2006 Annual Report 1.What major problem or issue is being resolved and how are you resolving it (summarize project aims and objectives)? How serious is the problem? Why does it matter? Insect and weed pests in the southeastern U.S. are among the most serious in the nation due to the long growing season and the high temperature which result in multiple generations of several major insect pests. Also, climate and increasing international trade places the southeastern U.S. at risk to many invasive and exotic insects and weeds which threaten to expand their range or enter the U.S. and become established as pests. Action Agencies like the USDA, APHIS need pest control options and technologies in order to provide a rapid response to newly invasive lepidopteran species such as Cactoblastis cactorum (Berg), an Opuntia-feeding moth. Control options and technologies also are needed to mitigate the threat of high-risk exotic lepidopteran pests such as Cryptophlebia leucotreta (Meyrick), a pest of corn, cotton, and many fruits and vegetables. Although classical biological control (importation of exotic natural enemies) is a useful control strategy for many insect and weed pests, the growing concern of “non-target” effects of these natural enemies call for new risk management tools for assessing the safety of exotic species being considered as biological control agents. Growers, Action Agencies, land managers, and the general public need low input and low cost management options for insect and weed pests that may be provided through the development of integrated area-wide management control concepts. The aims and objectives of this project include (1) development and utilization of the sterile insect techniques (SIT) to aid in eradication/exclusion, management, or study of native, invasive and exotic pest insects, and (2) development of SIT/inherited sterility as a tool to confirm host and geographical range of potential exotic lepidopterans to be used as biological control agents of weeds. Integration of biological control and SIT technologies with other management tactics will improve not only the sustainability of agriculture in the Southeast and protect the natural environment/ecology, but also will enhance the competitiveness of the United States food/feed industry in increasingly competitive world markets. Information and technology developed from this research will be used by action agencies such as USDA-APHIS for emergency responses, by extension specialists and producers for localized pest management, by government agencies for developing area-wide pest management programs, and by private industry. Growers will benefit from sustainable cropping systems, and a reduced threat from invasive/exotic pests. The public and consumers will benefit from agricultural products produced with less chemical pesticides, fewer contaminates in the environment, fewer exotic/invasive pests to disrupt the ecological balance, and fewer restrictions on trade. USDA-APHIS, Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of Interior, state departments of plant industries, and ecologically oriented non-government organizations will benefit from better regional- and national-wide invasive/exotic pest exclusion technology. Agricultural industries will benefit from the low cost production and enhanced competitiveness in the global market. This project falls under NP 304 - Crop Protection and Quarantine (100%) and addresses goals in Components A. Insects and Mites (II, III, IV, V, and VI) and B. Weed Science (III) as described in the National Program Action Plan. 2.List by year the currently approved milestones (indicators of research progress) Year 1 (FY 2006) Objective 1-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility control tactics 1. Conduct radiation biology studies for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 2. Conduct field-cage studies on the interaction of the SIT and augmentative releases of parasitoids for control of Cryptophlebia leucotreta. 3. Develop survey and trapping technology for Cactoblastis cactorum and Cryptophlebia leucotreta and their sterile offspring. 4. Initiate field trials for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 5. Optimize mass rearing for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. Objective 2-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility to test host specificity of Biocontrol Agents 6. Conduct radiation biology studies to test host specificity of certain lepidopteran species as biological control agents of weeds. 7. Initiate host specificity testing using reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans. 8. Initiate field testing to comare the efficacy and survival of normal and reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans as weel biological control agents. Year 2 (FY 2007) Objective 1-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility control tactics 1. Conduct radiation biology studies for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 2. Conduct field-cage studies on the interaction of the SIT and augmentative releases of parasitoids for control of Cryptophlebia leucotreta. 3. Develop survey and trapping technology for Cactoblastis cactorum and Cryptophlebia leucotreta and their sterile offspring. 