Research on biocontrol of alfalfa aphids featured by WIPM
Photo by Steve Elliott
Satellites lend insight to biocontrol
Research by graduate student Anson Call was highlighted by the Western Integrated Pest Management Center, a regional center of the USDA. Anson has been working on using satellite imagery and distance-weighting algorithms to understand what types of land-cover at what distances predict the densities of aphid predators and possible biocontrol for alfalfa farms in Nevada.
“The goal of the analysis was to map the available resources for the different pests and predators in the areas surrounding the alfalfa farms. We used satellite imagery [to do this].”
Our results indicate that ladybug beetles are important predators of aphid pests in Nevada alfalfa, and that spring weeds can support higher densities of ladybugs. Steve Elliott of the WIPM came out to our study sites and reported on the study in the video and article linked below.