Theses and Dissertations at Montana State University (MSU)
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Item Evaluating host plant preference and pheromone attract and kill as strategies to manage pea leaf weevil Sitona lineatus (L.) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Montana(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Agriculture, 2022) Kiju, Pragya; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Michael A. Ivie and Kevin Wanner (co-chair); This is a manuscript style paper that includes co-authored chapters.Pea leaf weevil (Sitona lineatus) is the most common insect pest of field peas grown in Montana. Montana is the number one producer of field pea in the US. Currently, Montana producers spray insecticides at least once or twice during the spring growing season to avoid leaf damage inflicted by pea leaf weevil adults and larvae. Complete reliance on insecticides may, however, raise the risk of pea leaf weevil populations developing genetic resistance. Therefore, this project focuses on development of alternative pulse insect pest management strategies such as pheromone-based attract and kill and host plant preference. For the attract and kill strategy 6 different treatments compared combinations of aggregate pheromone (4-methyal-3,5- heptanedione) alone in two different forms; septa and pellet, pheromone with granular insecticide (Deltamethrin). To determine the effect of host variety on adult feeding preference, 10 field pea, 2 faba bean, 2 lentil and 2 chickpea varieties were assessed for feeding damage. Crescent shaped notches were counted on 10 individual plants per replicate plot. The average number of larvae within the nitrogen fixing root nodules of each variety was also recorded on 5 randomly selected individual plants per plot. Faba bean was the most preferred host while lentil and chickpea suffered almost no feeding damage. 'Delta' and 'Lifter' field pea varieties appeared to be preferred over 'DS Admiral' and 'AC Agassiz' varieties. Given the significant level of feeding on all pea and faba bean cultivars further evaluation of low-cost pheromone traps are essential to establishing an IPM control approach.Item Population dynamics of wheat stem sawfly, Cephus cinctus Norton, in barley in Montana(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Agriculture, 2020) Achhami, Buddhi Bahadur; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: David K. Weaver; Gadi V. P. Reddy, Jamie D. Sherman, Robert K. D. Peterson and David K. Weaver were co-authors of the article, 'Antixenosis, antibiosis, and potential yield compensatory responses in barley cultivars exposed to wheat stem sawfly under field conditions' which is contained within this dissertation.; Gadi V. P. Reddy, Jamie D. Sherman, Robert K. D. Peterson and David K. Weaver were co-authors of the article, 'Effect of precipitation and temperature on larval survival of Cephus cinctus (Hymenoptera: Cephidae) in barley cultivars' which is contained within this dissertation.; Robert K. D. Peterson, Jamie D. Sherman, Gadi V. P. Reddy and David K. Weaver were co-authors of the article, 'Multiple decrement life tables of Cephus cinctus Norton (Hymenoptera: Cephidae) across a set of barley cultivars: the importance of plant defense versus cannibalism' which is contained within this dissertation.; Gadi V. P. Reddy, Megan L. Hofland, Robert K. D. Peterson, Jamie D. Sherman and David K. Weaver were co-authors of the article, 'Host selection and oviposition behaviors of Cephus cinctus (Hymenoptera: Cephidae) in barley' which is contained within this dissertation.Wheat stem sawfly (WSS) is an economically devastating pest of cereals grown in North America. The larva is the only feeding stage and remains confined within a host stem until it emerges as an adult the following year. This limited mobility increases larval vulnerability to mortality factors when host plant traits are hostile to survival. For instance, larval mortality is greater in barley than in solid stemmed wheat cultivars known to be resistant. Both solid stemmed wheat and barley kill neonates via host plant resistance traits. Traditionally, barley was recommended as an alternative rotational crop to prevent WSS outbreaks in wheat crops. There is limited data available regarding barley host plant resistance and questions persist. Has barley resistance changed over time? What is the impact of larval feeding injury on grain yield of barley? Do females display similar oviposition behaviors across barley cultivars that vary in susceptibility? To answer these questions. I conducted field experiments to assess resistance and possible tolerance to WSS in eight barley cultivars. Based on the number of eggs, 'Hockett' was the most attractive cultivar to WSS female (less antixenosis), while 'Craft' and 'Celebration' killed the greatest number of neonates due to antibiosis. Multiple decrement life table studies revealed that plant defense and cannibalism were two major causes of larval mortality. We measured greater yield in infested stems with dead larvae (potential tolerance) than for cut stems and both were greater than uninfested stems in all cultivars except 'Celebration'. A greenhouse study revealed that females preferred 'Hockett' over 'Craft' in frequencies of oviposition behaviors and numbers of eggs deposited. Additionally, a greater amount of the WSS attractant (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate was found in aerations from 'Hockett' plants than from 'Craft.' The amount of defensive compound linalool was greater in aerations from 'Craft' than from 'Hockett.' These results suggest that barley cultivars are equipped with varying levels of antibiosis, antixenosis, and tolerance traits against WSS. Thus, we can exploit these traits in the development of cultivars which can reduce WSS populations and decrease economic loss caused by this species.