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Texas A&M AgriLife Vice Chancellor Award in Excellence Winners Were Announced for Entomology

January 13, 2014 by

carla — Carla Smith, left, received the Vice Chancellor’s Award in Excellence in the business and operational staff category. Photo by Rob Williams.

COLLEGE STATION, Texas –A member of the administrative office at the Department of Entomology and one collaborative partnership are starting the New Year off right as they received the Vice Chancellor’s Award in Excellence d

The Saltcedar Team, center, received the Vice Chancellor Award in Excellence for their outstanding work in controlling salt cedar.

uring the Centennial Conference in January.

Administrative Services Officer Carla Smith received the Vice Chancellor’s Award in Excellence in the business and operational staff category and the Salt Cedar Biological Control Team received the Vice Chancellor Award in Excellence in the Team category during the awards ceremony in College Station.

Smith has served the department in her current capacity since 2007. Before her entomology appointment, she served from 1993-2007 as administrative coordinator for the Texas Institute for Advancement of Chemical Technology at Texas A&M. Carla began working for Texas A&M in 1991 for TEEX.

“Carla works diligently with regard to all facets of the department and her expertise spans all roles within administration,” Department Head Dr. David Ragsdale wrote in his nomination letter for Smith. “She is readily accessible to the faculty, staff, and students and strives to make sure that everyone has the resources necessary to complete their jobs.”

Ragsdale also noted that Smith was very essential to the Department and dedicated to keeping everything running smoothly.

“Carla is the ‘go to’ senior staff member who keeps the departmental enterprise moving forward,” he wrote. “Without her leadership, the bits and pieces of the department would not work in unison and the wheels would fall off the bus.”

In addition to Smith, the Salt Cedar Biological Control Team received the award for their work in developing, implementing and evaluating a sustainable biological control strategy for salt cedar that will benefit Texas for years to come.

The team, which consists of Texas A&M AgriLife Research entomologists Dr. Jerry Michels and Dr. Allen Knutson, Michels’ research assistant Erin Jones, and AgriLife Extension entomologist Dr. Mark Muegge, established several populations of the introduced salt cedar leaf beetle in all of the major watersheds of West Texas and provided technical assistance and education to landowners and managers on using biological control to the invasive species. Following a 10-year effort, the leaf beetles are now well established in all of those watersheds, according to the nomination letter.

The beetles defoliate salt cedar trees during the summer. With repeated defoliation, trees deplete their energy stores and slowly starve to death. As a result, branches die back, the canopy shrinks, and after several years of repeated defoliation, many trees will begin to die.

“The achievements of the Salt Cedar Biological Control Team illustrates the value of Extension and research programs working together, with AgriLife Research providing applied and basic research results to support the key mission and AgriLife Extension faculty implementing programs by networking with and educating stakeholders about the risks and ultimate benefits of biological control,” Ragsdale said.

Dr. Mike McWhorter, international training specialist and Associate Director for Training Programs at the Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture, along with the Veterinary Epidemiology, Diagnostic Detection and Outreach team, also received the Vice Chancellor’s Award in Excellence in the category of International Involvement.

McWhorter, who is an adjunct professor in the Department was recognized along with Heather Simmons, education and outreach theme leader, National Center for Foreign Animal and Zoonotic Disease Defense (Texas A&M AgriLife Research), Amy Swinford, microbiology branch chief, Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory; Sandy Rodgers, assistant section head for serology, TVMDL; Tom Hairgrove, program coordinator for livestock and food animal systems, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and TVMDL; and Floron Faries Jr., professor and Extension specialist, FAZD and AgriLife Extension.

The Vice Chancellor’s Award in Excellence is the highest employee award given by Texas A&M AgriLife. Established in 1980, the awards program recognizes the commitment and outstanding contributions of faculty and staff across the Texas A&M AgriLife agencies.

Department, Extension Welcomes Brad Easterling to IPM Program

January 6, 2014 by

The Department of Entomology at Texas A&M and the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service welcomes Brad Easterling to the Statewide Integrated Pest Management program.

