We are excited to announce the availability of the 2023 SCRI NIFA Spotted-Wing Drosophila Management Team Webinar presented and recorded on Monday, December 4th, 2023 at 12:00pm EST. This one hour webinar, titled “Advances in Biological Control for Management of Spotted-Wing Drosophila” provides updates on biological control efforts. Researchers shared their findings as well as highlighted advancements in biological control strategies to manage spotted-wing drosophila.
“Advances in Behavior-Based Tactics for Management of Spotted-Wing Drosophila” —watch this one-hour 2022 SCRI NIFA Spotted-Wing Drosophila Management Team Webinar which aired on Thursday, December 8th, 2022 at 12:00pm EST and learn. Watch it here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPkQhWafZbk
What are behavior-based tactics, you ask? Well this is when entomologists figure out what control tactics can be used against an insect pest, based on how it lives. Think about mating disruption, used against oriental fruit moth, to prevent the male moths from mating with the female moths by flooding the orchard with volatile sex pheromones. With SWD, there may be ways to use feeding attractants, called kairomones, to attract the insects away from the fruit and then kill them. This is an attract-and-kill tactic.
Male SWD, circled in yellow, can be readily detected on red sticky card traps. Photo: J. Carroll
Other insect behaviors being investigated include visual cues the insects use — thus we now have red traps for monitoring when SWD arrives. Attend and learn about the promising and affordable behavioral control tactics this team of talented entomologists is developing against SWD.
The SWD parasitoid Ganapsis brasiliensis laying an egg into an SWD larva inside a blueberry. This parasitoid was collected in Asia. Photo: K. Daane
There is be a brief update on biological control. There are many tiny wasps that like to lay eggs in SWD, some native and some, which are more selective towards SWD, from Asia. Members of this team now have over ten years of work on these foreign natural enemies and they are on the cusp of being able to release these against SWD.
We’d love to hear from you to learn what you think about the SWD blog and its value to your operation and work. The Cornell SWD blog delivers trap catch information generated by the monitoring network. Several counties are now at sustained trap catch. We need your input on the usefulness of the SWD blog posts.
Please take a few minutes to complete our Value of the SWDblog Qualtrics survey about the SWD blog. This will help us improve our information delivery! Here is the direct url to the survey.
The SWD monitoring network will include 12 Cornell extension scientists who will set traps at 30 locations across New York State in 2022. Monitoring is done to determine first trap catch and sustained trap catch to inform the need to initiate a spray program if fruit are ripening. Please join me in thanking the following for their participation!
Andy Galimberti, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Anya Osatuke, Harvest NY CCE
Don Gasiewicz, Wyoming County CCE
Elisabeth Hodgdon, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Faruque Zaman, Suffolk County CCE
Janet van Zoeren, Lake Ontario Fruit Program
Jim O'Connell, Ulster County CCE
Laura McDermott, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Liz Alexander, Chemung County CCE
Elizabeth Tee, Lake Ontario Fruit Program
Natasha Field, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Nick Hamilton-Honey, St. Lawrence County CCE
A male spotted wing drosophila (SWD) on blueberry; another likely SWD is in the background. This photo was taken in early September when SWD numbers are typically very high.
This year, we again will use baited red sticky traps at some locations to determine if these work comparably to the drowning jar traps. If these traps perform well, they may prove useful to growers. If you're interested in learning how to use the red sticky traps, please contact Laura McDermott, ENYCHP, at lgm4@cornell.edu, or Janet van Zoeren, LOF, at jev67@cornell.edu.
Results from the monitoring network will be shared and a 2022 distribution map generated, which will be linked on Cornell Fruit Resources and the NYS IPM SWD websites. Traps will be set in Albany, Cayuga, Chemung, Clinton, Columbia, Dutchess, Essex, Niagara, Onondaga, Orleans, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schuyler, St. Lawrence, Suffolk, Tioga, Ulster, Washington, Wayne, and Wyoming Counties.
I've retired from Cornell University and am leaving the SWD blog in the capable hands of Janet van Zoeren. Natasha Field, ENYCHP, will help to manage the data for the distribution map, and Laura McDermott will provide overall guidance and organizational capacity for trapping supplies. I wish you all a very successful fruit growing year!
