HRT-280 Field Entomology W/ Integrated Pest Mgmt
A practical investigation of insect structure and function, ecology, behavior, and life history, as well as strategies of integrated pest management (IPM). The class will discuss various pesticides, modes of action and toxicity, environmental impact and possible effects on the applicator. Students will report on current topics such as vectors of plant and animal diseases, and the challenges to pollinator populations. Training in identification, monitoring, sampling methods, biological control and conventional crop protection approaches prepare the student for professional opportunities.
For more detailed course information view the
Course Outline
Department
Environmental Conservation and Horticulture
Course Description
A practical investigation of insect structure and function, ecology, behavior, and life history, as well as strategies of integrated pest management (IPM). The class will discuss various pesticides, modes of action and toxicity, environmental impact and possible effects on the applicator. Students will report on current topics such as vectors of plant and animal diseases, and the challenges to pollinator populations. Training in identification, monitoring, sampling methods, biological control and conventional crop protection approaches prepare the student for professional opportunities.
Credit Hours
4Semester(s) Course Will Be Offered
Fall
Prerequisites
BIO-121 or BIO-125
Course Learning Outcomes
- Identify insects (beneficial and harmful) to phylogenetic order.
- Recognize the dynamic equilibrium that exists between plants, insects and wildlife.
- Relate the vital impacts that humans (e.g. farmers, pesticide applicators, homeowners) and insects have on one another.
- Integrate pest management concepts into the development of seasonal land use plans (e.g. landscape or crop production).
Topic Outline
- 1. Importance of insects and other arthropods to life on Earth: the numbers and diversity of insects, as well as their roles in the ecosystem
- 2. Identifying the specific threat to a damaged plant by applying a process of research and analysis: first describing the damage, then placing the insect in a feeding guild, and then learning which insects can feed on that plant species
- 3. Insect development, first as a feature of the order to which the insect belongs, then from the perspective of physiological changes during successive molts in the transition from egg to immature to adult
- 4. Insect external anatomy as it relates to identification, including the vocabulary for describing mouthparts, antennae, limbs, and wings
- 5. Examples of integrated pest management (IPM) of economically important insects, especially recent invasive species that have few natural enemies and for which chemical applications may be necessary to manage crop damage
- 6. Monitoring insects, including growing degree days (GDD) and visual recognition of insect damage, and developing a logical and efficient strategy for assessing insect pests in greenhouses, nurseries, or landscapes
- 7. Insect biological control (parasites and predators), including species likely to be present and natural enemies available for purchase and release into the environment
- 8. Structural and chemical plant defenses, including constitutively expressed traits such as secondary cell walls and lignification, defense compounds such as phenolics that deter insect feeding, and induced defenses ramped up when a plant is attacked
- 9. Current research on the status and roles of honeybees and other pollinators, as well as the basics of beginning beekeeping and routine management of honeybee pests
- 10. Evaluating organic and conventional options for plant protection so that students can make wise choices among products labeled in New York, which range from insecticidal soaps, oils, and insect growth regulators with low mammalian toxicity to poisons that affect the central nervous system