Easterling joined the Garden City Extension Agent-IPM position on January 2, replacing the vacant position that was previously held by Warren Multer, who retired on March 31, 2013. He will be serving the Glasscock/Reagan/Upton County area, which encompasses Garden City.

Easterling received a Master of Science degree in Agriculture Science from Texas A&M University – Kingsville in 2007 and a Bachelor of Science in Plant, Soil and Environmental Science from West Texas A&M University in Canyon, Texas.

Before joining the Garden City IPM agent position, Easterling was a County Extension Agent – Agriculture for Sherman County. As an Extension agent in Sherman County, he was responsible for providing educational programs and events in such areas as cotton, corn, sorghum, wheat, livestock, hay, pasture and forage production.

In addition, he also has provided producers with various IPM strategies, including establishing result demonstration plots in order to advance production agriculture in the Panhandle area, and coordinated programming for the Sherman County’s 4-H youth outreach programs.

In addition to Sherman County, he also has worked four years as an IPM agent for Frio and Atascosa counties, as well as an Extension County Agent for the Baylor County area in the Texas Rolling Plains from 2005-2011.

Students Joined 3,700+ Graduating Students for Fall Commencement Exercises

December 17, 2013 by

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Fourteen students in the Department of Entomology braved the cold mid-December morning to celebrate an early Christmas gift as they waited to graduate at Reed Arena during fall graduation on December 13.

Students lined up for graduation. From left to right are: Emily Dinh, Alyssa Hill, Liana Sotelo, Young Jo, Ayla Hernandez, Sergio Lopez and Kent Wittmann. Photo by Rebecca Hapes

The graduating class, comprised of 12 Bachelor of Science, 1 Master of Science, and 1 Ph.D. candidate, were among more than 3,700 students from the university that were expected to graduate this

fall. This commencement also marks a milestone in that four of the Bachelor of Science graduates were the first to receive a certificate in Public Health Entomology since the Department implemented the program in 2012.

Families and friends also got a chance to hear Dr. Bowen Loftin for the last time on Thursday night at the pre-commencement convocation at Rudder Theatre and celebrated with a special breakfast reception in the fourth floor atrium of the Heep Center before the lineup began.

Dr. Roger Gold with Janis Reed during a breakfast reception before the 9am commencement ceremony. Photo by Rob Williams

“We want to extend our congratulations to you and we wish you the very best,” said Associate Department Head for Academic Programs Dr. Pete Teel.

The following students are expected to graduate this December:

Undergraduates:

Lesca Colmenares – Biomedical Sciences and Entomology
Emily Dinh – Entomology
Stephanie Garza – Entomology
Ayla Hernandez – Entomology
Alyssa Hill – Entomology
Young Jo – Entomology
Sergio Lopez – Entomology
Amber Nava – Biomedical Science and Entomology
Kirk Pullin – Entomology
Liana Sotelo – Entomology
Caleb Wheeless – Biomedical Science and Entomology
Kent Wittmann – Entomology and Agronomy

Undergraduates Receiving Public Health Entomology Certificate

Emily Dinh
Lesca Colmenares
Sarah Noe
Caleb Wheeless

Graduates – Master of Science

Sasha Kay – Entomology

Graduates – Ph.D.

Janis Johnson Reed – Entomology

Exotic Weevils Battle Giant Salvinia at Caddo Lake

December 6, 2013 by

KARNACK, Texas–Texas A&M AgriLife scientists are seeing significant areas of giant salvinia destroyed by salvinia-eating weevils at Caddo Lake on the Texas-Louisiana border as part of project to control this exotic weed invading east Texas lakes.

After releasing approximately 100,000 weevils at two research sites in the last two years, Dr. Allen Knutson, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service entomologist at Dallas, and Lee Eisenberg, AgriLife Extension assistant at Karnack for the Texas Water Resources Institute, recently found large mats of salvinia destroyed by the weevils at the sites, Knutson said. A thick mat of healthy plants persisted in adjacent areas where weevils were not released, he said.

