NEWSLETTER
Every year, schools all over Alachua county select students with the best research projects from different areas of science to compete at the Regional Science Fair. This year Ryan Hewlett (Tom Hewlett's son) was selected from Fort Clarke Middle School to compete in the environmental science division. Congratulations to Ryan for receiving third place with the project "Using capsaicin to control root-knot nematodes."
Dr. Thomas C. Emmel was honored by election to membership in the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences by vote of the Presidium of the Academy on 18 December 1996. He was cited for his "outstanding contribution to the biological sciences and education and the invaluable support and encouragement he gives to Russian scholars in the University of Florida." Dr. Emmel has visited Russia three times since September 1995 and has given lectures at Moscow State University on his conservation biology and endangered species research, as well as hosted various Russian scientists visiting the United States during the last six years. The Academy is the central organization responsible for the registration of scientific discoveries in the natural sciences in Russia and awards a number of important medals to prominent Russian and foreign scientists.
FLORIDA STATE FAIR/INSECT ENCOUNTERS
The Department of Entomology and Nematology participated in the "Insect Encounter" exhibit at the Florida State Fair, which took place in Tampa February 6-17. The overall exhibit contained displays by the Florida beekeepers (bee beards are always a crowd pleaser!), the Florida Mosquito Control Association, Florida Department of Agriculture's Division of Plant Industry, USDA-Agricultural Research Service, as well as University of Florida. Florida Entomological Society provided considerable financial support. The insect encounter exhibit was the largest and most popular exhibit in the Agriculture Hall of Fame building. The department's table displayed such live material as ants, cockroaches, grasshoppers and mealworms, and provided free distribution of extension fact sheets, bookmarks, posters and coloring sheets for children. Among those staffing the table were: John Capinera, Bob Dunn, Tom Fasulo, Virenda Gupta, Santosh Gupta, Dale and Phyllis Habeck, Don Hall, Chris Tipping, Don Short, Jim Castner, Jason Squitier, Corey Lewis, Heather McAuslane, and Jason Byrd.
FACULTY STAFF AND STUDENTS NEWS
After returning from a sunny two weeks in Panama, Dini Miller traveled to the frozen wasteland of Racine, Wisconsin. On February 10th, Dini presented a two-hour seminar on German cockroach aggregation pheromone and cockroach monitoring traps to S.C. Johnson Wax.
Marjorie Hoy will participate in the U.S. House and Senate Agricultural and Congressional Staff visit to Florida February 20-21 in Bradenton. Other departmental faculty presenting information include Phil Koehler, Jim Price, Dave Schuster and Harold Browning. While in Florida these congressional staff people will learn about IPM in Florida from IFAS scientists, independent crop consultants, County Extension personnel, and vegetable and citrus growers.
CORE TRAINING
Tom Fasulo and Phil Koehler of this department and Norm Nesheim of the Food Science and Nutrition department developed two computer-verified tutorials for pesticide training. Homero Calderon, of Fasulo's lab, was the principal software specialist on this project. The tutorials are CORE2: Pesticide Labeling, and CORE6: Harmful Effects and Emergency Response. Each of the tutorials have been authorized by the state of Florida for two (2) CEUs in CORE. For additional information see the Buggy Software WWW page at http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/fasulo/pests/.
PUBLICATIONS
Capinera, J.L., (August 1996). Bean leafroller, Urbanus proteus (Linnaeus). UF/IFAS Featured Creatures. EENY-1. http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/veg/bean/beanleaf.htm
Valles, S. (September 1996). German cockroach, Blattella germanica (Linnaeus). UF/IFAS Featured Creatures. EENY-2. http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/urban/roaches/german.htm
Villanueva-Jimenez, J.A. (September 1996). Plaster bagworm, Phereoeca dubitatrix (Meyrick). UF/IFAS Featured Creatures. EENY-3. http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/urban/occas/household_casebearer.htm
Squitier, J.M. (September 1996). American grasshopper, Schistocerca americana (Drury). UF/IFAS Featured Creatures. EENY-4. http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/field/amhopper.htm
Choate, P.M. (September 1996). Tiger beetles of Florida, Cicindela spp., Megacephala spp. UF/IFAS Featured Creatures. EENY-5. http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/tiger/tbeetle3.htm
Scherer, C.W. (October, 1996). Eastern lubber grasshopper, Romalea guttata (Houttyun). UF/IFAS Featured Creatures. EENY-6. http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/orn/lubber.htm
Halbert, S.E., and L.G. Brown. (October 1996). Brown citrus aphid, Toxoptera citricida (Kirkaldy). UF/IFAS Featured Creatures. EENY-7. http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/citrus/bc_aphid.htm
Li, J., and M. A. Hoy. 1996. Adaptability and efficacy of transgenic and wild-type Metaseiulus occidentalis (Acari: Phytoseiidae) compared as part of a risk assessment. Exp. Appl. Acarol. 20: 563-574.
Hoy, M. A., and R. Nguyen. 1996. Classical biological control of potential new pests of Florida citrus. Citrus Industry 77(11): 18-20.
MORE NEWS ON PEST ALERT
Dr. O. Norm Nesheim, UF/IFAS Pesticide Information Office, posted information in Pest Alert on some significant proposed changes to the use of chlorpyrifos (Dursban) for household and pest control operator use. He also has some bad news for Florida watermelon growers who hoped for another emergency exemption for methyl bromide use this year.
Ken Pernezny, David Schuster and Lawrence Datnoff issued their latest vegetable newsletter of the season and posted it in Pest Alert. The newsletter is devoted to eggplant pests and light blight.
Pest Alert is available at http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/pestalert/
TRUE FAME
Tom Fasulo's I HATE COMPUTERS Newsletter WWW site recently received a Best of The Web Gold Award from NetGuide Live, a major rater of WWW sites. However, Tom takes more pride in the "professional recognition" given him by an eighth-grade science class in St. Louis, Missouri. It seems their teacher is a devoted reader of Tom's WWW site and the teacher convinced the students to name their two pet Madagascar cockroaches "Tom" and "Jerry" after Tom and his dog.
FREE WHITEFLY MANUAL
Dr. Phil Stansly, one of the authors of "Management of Silverleaf Whitefly: A Comprehensive Manual on the Biology, Economic Impact and Control Tactics," has made a number of copies available to department personnel. If you would like a copy, request one from Tom Fasulo in Room 3103, Bldg 970.
The next newsletter will be published Monday, March 17. Deadline for contributions is Friday, March 14.
Editor: Enrique Perez
This version of the newsletter is published for the Web by Tim McCoy.
February 1997. Updated March 2003.