“WHAT’S HAPPENING?”

The University of Tennessee Extension Service

Entomology & Plant Pathology - EPP #60

October 24, 2005

This is the last "What's Happening?" for 2005. We will be resuming the newsletter in April of 2006.

SECOND LADY BEETLE REMINDER - THEY HAVEN’T FLOWN YET, THERE’S STILL TIME TO SPRAY ENTRY POINTS!!!

by Karen M. Vail

Predicting the Day of the Invasion

According to predictions by Ohio State University (OSU) IPM Program personnel, Multicolored Asian Lady Beetles (MALB) start searching for overwintering sites, your home, on the first or second day when temperatures are greater the 65 F after a dramatic drop in temperature, usually to near freezing. According to the ten-day forecast (October 24 - November 2) for Knoxville, lows for the day remain below 43 F through Saturday with a dip to 37 F on Wednesday, October 26. Rain is possible for today and Tuesday. Predicted daily high temperatures will rise to up to 59 F on Wednesday, 63 F on Thursday and Friday, 65 F on Saturday and reach 70 F on Monday. My prediction: we’ll see an MALB flight sometime between Thursday, October 27th and Monday, October 31st. How’s that for hedging? MALB are already flying in Pennsylvania.

It is not too late to prepare for the invasion!!!!

Management

1. Pest-Proof: seal entry points, keep window screens intact, screen vent openings, etc., before the beetles arrive. (See our UT Extension Service SP 503C Lady Beetles Invading Homes [http://www.utextension.utk.edu/publications/spfiles/sp503c.pdf ] for more specific recommendations on sealing entry points.)

2. Treat roof lines or soffits, vertical contrast areas, and entry points (around the following outdoor items: windows, doors, vents, pipe penetrations) with pesticides before the beetles arrive. According to Ohio State University results, professional products such as Demand CS (lambda-cyhalothrin), Suspend (deltamethrin) or Talstar (bifenthrin) provided 96, 95, and 84% effectiveness at three weeks post-treatment, respectively, when applied to vinyl siding. If homeowners want to try this themselves, they can look for products that contain these same active ingredients. If homeowners have had difficulty finding these pesticides, Ohio State University has a web site, http://ipm.osu.edu/lady/home.htm, which lists, according to active ingredient, insecticidal products that are labeled for the exterior of the home.

I’d spray entry points after surfaces dry from Tuesday’s rain to prevent the rain from washing some of the insecticide off the treated surfaces.

3. Remove dead beetles as they pile up because they may cause other MALB to aggregate.

4. If the beetles make their way into the home, vacuum or try a light trap (see description below). Insert a knee-high nylon stocking into the extension hose or wand of a vacuum or dry vac and secure the stocking with a rubber band (see http://ohioline.osu.edu/hse-fact/1030.html). When the vacuum is turned off, remove the stocking so the rubber band will close around it, thus catching the lady beetles. You can then discard the contents of the stocking. Use a vacuum with an HEPA filter to prevent allergens from becoming airborne.

Refrain from using foggers indoors because they will not kill the majority of lady beetles which are hidden, they increase your exposure to insecticides unnecessarily and could supply dermestid beetles (carpet beetles, larder beetles) and other scavengers with food.

Trap Updates from OSU. A commercial black light trap caught 90% of the lady beetles released into an OSU study room. The manufacturer, Southeastern Insectaries, (877-967-6777 or 478-988-9412, sei@alltel.com) has upgraded this indoor light trap (BL) and suggests it is most effective when it doesn’t compete with sunlight and, to a lesser degree, other light sources. Thus, it is best operated during the night with no or limited competing light sources or in dark spaces such as attics or crawl spaces. These traps are mobile and should be moved to the rooms with the most beetle activity. If the beetles can’t see the light, it won’t work. Cost of this light trap is about $140.

The Ohio State University IPM Staff developed an inexpensive trapping device for use in homes. In their tests, the homemade trap caught about 70% of the released beetles in a room. During a presentation, Dr. Joe Kovach, OSU, mentioned that an incandescent bulb worked as well as a black light tube, but a black light incandescent bulb was not very effective. The homemade trap worked better if the funnel and collecting container (both plastic milk jugs) were painted black and dusted with talc. Descriptions of both light traps listed above can be found at http://ipm.osu.edu/lady/Lighttraps.htm .

While camphor and menthol may be repellent to lady beetles, more research is needed to make the formulation last longer.

Sources:

Jones, S.C. and J. Boggs. 2001. HSE-1030-01 Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle. Ohio State University Extension. http://ohioline.osu.edu/hse-fact/1030.html

The Ohio State University Web Site, Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle

http://ipm.osu.edu/lady/lady.htm

Vail, K. 2004. Lady Beetle Update Spring 2004 - “The Game Is Won or Lost in October”. In “What’s Happening?” University of Tennessee Extension, Entomology & Plant Pathology - EPP #60, Volume No. 1 - March 5, 2004. http://web.utk.edu/~extepp/whats/wh2004/Volume-1-04

EPA APPROVES NEW NON-CHEMICAL CONTROL FOR CORN ROOTWORM

by Gene Burgess

After an intensive, multi-year scientific analysis, EPA has approved applications submitted by Mycogen Seeds (c/o Dow AgroSciences, LLC) and Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. for the use of a new corn plant-incorporated protectant (PIP) designed to control corn rootworm. Corn rootworm is a widespread and destructive insect pest responsible for the single largest use of conventional insecticides in the United States.