4. Expand field trials for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 5. Optimize mass rearing for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. Objective 2-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility to test host specificity of Biocontrol Agents 7. Continue host specificity testing using reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans. 8. Continue field testing to compare the efficacy and survival of normal and reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans as weed biological control agents. Year 3 (FY 2008) Objective 1-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility control tactics 1. Conduct radiation biology studies for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 2. Conduct field-cage studies on the interaction of the SIT and augmentative releases of parasitoids for control of Cryptophlebia leucotreta. 3. Develop survey and trapping technology for Cactoblastis cactorum and Cryptophlebia leucotreta and their sterile offspring. 4. Continue field trials for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 5. Optimize mass rearing for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. Objective 2-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility to test host specificity of Biocontrol Agents 7. Continue host specificity testing using reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans. 8. Continue field testing to compare the efficacy and survival of normal and reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans as weed biological control agents. Year 4 (FY 2009) Objective 1-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility control tactics 1. Conduct radiation biology studies for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 2. Conduct field-cage studies on the interaction of the SIT and augmentative releases of parasitoids for control of Cryptophlebia leucotreta. 3. Develop survey and trapping technology for Cactoblastis cactorum and Cryptophlebia leucotreta and their sterile offspring. 4. Continue field trials for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 5. Optimize mass rearing for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. Objective 2-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility to test host specificity of Biocontrol Agents 7. Continue host specificity testing using reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans. 8. Continue field testing to compare the efficacy and survival of normal and reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans as weed biological control agents. Year 5 (FY 2010) Objective 1-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility control tactics 4. Continue field trials for the development of the SIT for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. 5. Optimize mass rearing for Cryptophlebia leucotreta and Cactoblastis cactorum. Objective 2-Develop SIT/Inherited sterility to test host specificity of Biocontrol Agents 8. Continue field testing to compare the efficacy and survival of normal and reproductively inactivated Lepidopterans as weed biological control agents. 4a.List the single most significant research accomplishment during FY 2006. NP-304 - Crop Protection and Quarantine, Action Plan Component A. Insects and Mites (II, III, IV, V, and VI). The Sterile Insect Technique substantially reduces populations of the invasive Argentine cactus moth: The Sterile Insect Technique was validated as a control strategy for mitigating further expansion of the invasive Argentine cactus moth, Cactoblastis cactorum, along the gulf coast. Since its detection in south Florida in 1989, the Argentine cactus moth has expanded its range along the Atlantic Coast and west along the Gulf Coast as far as Dauphin Island, Alabama, and has become an imminent threat to many Opuntia cactus species valued as a food, a forage, a wildlife habitat, and a major plant group contributing to ecosystem structure and biodiversity. Scientists from the USDA-ARS Crop Protection and Management Research Unit, Tifton, GA, in collaboration with USDA-ARS-CMAVE in Tallahassee, FL, and USDA-APHIS, developed an artificial diet, mass-rearing techniques, irradiation methodology, and transport and release technologies, and implemented control strategies using field sanitation combined with sterile insect releases along the leading edge of the invasion. The drastic reduction of cactus moth populations on Dauphin Island, AL, has lead to an expanded field operation using the SIT approach. These activities are part of an ongoing U.S.-Mexico bi-national campaign to mitigate the threat of this invasive pest. 4b.List other significant research accomplishment(s), if any. NP-304 - Crop Protection and Quarantine, Action Plan Component B. Weed Science (III). New methods developed to evaluate the risks of exotic natural enemies of weeds: Research was conducted at the Crop Protection and Management Research Unit, Tifton, GA, to investigate the potential of using radiation-induced inherited sterility to study the risk of non-target effects of potential weed biological control agents that are Lepidoptera. It is becoming more difficult to import and release certain natural beneficial insects as biological control agents of certain pests or weeds because of the growing concern among scientists and environmental organizations that some biological control agents will cause non-target effects and become a pest. Using an invasive species, Cactoblastis cactorum, to study this concept, we demonstrated that normal female moths which mated with irradiated males