Research Approach
Our research centers on applying ecological concepts and thinking to insect pest management in agricultural environments. We experiment at each trophic level (plant, herbivore, natural enemy) independently and in combination to understand the total outcome and possible mechanisms at play, always in pursuit of the "why". We delve into insect behavior, chemical ecology, plant physiology, predator-prey dynamics, and testing ecology theory to answer these questions. Our work involves creativity in designing experiments accommodating strange variables (this insect can't touch this one) and crafting arenas for experiments that may involve skills like sewing, hot gluing, and soldering. We utilize tools of insect behavior, such as the electrical penetration graph technique to evaluate stylet feeding, and chemical ecology techniques to assess insect preference for plant or insect volatiles.
We often play Tetris when working with many different living organisms in the lab, greenhouse, and field- all in pursuit of learning more about the world and the billions of insects we coexist with.
Current Projects
Harnessing the Ecology of Fear in Biological Control
Collaboration with the Hermann lab at PSU
Supported by a USDA Postdoctoral Fellowship
Traditionally, we consider how predators influence prey populations via their consumptive capacity, but predators also affect prey populations by triggering changes in prey behavior and physiology that influence prey survival and fecundity. A classic example in mammal systems was the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone leading to reduced foraging by the elk populations. Our goal with this project was to harness the same idea in agricultural settings using aphids (the overabundant elk) and lady beetles (the wolves).
Specifically, this project has focused on whether the odors of lady beetles alone can elicit fear effects which reduce aphid populations.
Our experiments involve a lot of hot-glue and creative cages to physically separate the lady beetles from their prey to monitor changes in aphid behavior and survival. A large set of experiments used metal mesh tea infusers as a lady beetle cage, allowing the odors of the beetle to pass through but not the predators themselves. When this tea-infuser-predator-cage is placed at the base of a plant, aphid populations are reduced by 25% (Kansman et al 2023).
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Ongoing work with this collaboration is assessing how outcomes may differ with other natural enemies present.
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Consequences of Plant Abiotic Stress for Trophic Interactions
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Low plant water conditions affect plant quality in ways that can improve or reduce pest insect outbreaks and capacity for plant damage. Pest insect outbreaks are not only driven by changing plant conditions but also by altered interactions with the ambient community of insect predators that feed on these pests. Feeding on a plant with altered nutritional quality not only influences the success of the pest insect but also affects the quality of that pest insect as a prey item for their predators.
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In the lab, we are investigating the consequences of plant water limitation for herbivores and their natural enemies to better understand the stability of biological control during periods of low precipitation.
Stay tuned - more coming soon!
