- Faculty News
- Student News
- Lab News
- Publications
- Meetings and Presentations
- Outreach
- Grants
- Announcements
- About This Newsletter
ABOVE: Dr. Silvana Paula-Moraes was profiled in a great column by Dr. Jack Payne. Dr. Payne is the University of Florida’s senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources and leader of the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
Entomology Today published a personal perspective by Dr. Thomas Chouvenc about rearing subterranean termite colonies for years, and explained what it takes to test control methods at the termite colony level in a laboratory setup.
Dr. Deepak Shrestha recently joined Dr. Oscar Liburd’s lab as a new post-doctoral associate. Deepak will be working on biological control of silverleaf whiteflies, diagnosis and monitoring of whitefly-transmitted viruses in cucurbits.
Dr. Nupur Sarkar joined Dr. Oscar Liburd’s lab as a new post-doctoral associate. Nupur will work on chemical ecology and biological control of key pests on blueberries and grapes.
Florida Museum of Natural History promotes butterfly gardening by selling host plants and nectar plants specific to butterflies in north central Florida. Last month, Dr. Andrei Sourakov teamed up with the museum marketing to create a video that promotes butterfly gardening in our community!
Since 2013, Dr. Sourakov, together with staff, students and volunteers at the Museum, has been creating butterfly gardens in the elementary schools throughout the Alachua county. Last month, TV20 News honored this program with special coverage.
ABOVE: The 13th Annual Butterfly Fest wsa October 12th to the 14th and featured a 3-day butterfly plant megasale (with 225 species of plants featured) and was again a huge success this year, with over 3,200 people in attendance.
Fall 2018 ENSO Travel Grant Winners
First Place: Eleanor Phillips (MS student in the Gillett-Kaufman Lab), to present her research at the ESA meeting in Vancouver, BC.
Second Place: Rebecca Perry (MS student in the Dale Lab), to attend the ESA meeting in Vancouver, BC.
The first place winner will receive up to $500 from Dr. Norm Leppla and our second place winner will receive up to $250 from ENSO as reimbursement to cover travel expenses associated with conferences or research.
Brianna Whitman (MS student in the Dale Lab), successfully defended her thesis on October 24th. Brianna received her MS in Environmental Horticulture with a minor in Entomology and Nematology.
ABOVE: The Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory (FMEL) hosted the First Annual John Beidler FMEL Graduate Student Research Symposium on November 1st. Thirteen graduate students presented 12-minute oral presentations on a variety of medical-entomology oriented research projects. Graduate student Tse-Yu Chen served as Symposium Chair and moderator. The symposium was well attended, including graduate students from the lab of Dr. Phil Kaufman and Dr. Elaine Turner, Dean, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences at UF.
ABOVE: On October 27th, FMEL graduate students, Abdullah Alomar, Shawna Bellamy, Tse-Yu Chen, Bethany McGregor, Diana Rojas, Kristin Sloyer, Xiaodi Wang, Richard West, and Rebecca Zimler as well as post-doc Jovana Bozic and staff member Alfred Runkel represented FMEL at the 5th annual Indian River Lagoon Science Festival attended by thousands of people.
At the FMEL booth titled the "Mosquito Discovery Zone", they taught adults and children about the mosquito life cycle using a microscope and magnifiers for live specimens and plastic figurines representing the complete cycle. They also had bromeliads, buckets, flower pots, tires, and cups at the booth to teach about larval habitats of container mosquitoes and the importance of checking and tipping containers in yards. Plus, festival-goers were able to make a mosquito craft out of pipe cleaners to take home to help them remember what they had learned about mosquitoes.
Need to name that bug? A host of experts are available to help Floridians identify any insect or related arthropod. If a mystery creature has six or more legs, the UF Insect ID Lab is the place to call.
ABOVE: Sweet potatoes are a favorite part of many Thanksgiving meals. Some sweet potato growers in north Florida had a problem with leafminers this year, and Lyle Buss was sent a nice sample of the morning-glory leafminer, Bedellia somnulentella. Its larvae feed on leaves of plants in the genera Convolvulus and Ipomoea, including sweet potato. The late instars have an interesting way of feeding, where they only partly enter the leaf and cause a blotch mine. The adult is a small grayish-brown moth.
Need insect images? You can go to this direct link, pictures are copyrighted material and intended for official UF use only, log onto the website using your Gatorlink credentials.
Lyle Buss is the UF/IFAS Insect ID Lab manager.
Think it might be a nematode problem? The Nematode Assay Laboratory serves Florida and other states by providing nematode assays and expert advice regarding nematode management.
For more information on the Nematode Assay Laboratory, please contact the lab manager Dr. Billy Crow.
Foley IV JR, Chouvenc T, Giblin-Davis RM, Su N. Kanzaki N. 2018. Phoresy and within-colony transmission of nematodes associated with alates of subterranean termites (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae). Environmental Entomology 47: 1107-1116.
