NCERA125: Biological Control of Arthropods and Weeds (new project)
Statement of Issues and Justification
Insect and weed pests have significant negative impacts on natural and managed ecosystems in the North Central region. In addition to the great number of established pests requiring ongoing management, the steady arrival of new invasive species poses a major threat to the region. Conventional management tools including pesticides are frequently expensive and may have undesirable environmental or human health impacts. Biological control is a critical part of IPM aimed at safe and effective management of pests.The North Central Region shares similar agricultural, natural, and human environments and as a consequence, many pests are of regional importance. For example, the exotic soybean aphid is a key pest throughout much of the region and invasive weeds such as garlic mustard, leafy spurge and teasel are widespread threats to natural ecosystems. The USDA has identified a safe and healthy food supply, and the harmony between agriculture and natural resources as national and regional priorities. Our project directly addresses these priorities by coordinating cooperative research, education and outreach in biological control.
Our stakeholders include farmers, land managers, homeowners, green industries, regulatory agencies, commodity groups, and the broader scientific community. The membership of NCERA-125 encompasses expertise ranging from taxonomy of biological control agents, ecology of agroecosystems, to modeling impacts of biological control and our past collaborations have produced significant outcomes in research, education and outreach. Examples include annual team-taught classes of the Midwest Biological Control Institute, numerous symposia at professional meetings, delivery of regional extension workshops, the Midwest Biocontrol Newsletter, multi-state extramural research grants, and joint publications. Facilities in the North Central Region such as quarantine laboratories in Minnesota and Ohio, the NSF-LTER in agroecology in Michigan, and biological control research laboratories in all states ensure continued impacts on biological control in the Region.
This proposal builds on the strength of our previous collaborations, ties to our stakeholders, and addresses contemporary and future needs in biological control in the North Central Region.
Our goal is to coordinate biological control research, education, and implementation in the North Central Region.
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