The Cornell SWD blog and monitoring network are into their tenth year! We’d love to hear from you to learn what you think about the SWD blog and its value to your operation and work.
Please take 10 tiny minutes to complete our Value of the SWDblog Qualtrics survey about the Spotted Wing Drosophila blog. This will help us improve our information delivery in the years to come!
Juliet Carroll checks a SWD trap in a tart cherry orchard to help determine the need to spray, as fruit ripen.
After 20 years with the Cornell Cooperative ExtensionNYS IPM Program, Juliet Carroll, Fruit IPM Coordinator and yours truly, will be retiring next month. But have no fear, a new Fruit IPM Coordinator will be hired — the search is underway!
AND Laura McDermott, Natasha Field, Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program, Janet van Zoeren, Lake Ontario Fruit Program, and Anya Osatuke, Harvest NY Program, will be coordinating the SWD monitoring network, which will get underway in May.
Thank you all for the opportunity to provide you with important IPM information. Tell us what you think of the SWD blog!
Together we can develop and adopt sustainable ways to manage pests and use methods that minimize environmental, health, and economic risks — it is the IPM way!
On Thursday, March 10, 2022, from 11:30 to 12:30, I will present our work on using hummingbird feeders to attract Ruby-throated Hummingbirds into raspberry plantings as an aid in managing SWD. This seminar will be part of the NYS IPM Program's Seminar Series. To learn more about the NYS IPM Seminar series and upcoming talks, visit nysipm.cornell.edu/resources/nysipm-seminars/.
My seminar will be presented via zoom, so you can join and watch from the comfort of your home office or wherever you are using this zoom link:
Here is a summary of our work on hummingbirds, which I will present on March 10, 2022 at 11:30 to 12:30.
Hummingbirds require arthropods in their diet and may consume 2000 small insects, including Drosophilids, per day when fledging young. In New York State, we investigated the use of feeders to attract Ruby-throated Hummingbirds into raspberry fields to encourage predation of spotted-wing Drosophila (SWD) with the goal of reducing fly populations and fruit infestation. Baited traps were used to assess fly populations and salt flotation was used to assess fruit infestation. Over four years (2015-2018), 81% of 266 hourly observations of hummingbird behavior found the birds were occupying the raspberry planting when utilizing the feeders, supporting opportunities for predation on SWD flies. In 16 out of 18 weeks in 2017 and 2018, the number of SWD found in fruit were reduced in the half of the field with 62 feeders/hectare (25/A), compared to the half without feeders. We found a significant season-long reduction of 27% in average fruit infestation in 2017, a year with high populations of SWD. Trap catch was lower in the feeder half of the field in 15 of 25 weeks in 2016-2018.In two 0.035 ha (0.09 A) commercial raspberry fields (2020), in the one with 151 feeders/hectare (54/A) significant reductions in trap catch were found in most weeks during the fruiting season compared to the field without feeders. No Ruby-throated Hummingbirds were observed in the commercial field without feeders. Hummingbirds may protect fruit against SWD when encouraged with feeders to visit and occupy raspberry plantings. Encouraging hummingbirds in raspberry fields with feeders has the potential for contributing to an SWD IPM program and reducing the reliance on chemical management.
Hummingbirds eat lots of small insects, including aphids and fruit flies to supplement their nectar-rich diet, up to 2000 per day!
Want to learn more about how to use hummingbird feeders in your raspberry plantings? Contact Juliet Carroll, jec3@cornell.edu, Fruit IPM Coordinator, NYS IPM Program, Cornell University. Collaborators on this project included: Percival M. Marshall, NYS IPM Program, Nicole E. Mattoon, NYS IPM Program, Courtney A. Weber, Horticulture, and Greg M. Loeb, Entomology.
Spotted-wing drosophila monitoring helps to determine when populations begin to build up, and can help save growers' spray applications in a late infestation year. In 2021, we tested red sticky card traps, baited with SWD lures, to detect first arrival of SWD in berry plantings and cherry orchards. The baited, red sticky traps provided good results for the SWD monitoring network. We found that the red sticky traps have potential for use by growers and consultants to monitor SWD pressure in at-risk fruit plantings. The exciting news is that Laura McDermott, ENYCHP, obtained grant funding to further test the red sticky traps and to lead a statewide effort to educate growers and consultants on their use.