Heve WK, El-Borai F, Johnson EG, Carrillo, D, Crow WT, and Duncan LW. 2018. Responses of Anastrepha suspensa, Diachasmimorpha longicaudata, and sensitivity of guava production to Heterorhabdidtis bacteriophora in fruit fly integrated pest management. Journal of Nematology 50: 261-272.
Huang D, Yan G, Gudmestad N, Whitworth J, Frost K, Brown C, Ye W, Agudelo P, and Crow W. 2018. Molecular characterization and identification of stubby root nematode species from multiple states in the United States. Plant Disease 102: 2101-2111.
Mallinger RE, Bradshaw J, Varenhorst AJ, Prasifka JR. 2018. Native solitary bees provide economically significant pollination services to confection sunflowers (Helianthus annuus L.) (Asterales: Asteraceae) grown across the Northern Great Plains. Journal of Economic Entomology DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toy322.
Rhodes EM, Avery PB, Liburd OE. 2018. Efficacy of entomopathogenic fungal products for biocontrol of spotted wing drosophila assessed under laboratory conditions. Florida Entomologist 101: 526-528.
Willett DS, Alborn HT, Stelinski LL, Shapiro-Ilan DI. 2018. Risk taking of educated nematodes. PloS ONE 13(10): e0205804.
New on Featured Creatures:
Gulf wireworm, Conoderus amplicollis (Gyllenhal). Authors: Mohammad A. Razzak and Dakshina R. Seal.
Drain fly, Psychoda spp. Authors: Taryn B. Griffith and Jennifer L. Gillett-Kaufman.
Do you have a favorite creature? Learn how to make it into a Featured Creatures!
Dr. Rachel Mallinger was an invited speaker at the NE Master Gardener Regional Conference on October 20, 2018 in Jacksonville, FL, and at the SW Master Gardener Regional Conference on October 24, 2018 in Port Charlotte, FL. She taught Master Gardeners about the biology and behavior of native wild bees, and how to support them through plant selection and garden management.
Dr. Rachel Mallinger gave a presentation entitled “Best Practices for Blueberry Pollination” at the 2018 Florida Blueberry Growers Association Conference on October 30, 2018, in Ocala, FL.
The Mallinger Lab participated in the 2018 Bee College held from October 12 – 16 in Gainesville FL. Dr. Rachel Mallinger and lab members taught courses on native wild bee biology, how to identify native bees in Florida, best plants for bees, crop pollination by bees, and building native bee nest boxes.
Dr. Oscar Liburd gave a talk titled “Development of IPM Management Techniques Against Above and Below Major Pests in Organic Squash” during the summary of FDACS funded projects that took place at the Division of Plant Industry (DPI) in Gainesville, FL in October 29th. Co-Authors: Marice Lopez and Lorena Lopez.
Dr. Oscar Liburd gave a seminar on Blueberry Gall Midge Management on October 30th at the Florida Blueberry Growers Association 2018 Meeting in Ocala, FL.
ABOVE: On October 26th 96 students from the Bagdad Elementary School visited the West Florida Research and Education Center. They had the opportunity to learn from Dr. Paula-Moraes what an bug doctor does. They also had examples of the roles played by different groups of insects in nature.
Twenty five students from Alabama, in the North Baldwin County AgroSciences program, and 50 students from Pace High School, in the Pace Interact Club visited WFREC at Milton, on November 7th. Dr. Paula-Moraes did a presentation about pests in agroecosystem and in greenhouses, biological control and transgenic technology. The UF Plant Science students Chris Hemphill and Cheyenne Brodie-McAleister presented their work and explained pest sampling in cotton fields and IPM techniques.
On October 16th, Dr. Billy Crow presented “How nematicides work” to the Georgia Golf Course Superintendents Association in Milton, GA.
On October16th, graduate student Lindsay Wheeler presented information about foliar nematodes at the Mastergardener Field day at the UF Plant Science Unit.
On October 24th, Tom Bean and Dr. Alemayehu Habteweld filled in for Dr. Crow at the North-Central Florida Turfgrass Field Day at the UF Plant Science Unit.
Dr. Billy Crow attended the NE1640 multi-state project meeting in Northampton, MA on October 25th and 26th.
Rebecca Perry, Nicole Benda, and Matt Borden each gave presentations about their research at the North-Central Florida Turfgrass Field Day at the PSREU in Citra, FL on October 24th. This event was attended by over 125 turf industry professionals.
Dr. Adam Dale attended the National Ornamental Pest and Disease Workshop in Hendersonville, NC on October 8-11, where he gave a poster and oral presentation about recent UF/IFAS research.
Dr. Adam Dale presented research at the 2018 UF/IFAS Master Gardener Field Day at the PSREU in Citra, FL on October 16th.
Dr. Adam Dale gave a two-hour seminar about the latest research and management recommendations for insects in urban landscapes for pest control professionals at the 2018 FAMU Field Day in Tallahassee, FL on November 7th.
