PBS / NOVA blog: Digging Up Ants’ Evolutionary Origins covers some of the work being done by Dr. Andrea Lucky.

During the fall of 2013, Dr. Amanda Hodges and Project Co-PIs Ms. Stephanie Stocks and Dr. Stephen McLean (UF, DPM Alumni and UF Post-Doctoral Associate) successfully concluded a USDA-APHIS-PPQ Farm Bill 10201 Cooperative Agreement entitled "Delivery of Taxonomic Training through Distance Education."

As a component of the project, two intensive video-filmed workshops were hosted at the University of Florida on Aphididae and Coccoidea (May 2013) and Hemiptera:  Auchenorrhyncha (August 2013). Mr. Joel Floyd, Domestic Diagnostics Coordinator for USDA-APHIS-PPQ; Dr. Greg Hodges, Bureau Chief for Entomology, Nematology, and Plant Pathology at FDACS-DPI; and Dr. Alma Solis, USDA-ARS-SEL Research Leader provided key overall co-coordination and leadership for the project during 2012-2013.

The videos featured expert lectures and hands-on training by Dr. Ian Stocks, FDACS-DPI; Dr. Greg Evans, USDA-APHIS-PPQ; Mr. John Dooley, USDA-APHIS-PPQ; Dr. Gary Miller, USDA-ARS-SEL; Dr. Susan Halbert, FDACS-DPI; Dr. Charles Bartlett, University of Delaware; Dr. Joe Eger, Dow Agrosciences; and Dr. Stuart  McKamey, USDA-ARS-SEL.

The goal of the project was to provide engaging and interesting hands-on video tutorial for taxonomic groups that are important to USDA-APHIS-PPQ identifiers. The success of the project was highlighted in the annual USDA-APHIS-PPQ-NIS newsletter. Please note that some links listed in the newsletter are for internal communications and may not be available outside of USDA-APHIS-PPQ.

Several University of Florida, Entomology and Nematology staff members and students and Doctor of Plant Medicine students are featured in the videos (Tamika Garrick, David Sekora, Annika Minott, Carla Burkle, Eric LeVeen, Ashley Poplin, Gupreet Brar, Lyle Buss).

Stephanie Stocks is currently preparing the videos for public posting on YouTube.  Stay tuned for more updates in future newsletters.

Congratulations to the 31 CALS students who were selected as Anderson Scholars for 2013. The award is named for James N. Anderson, who served as the first Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (1910-1930), after whom Anderson Hall is named. This award is the highest recognition bestowed on students for their first two years of course work, and is a true mark of academic distinction for UF students. Each of these students earned a 3.90 GPA or higher over their first 60 credits. Students do not apply to become Anderson Scholars, the list is pulled automatically from student records.

Congratulations to Anderson Scholar Abigail Griffin, one of our Entomology & Nematology undergraduates!

ABOVE: Dr. Navneet Kaur (Ph.D.) successfully defended her graduate degree in December. She worked in the Buss Lab. The title of her dissertation is: Manipulating maintenance practices to reduce the susceptibility of two St. Augustinegrass cultivars to Blissus insularis Barber (Hemiptera: Blissidae). She is working on her manuscript submissions these days and looking forward to a post-doctoral study opportunity in future.

See the IFAS News Facebook page for more graduation photos!

M.S. student Ashley Poplin graduated in December 2013 with her thesis entitled "A Florida perspective on host preference, early detection, and identification of the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål)."  Ashley Poplin was under the direction of Dr. Amanda Hodges.  As Ms. Poplin was completing her degree, she accepted a position with Orange County Florida as a crime scene investigator.

From the Outreach Coordinator