Department of Entomology Projects

Does the creation of pocket prairies improve the conservation value of urban vacant land for ant communities?

Alex Tyrpak (MS)

Advisor:
Mary Gardiner (Department of Entomology)

Shrinking cities such as Cleveland, OH, have experienced population loss, resulting in an overabundance of infrastructure that is demolished, creating vacant land. Vacant land is viewed as a blight but these greenspaces may have the potential to promote biodiversity and ecosystem services....
Optimizing RNA interference in fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda using improved nanoparticles

Ana Trabanino Pino (MS)

Advisor:
Andrew Michel (Department of Entomology)

Fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda, is one of the most important pests in agriculture due to its ability to feed and damage several important agronomic crops. Nonetheless, FAW has developed resistance to several insecticides including transgenic traits, leading to significant yield loss...
Role of insecticidal seed treatments and refuge for managing soybean aphid virulence

Carlos J. Esquivel (Post Doctoral)

Advisor:
Luis Canas (Department of Entomology)

Aphid-resistant soybean varieties with Rag (Resistance to Aphis glycines) genes are promising tools for the management of soybean aphid. Intriguingly, there are soybean aphid populations that can overcome such genetic resistance (i.e. virulent aphids) and cause yield losses. Previous research...
Potential for insecticide resistance on Kenyan populations of Tuta absoluta

Denis Nyamu (MS)

Advisor:
Luis Canas (Department of Entomology)

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of the most important vegetable crops marketed in East Africa. In Kenya, most tomato growers are small scale farmers, practice open field cultivation and are faced with invasive pest species. Tuta absoluta (Meyrick, 1917) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), known as...
Urban habitat transformation and fragmentation affect native lady beetle abundance

Denisha Parker (PhD)

Advisor:
Mary Gardiner (Department of Entomology)

Landscape fragmentation associated with worldwide urbanization represents a major threat to native biodiversity. Despite these challenges, cities have been shown to support a high abundance and richness of arthropod species. Declining species, such as native lady beetles (Coccinellidae), may...
Insecticidal and antifeedant properties of the medicinal plant Cinnamosma fragrans to control the mosquito vector Aedes aegypti

Edna Ariel Alfaro Inocente (MS)

Advisor:
Pete Piermarini (Department of Entomology)

Mosquitoes and the arboviruses they transmit are important concerns for global health. To date, mosquito control has been largely based on using chemical insecticides. However, overuse of chemicals with limited modes of action have led to resistance in mosquito vectors. Moreover, repeated use of...
Toxicity of nanoparticles on pyrethroid-susceptible and pyrethroid-resistant larvae of the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti

Erick Martinez Rodriguez (Research Scientist)

Advisor:
Peter Piermarini (Department of Entomology)

The yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti, one of the deadliest animals on the planet, transmits several important arboviruses to humans, including Zika, chikungunya, dengue, and yellow fever. Chemical insecticides, such as pyrethroids, have been heavily used to control mosquito populations,...
Assessing Biopesticides for Oyster Mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) Production

Grace Sward (PhD)

Advisor:
Luis Canas (Department of Entomology)

Oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus), is an understudied area of agriculture. The fungus gnat in the genus Lycoriella spp. is the most damaging pest found on mushroom farms. Chemical pesticide applications can damage the crop itself as well as cause less marketability. Biopesticides have yet to...
Bee community form and function in urban vacant land: Implications for managing pollinator friendly cities

Katherine Turo (PhD)

Advisor:
Mary Gardiner (Department of Entomology)

Rare and diverse bee communities have been documented in cities around the world, suggesting that urban areas are potential refuges for declining pollinators. However, successful investment into urban conservation habitat depends on synthesizing urban bee community patterns into actionable...
Artificial light at night (ALAN) changes seasonal responses in mosquitoes

Lydia Fyie (MS)

Advisor:
Mary Gardiner, Megan Meuti (Department of Entomology)

Cities experience a wide range of environmental impacts, one of which is light pollution caused by artificial light at night (ALAN). ALAN has been shown to impact insect physiology, behavior, and ecology, but the effects on seasonal responses have not been extensively investigated. The West Nile...

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