“I believe we are finally making some progress with the weevils at Caddo, and if these populations overwinter well, we should see an even greater impact next year,” Knutson said of their continuing battle to manage giant salvinia at Caddo.

“For the first time since this project began, salvinia weevil populations were established and overwintered, and are now causing significant damage to the mat of salvinia choking Caddo Lake,” Eisenberg added.

Giant salvinia appeared on Caddo Lake in 2006 and by late 2013 had spread to cover an estimated 6,000 to 8,000 acres. Giant salvinia is an aggressive, free-floating aquatic fern native to South America that can double in size in four to 10 days under favorable growing conditions. Knutson said the fast-growing plant forms dense mats, which interfere with water recreation, displace native vegetation and reduce oxygen content of the water, often harming fish and other aquatic life.

The plant has invaded 17 Texas lakes and countless other water bodies in the southeastern U.S., Knutson said.

Knutson said the team released 55,000 adult weevils in May and July 2012 at the Bird Roost area of Caddo Lake. Although the weevil population did not increase sufficiently in 2012 to damage the salvinia, Knutson said the weevils were still present in 2013, providing the first evidence that weevils had successfully overwintered. By early November they had destroyed the salvinia mat.

“The mat of dead plants has sunk, revealing open water and only scattered and small salvinia plants survive at this site,” he said. “The area of weevil damage is currently estimated at about eight to nine acres.

“This success demonstrates that weevils can overwinter during mild winters at Caddo and have an impact on salvinia infestations,” Knutson said.

Eisenberg said samples processed from this site averaged 52 adult weevils per kilogram of sample.

“Our target density to achieve salvinia control is about 40 weevils per kilogram of salvinia, so this target number has been far exceeded and is clear evidence that the mat’s destruction is from the weevils released last year,” he said.

In another area of the lake, called Lone Pine Stretch, the team released 41,000 weevils in May and July 2013. Knutson said they have observed damage to giant salvinia at this site, but it is not yet as extensive as the impacts seen in Bird Roost.

“This site is only about half an acre in size, but we have also measured a corresponding decline in salvinia biomass of approximately 75 percent at this site,” Knutson said. “The damaged area is expected to rapidly expand next year, as it did the second year following weevil releases at Bird Roost.”

Weevils are raised at the Texas A&M Center for Invasive Species Eradication’s weevil-rearing facility at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Caddo Lake National Wildlife Refuge. The facility is managed by Knutson and Eisenberg, and operated in collaboration with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the wildlife refuge and the Caddo Lake Institute.

“The rearing facility at Caddo has been critical in providing large numbers of weevils needed to establish populations,” Knutson said. “However, patience is required as it takes at least two to three years for weevil populations to increase to effective levels.”

Finding strains of salvinia weevils that can overwinter successfully in the climate at Caddo Lake has been an ongoing research topic, Knutson said.

“Our research has demonstrated that populations of salvinia weevils vary in their ability to survive freezing weather,” Knutson said. “With these 2012-released weevils surviving the relatively mild winter, we expect the impact of the weevils to continue to grow if winters remain mild. However, finding cold-tolerant strains of the salvinia weevils that are better adapted to colder climates of north Texas and Louisiana could reduce the need to re-release weevils when cold winters reduce their numbers. ”

Knutson said they are planning to conduct cold tolerance studies with salvinia weevils from Argentina.

“Weevils in southern, and therefore colder, latitudes in Argentina should be more cold tolerant than those currently in the United States, which were originally collected from Brazil,” Knutson said. “Finding more cold-tolerant weevil populations would be especially helpful when colder winters return to East Texas.”

The AgriLife entities are investigating ways to control the invasive plant through biological control as well as chemical methods as part of the center’s Caddo Lake Giant Salvinia Eradication project, said Lucas Gregory, Texas Water Resources Institute project manager.