The new product is the second PIP to offer protection against corn rootworm and is expected to result in a further reduction of chemical insecticide use by growers.

The new corn plant-incorporated protectant, Event DAS-59122-7 Corn, produces its own insecticide within the corn plant derived from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), a naturally occurring soil bacterium. The Bt proteins

used in this product, called Cry34Ab1 and Cry35Ab1 (Cry 34/35), control corn rootworm.

To reduce the likelihood of corn rootworm developing resistance to Bt, EPA is requiring Mycogen and Pioneer to ensure that buffer zones within the planted acreage be planted with corn that is not protected from corn

rootworm to serve as a "refuge." The insect populations in the refuges will help prevent resistance development when they cross-breed with insects in the Bt fields. This resistance management strategy was developed as a condition of the registration, and EPA will require routine monitoring and documentation that these measures are followed.

The reduction in chemical pesticide use will benefit the environment directly and can mean less chemical exposure to people who apply pesticides to corn. The availability of multiple corn rootworm-protected

corn products will also increase grower choice and price competition, resulting in lower seed prices for consumers and higher adoption rates.

The product provides yet another way to combat corn rootworm, as well as indirect benefits such as energy savings resulting from reduced chemical insecticide use. As with similar products, EPA has approved Cry 34/35 for time-limited use, which will be subject to reevaluation in five years. For more information on EPA's regulation of biopesticide products, see: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/biopesticides/

Taken from EPA Program Update

IGNITE 280 SL HERBICIDE

by Gene Burgess

Ignite 280 herbicide has been registered as a Section 24C Special Local Need Registration for use on cotton to control grass and broadleaf weeds. The LSN is effective from September 22, 2005 through September 22, 2010.

PUBLIC COMMENT SOUGHT ON DRAFT ACTION PLAN FOR LINDANE

by Gene Burgess

The North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) has released for public comment a draft action plan to reduce or eliminate the use of lindane in North America. The public comment period opens October 3, 2005 and closes November 2, 2005. The draft action plan addresses exposure risks through a variety of regulatory and risk management actions, outreach and education efforts, science and research, capacity

building, and collaborative cross-border activities.

Lindane is a toxic chemical used as an agricultural and veterinary insecticide and also used as a pharmaceutical for treatment for lice and scabies in humans. It is a wide-ranging, persistent organic pollutant that accumulates in the environment, animals and fish, before being passed on to humans where it concentrates in milk and body fat. Lindane has been widely used for decades, and it has long been associated with skin

irritation and nausea but can even cause convulsions and death if ingested at high levels.

EPA chairs the North American Task Force on Lindane and works collaboratively with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Mexican and Canadian government agencies, and environmental, business, and tribal

stakeholders in the United States, Canada, and Mexico to develop the draft North American Regional Action Plan (NARAP) on Lindane and other Hexachlorocyclohexane Isomers.

In the draft NARAP, Canada agrees to assess and manage the risks from its sole remaining use of lindane as a pharmaceutical drug. Mexico agrees to eliminate all agricultural, veterinary, and pharmaceutical uses of lindane through a prioritized, phase-out approach. For the United States, EPA is reviewing the six remaining agricultural seed treatment uses to ensure they meet today's stringent safety standards. EPA will complete its

re-evaluation by August 2006. FDA will work with pharmaceutical companies to develop alternatives for lice and scabies use. The three countries are also supporting a CEC-led, public workshop on alternatives to lindane

October 4-6 in Mexico City, where representatives will discuss the potential impacts and suitability of various alternatives to lindane.

The full text of the document is available at:

http://www.cec.org/programs_projects/pollutants_health/index.cfm?varlan=english.

EPA PROGRAM UPDATE

FIELD CROP UPDATE

by Russ Patrick

Wheat:

Suspected Hessian fly larvae have been found in one of Gary Lentz's wheat plots that were planted in late September. These maggots were very small which suggests Hessian fly. This is not unusual in early-planted wheat in Tennessee. Fortunately, Hessian flies have not been a serious problem for years because most growers plant wheat after the middle of October. In the spring, after a heavy infestation, the flax seed-like pupae will be seen at the base of the plants visible just behind the leaf.

OTHER UT NEWSLETTERS WITH PEST MANAGEMENT INFORMATION

Fruit Pest News

http://web.utk.edu/~extepp/fpn/fpn.htm

Tennessee Crop and Pest Management Newsletter

http://www.utextension.utk.edu/fieldCrops/cotton/cotton_insects/ipmnewsletters.htm

This and other "What's Happening" issues can be found at http://web.utk.edu/~extepp/whatshap.htm

Disclaimer Statement

Pesticides recommended in this publication were registered for the prescribed uses when printed. Pesticide regulations

are continuously reviewed. Should registration or a recommended pesticide be canceled, it would

no longer be recommended by the University of Tennessee.

Use of trade or brand names in this publication is for clarity and information; it does not imply approval of the

product to the exclusion of others that may be of similar, suitable composition, nor does it guarantee or

warrant the standard of the product.

Precautionary Statement

To protect people and the environment, pesticides should be used safely. This is everyone’s responsibility,

especially the user. Read and follow label directions carefully before you mix, apply store or dispose of a pesticide. According to laws regulating pesticides, they must be used only as directed by the label.

Persons who do not obey the law will be subject to penalties.

Visit the UT Extension Web site at http://www.utextension.utk.edu

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