SWD monitoring recap:
The 2021 statewide monitoring effort included 126 trap locations monitored by 16 Cornell extension scientists in 23 counties. During the season, first trap catch across the SWD monitoring network occurred over a 14-week-long period, from May 11 (Niagara County) to August 17 (Steuben County). The occurrence of first catch over several weeks is typical for SWD occurrence in New York State. However, most trapping sites were not catching SWD during the late May and early to mid-June period, and only one reached sustained catch in early June. Normally, by mid-June, most traps will have caught SWD.
Scentry jar trap for SWD set in a raspberry patch.
Scentry jar traps with lure have been used in the SWD monitoring network since 2016. Lured jar traps from which SWD are filtered, sorted from related species, then identified with magnification are currently the best at attracting the first insects, but growers cannot implement this level of monitoring and the statewide trap network isn’t robust enough to deliver farm-specific information. Using an easier monitoring method, if it works as well as the jar traps, will help growers monitor SWD on their own farms. Growers in New Jersey and Ontario, Canada have successfully used red sticky card traps with lures to monitor SWD on their farms.
Sticky card trap results:
Cornell extension scientists in the SWD monitoring network conducted a preliminary test in 2021 of the use of red sticky card traps. A total of 20 locations, where both the Scentry-lure-baited jar traps and the Trécé-lure-baited red sticky card traps were being used, yielded data to compare the first trap catch date for the jar traps and the red sticky card traps. First catch on the red sticky cards compared to the jar traps was about one week earlier at 40% of the trap locations (8 out of 20), about one week later at 45% of the locations (9 out of 20) and on the same date at 15% of the locations (3 out of 20) . These results suggest that the red sticky cards will work comparably to the jar traps and that using sticky traps won’t lead to trap catch results being obtained too late, which would place crops at possible risk of infestation from populations of SWD that have gone undetected.
Comparison of first SWD catch in Trécé-lure-baited red sticky card traps versus Scentry-lure-baited jar traps.
Setting up sticky cards:
The red sticky cards are relatively easy to use, though the sticky coating on the traps can pose a challenge for the user. Wearing nitrile, latex, or plastic disposable gloves to protect hands from the sticky goo on the trap is essential. Tying back long hair can be helpful. An SWD lure is positioned above the red sticky card, which is hung from a branch, trellis wire or wooden stake, preferably 1.5 m (5 ft.) off the ground, and within the fruit zone in a shaded area. In berries, this will depend on how the plants are trained and traps may need to be placed lower. Traps must be secured tightly to the trellis wire, branch, or wooden stake to minimize sliding or blowing around with the wind or the airblast sprayer. Canes or branches should be tied up or removed so the sticky traps are easily seen and won’t contact any foliage or berries. Mark the location of the trap with flagging tape. Label the trap with a code number for your records. Record the date the trap and lure were set out in the field and the trap GPS coordinates, if needed.
The steps for hanging the lure and red sticky cards.
Reading the sticky cards:
It is easy to identify the male flies, because they have the distinctive oval spot on each wing. To service the trap and identify the male SWD, again, it is best to wear gloves and tie back long hair to protect yourself from the sticky goo. Each week, remove the trap and check for stuck male SWD. Examine both sides of the sticky trap with a hand lens, magnifying glass or OptiVisor DA 7 (2.7x magnification) or DA 10 (3.5x). Enumerate the male SWD caught on both sides of the sticky card and record the total number per red sticky card trap. Discard the examined trap and install a new one. It is very important to change the trap weekly when you check for SWD. This will make it much easier to identify insects. Change the lure every 4 weeks and make note of the date the lure was changed.
The steps for servicing the red sticky card traps in the field.Deborah Breth, Lake Ontario Fruit Team, retired, examining fruit using an OptiVisor. A hand lens is shown hanging from a lanyard around her neck.
Future plans:
The two-year grant paves the way for further testing the red sticky card traps and educating growers and consultants on their use. This project is getting started in spring 2022. It will entail grower and consultant demonstrations, extension materials, and education efforts on the use of red sticky cards baited with SWD lures, to monitor for SWD in berry plantings and cherry orchards.
Male SWD, circled in yellow, can be readily detected on red sticky card traps.
Acknowledgements:
We want to thank the collaborators on the 2021 SWD monitoring network, many of whom tested the red sticky cards.