would produce offspring that were completely sterile, and that host preference for oviposition by these females is not altered by mating with irradiated males. These results provided a positive foundation for evaluating this approach as a method of reducing risk of non-target effects of exotic natural enemies, while simultaneously improving the approval process for the importation and release of exotic natural enemies of weeds. NP-304 - Crop Protection and Quarantine, Action Plan Component A. Insects and Mites (II, III, IV, and VI). Control strategy using the sterile insect technique reduces the threat of the exotic false codling moth: A season-long field trial conducted in South African citrus orchards indicated that the sterile insect technique is a useful control tactic for substantially reducing the amount of damaged fruit and the wild population of the false codling moth. The false codling moth (FCM) is the most serious pest of citrus in South Africa, and it also is a pest of corn, cotton and many other crops. Many U.S. Federal and State agencies have expressed growing concern that this pest will soon be introduced into the U.S. as a direct result of increased international trade and tourism between the U.S. and many African countries. Scientists from USDA-ARS-CPMRU, South Africa, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) investigated the efficacy of using the sterile insect technique (SIT) combined with other control tactics such as augmentative releases of parasitoids. The citrus industry is “fast tracking” the implementation of the SIT in an expanded program that involves about 500 hectares. In countries where FCM does not occur (e.g., the United States), the technologies and methodologies developed for a SIT program to control FCM in South Africa could be available for use in an eradication campaign should FCM become established as an exotic invasive pest. 4c.List significant activities that support special target populations. None 4d.Progress report. None 5.Describe the major accomplishments to date and their predicted or actual impact. Control tactics using SIT have been developed and incorporated into the management of, and emergency response (USDA-APHIS) plan for the false codling moth (FCM). Following our successful season-long release trial, the citrus industry in South Africa has “fast-tracked” the implementation of SIT and a control tactic with the aim to reduce FCM populations in the orchards and thereby reduce the risk of rejected consignments of fruit shipped to the U.S. It is anticipated that these measures also will reduce the risk of FCM becoming established as a pest in the U.S. NP-304, Action Plan Component A. Insects and Mites (II, III, IV, V, and VI). SIT technologies for controlling the invasive cactus moth, including irradiation procedures, mass rearing, shipping and release protocols, and tactics to reduce the initial field population, have been validated at the leading edge of the infested geographical range. The drastic reduction of cactus moth populations on Dauphin Island, AL, has lead to an expanded field operation using the SIT approach. These activities are part of a U.S.-Mexico bi-national campaign to mitigate the threat of this invasive pest. NP-304, Action Plan Component A. Insects and Mites (II, III, IV, V, and VI). Survey and detection methods have been developed and evaluated in the field for the invasive Argentine cactus moth. These methods include trap design and deployment evaluations and pheromone lure identification and bioassays. As a result, experimental lures are available and have been used in traps by ARS scientists to conduct research and by APHIS to conduct survey and detection activities beyond the known geographical range of infestation. NP-304, Action Plan Component A. Insect and Mites (II and IV). 6.What science and/or technologies have been transferred and to whom? When is the science and/or technology likely to become available to the end-user (industry, farmer, other scientists)? What are the constraints, if known, to the adoption and durability of the technology products? We have developed pest management systems using SIT technologies, improved mass rearing, and monitoring technologies that are being used by industry, scientists, and action agencies for mitigating the threat of established and invasive lepidopteran pests. 7.List your most important publications in the popular press and presentations to organizations and articles written about your work. (NOTE: List your peer reviewed publications below). Simpson, J. Island prickly pear cacti under Government surveillance. Newsletter of the Okaloosa Island Leaseholders Association. November 2005, p. 4. The American Gardener, The Magazine of the American Horticultural Society, “Moth Imperils Native cactus,” July/August 2006, p. 48-49. Mlot, C. “Protecting prickly pear cactus: An invasive runs into a roadblock.” Nature Conservancy Magazine. Summer 2006, p. 15. Dickson, T. Glynn 4-H teens studying invader. The Florida Times-Union. April 14, 2006, http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/041406/geo_21616297.shtml. “The Cactus Moth, Cactoblastis cactorum: An Economic, Social, and Ecological Threat,” a video (DVD) production by University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, sponsored by the IAEA and FAO in collaboration with SAGARPA and SENASICA, DGSV, Mexico. Carpenter, J. E. presented and co-authored three invited presentations at the 3rd Research Co-ordination Meeting for the IAEA Coordinated Research Program, "Improvement of Codling Moth SIT to Facilitate Expansion of Field Application," Mendosa, Argentina, Sept. 2005. Carpenter, J.E. Invited to present a series of lectures on inherited sterility and integrated pest management strategies for lepidopteran pests, FAO/IAEA International Training Course on Use of Radioisotopes and Radiation in Entomology. Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL, May 2006. Carpenter, J.E., Tate, C.D., Hight, S.D. Research and Management of the Invasive Cactus Moth Using the Sterile Insect Technique. Oral Presentation. Invited Speakers. Rare Plant Task Force. Tallahassee, FL, 2006. Tate, C.D., Carpenter, J.E. Suitability of Opuntia species as hosts for Cactoblastis cactorum (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) larvae from normal and irradiated parents. Entomological Society of America National Meeting. Ft. Lauderdale, FL, 2005. Moeri, O.E., Cuda, J.P., Overhold, W.A., Bloem, S., Carpenter, J.E. Evaluating the F1 sterile insect technique (F1SIT) for field host range testing of the Brazilian peppertree natural enemy Episimus utilis (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). Entomological Society of America National Meeting. Ft. Lauderdale, FL, 2005. Carpenter, J.E. Developing a sterile insect technique approach to manage the spread of the cactus moth, or safe sex on the beach. Symposium: Cactus Moth: The Problem, Impacts, and a Cooperative Effort at Detection and Test of a Containment Strategy, or Don't Let Cacto Blast US! Entomological Society of America National Meeting. Ft. Lauderdale, FL, 2005. Tate, C.D., Carpenter, J.E. Mass rearing of Cactoblastis cactorum: An evaluation of mating and egg production in the laboratory. Florida Entomological Society Meeting. Jupiter, FL, 2006. Carpenter, J.E., Marti, O.G. Cytological attributes in eupyrene sperm bundles of F1 sterile males: Relevance to the sterile insect technique (SIT) for lepidopterans. Florida Entomological Society Meeting. Jupiter, FL, 2006. Carpenter, J.E. Research Goals and Progress Updates. APHIS Cactoblastis Operational Planning Meeting, Pensacola, FL, June 22, 2006. Review Publications Carpenter, J.E., Bloem, S., Marec, F. 2005. Inherited sterility in insects. In: Dyck, V.A., Hendricks, J., Robinson, A.S., editors. Sterile Insect Technique, Principles and Practice in Area-Wide Integrated Pest Management. The Netherlands: Springer. pp. 115-146. Carpenter, J.E., Marti, O.G. 2006. Quest for physiological and cytological attributes that can be used to identify F1 progeny of irradiated males: Relevance to codling moth SIT. In: Proceedings of the Third Research Co-ordination Meeting, FAO/IAEA Coordinated Research Program, "Improvement of Codling Moth SIT to Facilitate Expansion of Field Application", September 16-20, 2005, Mendosa, Argentina. IAEA-314-D4-RC.876, Vienna, Austria. p. 125-127. Hight, S.D., Carpenter, J.E., Bloem, S., Bloem, K. 2005. Developing a sterile insect release program for Cactoblastis cactorum (Berg.) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae): Effective overflooding ratios and release-recapture field studies. Environmental Entomology 34:850-856. Hofmeyr, J.H., Carpenter, J.E., Bloem, S. 2005. Developing the sterile insect technique for Cryptophlebia leucotreta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae): Influence of radiation dose and release ratio on fruit damage and population growth in field cages. Journal of Economic Entomology. 98(6):1924-1929. Bloem, S., Carpenter, J.E., Dorn, S. 2006. Mobility of mass-reared diapaused and nondiapaused Cydia pomonella (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae): Effect of different constant temperatures and lengths of cold storage. Journal of Economic Entomology. 99(3):707-713. Bloem, S., Carpenter, J.E., Dorn, S. 2006. Mobility of mass-reared diapaused and nondiapaused Cydia pomonella (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae): Effect of mating status and treatment with gamma radiation. Journal of Economic Entomology. 99(3):699-706. Bloem, K.A., Bloem, S., Carpenter, J.E. 2005. Impact of moth suppression/eradication programmes using the sterile insect technique or inherited sterility. In: Dyck, V.A., Hendrichs, J., Robinson, A.S., editors. Principles and Practice in Area-Wide Integrated Pest Management. Springer. pp. 677-700. Bloem, S., Hight, S.D., Carpenter, J.E., Bloem, K.A. 2005. Development of the most effective trap to monitor the presence of the cactus moth Cactoblastis cactorum (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). Florida Entomologist. 88(3):300-306. Blomefield, T.L., Bloem, S., Carpenter, J.E., Wood, S. 2006. Preparations for a season-long release of sterile codling moths imported from Canada for the control of codling moth in South Africa. In: Proceedings of the Third Research Co-ordination Meeting, FAO/IAEA, Coordinated Research Program, "Improvement of Codling Moth SIT to Facilitate Expansion of Field Application", September 16-20, 2005, Mendosa, Argentina. IAEA-314-D4-RC.876, Vienna, Austria. p. 75-86. Bloem, S., Mizell III, R.F., Bloem, K.A., Hight, S.D., Carpenter, J.E. 2005. Laboratory evaluation of insecticides for control of the invasive cactus moth Cactoblastis cactorum (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). Florida Entomologist. 88(4):395-400.