“In fact, one of the next objectives is to evaluate the use of biological control and chemical control simultaneously,” Gregory said. “Local support has been great and without it, this program would not have been near as effective. People are volunteering time and resources to try and get a handle on the giant salvinia problem.”

Robert Speight of the Cypress Valley Navigation District and Daren Horton of Gecko Pest Control have helped with weevil release, Gregory said.

The Caddo Lake giant salvinia project is managed by Texas Water Resources Institute, and funded by Congressional support through the U.S Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service. The Texas Water Resources Institute is part of Texas A&M AgriLife Research, AgriLife Extension and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University.

Texas A&M Entomology Recognized at National ESA Meeting

November 22, 2013 by

Suhas Vyavhare, left, receiving a certificate from ESA president Rob Wiedenmann. Vyavhare was recognized for receiving the USDA-AFRI Student Travel grant. Submitted Photo.

AUSTIN — Several members of the Department of Entomology traveled westward to Austin to attend the annual national meeting of the Entomological Society of America meeting.

Held at the Austin Convention Center this year, the meeting allows entomologists to learn the newest research and collaborate with others from across the United States. Three students and the Department’s debate team received awards during two of the ceremonies at the event.

Ph.D. student Suhas Vyavhare was recognized for receiving the USDA-AFRI Student Grant. The award was created to provide financial support to graduate students for new networking, presentation and research opportunities at the annual meeting.

Ed Riley presenting to a group during a session. Photo by Mike Quinn.

Vyavhare is currently co-advised by Drs. Raul Medina and M.O. Way. His research focuses on the development of an integrated pest management program for the red-banded stinkbug, which is an invasive pest of soybeans in the southern United States. He is conducting field-cage experiments to study insect-plant interactions for the last three years.

Ph.D. student Loriann Garcia also received first place in the Plant-Insect Ecosystems 10 minute paper oral presentation section. Her paper was titled “The timing of cotton fleahopper, Pseudatomoscelis seriatus, herbivory and cotton’s compensatory response.”

Professor Micky Eubanks was very proud of Garcia’s hard work.

“Loriann is a fantastic student,” Eubanks said. “I am very excited to see Loriann’s hard work, ingenuity, and tenacity recognized by the Entomological Society of America.”

Gabe Hamer presenting during a session. Photo by Janet Hurley.

The Student Debate Team consisting of grad students Meaghan Pimsler, Ordom Huot, Suhas Vyavhare, Luciano Cosme and Lue Cuttiford competed against Mississippi State in the specific debate topic, where they chose the topic “What Is the Best Individual Solution to Preserving the World’s Current Biodiversity?”

The team won the Topic 1 debate but the overall debate winner was the University of California-Davis for their debate topic titled “Using GMOs to Increase Food-Security in Regions Where theTechnology is not Universally Accepted”.

Entomology grad student Xanthe Shirley volunteering at the Insect Expo. Photo by Charles Allen.

Several of the Department’s undergraduate and graduate students also participated in the Insect Expo, which is an interactive children’s exhibition held at the Bullock Texas State History Museum.

During the event, participants viewed several displays and got to see numerous live insects at the petting zoo and participated in interactive activities throughout the day. Dr. Charles Allen was very happy at the turnout from both volunteers and the visitors.

“We had a great time and we saw lots of smiles on lots of small faces,” he said.

Devin Beach with her poster at one of the poster sessions. Photo by Ordom Huot.

Allen said that there were over 2,000 oral presentations and approximately 800 posters total with more than 80 people from the Department that attended the meeting.

“The meeting was a memorable success,” Allen said. “Attendance was very good. The papers, posters and student competitions were awesome and the opportunity for people to collaborate and network with colleagues was one of a kind.”

The Southwestern Branch mixer (Texas A&M, OK State and the SW Branch sponsored social) was a rousing success with over 225 in attendance. This was one of the best attended mixers we’ve held.