro– K. Flanders

• IPM Team Members:– Lloyd Chapman– Neil Kelly– Michael Reeves– Gary Gray– James Miles– William East, Jr.– Brandon Dillard– Leonard Kuykendall– Chris Becker– Timothy Reed

Thank you very much.