Environmental conditions this year are certainly conducive to grasshopper population growth, and some areas of the Prairies are finding this pest a major cause for concern. Dr. James Tansey, provincial entomologist for Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, joins host Shaun Haney in this episode of the Pests & Predators Podcast, to chat about the common species… Read More
Why is it important to conserve beneficial insects? When is it time to “pull the trigger” on an insecticide application, and how does choice of insecticide influence populations of beneficial insects? John Gavloski, provincial entomologist at Manitoba Agriculture and Resource Development, says that to farm most economically and efficiently, the way insects are viewed and reacted… Read More
In an ideal situation, farmers could identify field pests, look up a predator or parasitic foe of that pest, and make an order for delivery. While that isn’t exactly the case currently, bringing predatory or parasitic insects into an area does happen, and the practice is likely to gain traction as the knowledge of beneficial… Read More
There are secret, mysterious agents lurking in crop stubble. But have no fear, they’re on your side. Many are familiar with wheat midge and the damage the insect can cause, but you might be less familiar with the parasitoid that attacks this crop pest. Host Shaun Haney is joined by Jennifer Otani, pest management biologist… Read More
Pea leaf weevil is an invasive pest of Western Canada and attacks field peas and faba beans. The larval stage damages nodules on roots of both these crops, which can hinder biological nitrogen fixation happening in those nodules. In this episode of the Pests & Predators podcast, host Shaun Haney is joined by Dr. Meghan… Read More
Wheat head armyworm doesn’t only affect wheat; it can also affect barley, rye, oats, native and forage grasses like timothy, and even gets into wild oats — it’s got a wide host range to say the least. The impact of wheat head armyworm isn’t well documented, and part of the problem with researching them is… Read More
A good parasite doesn’t kill its host, but a good parasitoid does. What’s the difference and why? In this episode of the Pests & Predators podcast, host Shaun Haney is joined by Tyler Wist, research scientist and field crop entomologist with Agriculture Agri-food Canada at Saskatoon, Sask., to explore the role of parasitoids in field… Read More
Wheat stem sawfly can cause a lot of damage to a wheat yield, and there aren’t a lot of options to control it. Enter: Bracon sephi, an orange wasp that is less than a quarter inch long. The way that this small wasp attacks wheat stem sawfly sounds like something out of science fiction, but… Read More
Not all grasshoppers are pests, though few farmers would likely say they enjoy seeing them when they walk a field. Grasshoppers can, and do cause significant economic damage to crops in high population years, sometimes wiping out entire fields, but these insects also play a large role in the insect world as food. Dr. John… Read More
Every field is an ecosystem — complete with hosts, habitat, pests, and predators. Farmers are focused on fostering the best conditions for the desired crop and are keenly aware of threats, such as insect pests. But, as with any ecosystem, the removal of any one part of the system has dramatic impacts on others. In… Read More
We’re back with the latest episode of Pests & Predators, and on this episode, you’ll hear from Dr. Meghan Vankosky. She is a research scientist in the field crop entomology department with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), based in Saskatoon, Sask. In addition to the research Vankosky does for AAFC, she is also the co-chair… Read More
There was a time when many people thought of field insects like weeds — all bad. Weeds steal yield, so we try to eliminate all or mostly all of those weeds. Now through many years of research, the way we look at insects in a crop has begun to shift away from this all-bad, all-must-go… Read More