Waite Research Institute Seminar – Rebecca Hamdorf, SARDI

PLEASE NOTE THIS SEMINAR HAS BEEN CANCELLED

Speaker: Rebecca Hamdorf, SARDI Entomology Unit

Title: Reliability of species-specific Helicoverpa lures in bucket traps and ways to stop possible lure contamination

Abstract: As part of the services provided through PestFacts SA SARDI Entomology runs a Helicoverpa moth trapping state-wide network during late winter and spring when migrations occur to record movement of moths and provide optimal monitoring periods for growers and agronomists. At each location two bucket traps are set up, each with a single species-specific lure to catch either native budworm (Helicoverpa punctigera) or cotton bollworm (H. armigera), and numbers of moths are reported weekly. Differentiating between these two species is difficult visually, but is economically important as cotton bollworm, whilst rarer in dryland broadacre agriculture, has developed high levels of insecticide resistance and requires different management strategies. In previous seasons it has been assumed that the species-specific lures are attracting the correct moths and numbers reported are accurate, however at the end of the 2019 trapping season a trap with the cotton bollworm lure was catching unusually high numbers of moths. Moths were retained for species confirmation and it was found that all individuals from a single trapping date were native budworm. The 2020 spring Helicoverpa trapping network was modified to account for identified possible sources of contamination and moths retained for species confirmation. Results show whilst the majority of the time only cotton bollworm is caught in the cotton bollworm traps there are several occasions where this is not the case.

Speaker Bio: Rebecca is the PestFacts South Australia Coordinator and a grains entomology diagnostician in the SARDI Entomology Unit. Her main focus is broadacre cropping invertebrate pests but provides pest insect diagnostics broadly as well as targets for the iMap PESTS project across Australian grains, viticulture, horticulture, sugar and forestry industries. Previously she has worked on diagnostics of grains storage invertebrate pests, including Biosecurity SA surveillance programs, and agricultural pest snails research. The seminar will be both face-to-face in Charles Hawker Conference Centre and as a webinar.

Due to a limit of 70 people in Charles Hawker Conference Centre if you wish to attend in person you must register at this Eventbrite link https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/waite-research-institute-seminar-rebecca-hamdorf-sardi-tickets-144561341865

Alternatively register for the Webinar at https://adelaide.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_4rG3-3tGQZa5a0VYPhetwQ