Drs. Adam Dale, Chris Marble (Environmental Horticulture, MREC), Joe Jonovich, and Gul Shad Ali (Plant Pathology, MREC) taught the Foundations of Lawn and Ornamental (October 3-5) and Masters of Lawn and Ornamental (October 31-November 2) courses for over 40 industry professionals at the MREC in Apopka, FL.
Dr. Thomas Chouvenc was invited to the Florida Pest Management Association Regional meeting in Tampa on Oct. 18th 2018 to present an update on subterranean termite control research.
From the Outreach Coordinator
Outreach Events:
October 4th- Educator open house: Clayton Bania, The Entomology Club
October 5th- annual STEAM night: Clayton Bania
October 5th- Exploring insects event: Dr. Jennifer Weeks
October 6th- IFAS Tailgator: Clayton Bania, Dr. Baldwin, Becca Perry, The Entomology Club
October 13th- Butterfly Fest!: Clayton Bania, The Entomology Club
October 17th- Gator day at Sant Fe: Dr. Baldwin, Ruth Brumbaugh
October 17th- STEM is elementary: Ariane McCorquodale, Laurel L.
October 28th- Fall Harvest Trinity UMC: Clayton Bania, Dr. Hodges
October 29th- Glen springs Elementary: Clayton Bania, James Brown
October 30th- Baby Gator: Clayton Bania
The live critters are always a hit with children and adults alike. The critters are available for you to check out should you be leading an outreach event. We have doubles of our most popular critters, as well as various native insect species depending on the time of year. We have large wood and Plexiglas cages for viewing our native orb weaving spiders. There is one travel cage and one larger static cage. Please be sure to contact us and review the protocol on transporting and handling the critters if you are not already familiar with it. If you lead an outreach, be sure to fill out a documentation form so your event can be included in the newsletter and we can log all outreach events.
If you have any questions, please email me.
Thank you —Clayton Bania, Outreach Coordinator.
If you would like to schedule an event or have any outreach questions, go to the Outreach pages on our Bug Club website and contact us.
Getting social!
We have several social media sites for the Entomology & Nematology Department. To make them easily searchable, all three (YouTube, Facebook and Twitter) have the same page name: UFEntomology. Please share these links with past students or colleagues who may have an interest in departmental activities.
Dr. Adam Dale was awarded a USDA-NIFA-Crop Protection and Pest Management (CPPM) grant for $325,000 over four years to investigate the effects of manipulating turfgrass plant diversity on beneficial and pest insects in lawns. Dr. Dale partnered with Drs. Bryan Unruh (UF Environmental Horticulture, WFREC), Basil Iannone (UF SFRC), and Susana Milla-Lewis (NC State Agronomy) for this project.
Want grant writing tips? Check out the UF Libraries Grants Management Program!
ABOVE: Several FMEL faculty and staff members will be travelling to Brazil this month to participate in the I International Course on Ecological Determinants of Vector-Borne Disease Dynamics. Dr. Barry Alto, Dr. Derrick Mathias,Dr. Phil Lounibos, Dr. Jorge Rey, and Dr. Tanise Stenn will be offering lectures as well as field and laboratory exercises during the course.
UF in Greece - From Ancient Farms to Modern Tables (ENY 4905)
A new study abroad program offered next year. This Summer-A program will be based on the campus of the American Farm School in Thessaloniki, Greece, and will include classes (taught in English) on Greek agriculture, food, culture, and several field trips to visit local agrobusinesses, museums and other locations that will illustrate the role of agriculture and insects in human history.
This 3-credit course will run from June 8 to 23, 2019. The program fee is $3,883 for undergraduates, and $4,131 for graduate students, and that includes tuition, all in-country transportation, some meals, accommodations, field trips, guided tours, international health insurance and emergency medical assistance. Not included in the fees are the airfare, some meals, additional travel and personal expenses. Financial aid that would be used on campus usually can be applied toward the cost of the program.
Want to stay up to date? Check out our website home page for a link to our Google calendar.
Dr. Jennifer Gillett-Kaufman is the newsletter editor and does the HTML coding. Issues usually are published by mid-month. Submit items for an issue by the seventh of that month.
We like to share news when it happens using our social media outlets: Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Follow us on these sites for daily updates! When you send news, we will post it on one or more of these sites and again in the monthly newsletter. Please be sure you have permission from people in photographs you submit for publication.
UF-Bugnews-L listserv subscribers receive notices when issues are posted. Our home page has instructions for subscribing and unsubscribing.
Special thanks to Eleanor Phillips and Nancy Sanders, who reviewed the newsletter for errors, and to Jane Medley and Don Wasik, who built the web page design.
Give Back
Want to support the UF Entomology & Nematology Department? Consider making an online gift today! Questions can be directed to Christy Chiarelli at (352) 392-1975 or ccw@ufl.edu.
PO Box 110620, 970 Natural Area Drive, Steinmetz Hall, Gainesville, FL 32611
Phone: 352-273-3901, Fax: 352-392-0190
© UF/IFAS Entomology and Nematology Department. All rights reserved.