Andy Galimberti, ENYCHP, CCE
Ariel Kirk, Steuben County CCE
Barb Neal, Tioga County CCE
Dave Thorp, Livingston County
Don Gasiewicz, Wyoming County CCE
Elisabeth Hodgdon, ENYCHP, CCE
Elizabeth Tee, Lake Ontario Fruit Program (LOF), CCE
Faruque Zaman, Suffolk County CCE
James O'Connell, Ulster County CCE
Liz Alexander, Chemung County CCE
Natasha Field, ENYCHP, CCE
Sarah Tobin, ENYCHP, CCE
Support for this work was provided by the NYS Berry Growers Association, the NYS IPM Program, and the USDA NIFA CPPM EIP Award 2017-70006-27142.
This blog was co-authored by Laura McDermott, Janet van Zoeren, and Anya Osatuke. Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program, Lake Ontario Fruit Program, and Harvest NY, respectively, all with Cornell Cooperative Extension.
The full day of 2022 Berry Sessions, detailed below, are now available ...virtually... on YouTube. All 4 of the 2022 Empire Producers EXPO Berry Sessions are now available to watch. Click here to see the playlist.
Due to the surge in Covid-19 cases,the Empire EXPO moved to a virtual format. Now you can enjoy these great talks on berries from the comfort of your home!
EMPIRE EXPO— Berry Sessions —January 12, 2022
Session I – 9:00 AM – 10:15 AM
Berry Production in Containers – 1.0 NYS DEC credit
8:45 AM Attendees log in early for DEC credits.We must have your DEC number at time of registration and please have your card with you.
9:00 AM Welcome and Sponsor Information
9:05 AM Trends in North American greenhouse strawberry production and possible applications for northeastern farms – Neil Mattson, Cornell, will discuss some of the advantages and disadvantages of protected and containerized production.
9:30 AM Ongoing work in container production of strawberry and caneberries – Kathy Demchak, Pennsylvania State University, will discuss in more specifics what growers will need to consider when starting to grow in containers.
10:00 AM Our experience growing berries in containers – Mark MacDonald, Bee Tree Berry Farm, Bellafonte, PA. Mark is a grower with 7 years of containerized and protected culture experience. His perspective on managing pests and marketing a crop will be helpful to new growers.
10:15 AM Adjourn
Session II – 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Focus on Blueberries – 0.5 NYS DEC credit
10:45 AM Attendees log in early for DEC credits. We must have your DEC number at time of registration and please have your card with you.
11:00 AM Welcome and Sponsor Information
11:05 AMBlueberry breeding efforts at USDA – Mark Ehlenfeldt, USDA-ARS, Chatsworth, NJ, will outline what the focus for breeders is and how growers can take advantage of new varieties attributes.
11:25 AMBest approaches to weed management in blueberries – Thierry Bescanon, Rutgers. Dr. Bescanon will discuss weed management strategies that will include herbicides and cultural approaches.
11:55 PMManaging pH in blueberry irrigation water pH - Elizabeth Machoff, Empire Drip Supply, Williamson, NY and Laura McDermott, CCE ENYCHP. Proper pH in soil AND in irrigation water is key to excellent growth – it will also impact how well plants respond to attacks from pests. Learn how to make sure irrigation water is perfectly matched to your plants needs.
12:15 PM New York State Berry Growers Association Annual Meeting – Liz Machoff, President
12:30 PM Adjourn
Session III - 2:15 PM – 2:20 PM
Berry Crop Sustainability – 0.5 NYS DEC credits
2:00 PMAttendees log in early for DEC credits. We must have your DEC number at time of registration and please have your card with you.
2:15 PMWelcome and Sponsor Information
2:20 PMFrom berries to wine: value-added products for berry growers – Dave Duda, Duda’s Blues, Machias, NY. Learn how Duda’s Blues has turned a perishable product into a delicious and profitable fruit wine.
2:40 PMBerry pricing survey - Kris Park, Cornell. Results of 2021 Berry Pricing Survey reveal lots of room for improved profitability.
3:00 PMManaging flowering plants, weeds, and pollinators for strawberry production - Heather Grab, Cornell. Manage pests and weeds while preserving pollinator health and numbers. This important topic will help growers preserve their natural pollinators.
3:20 PMAdjourn
Session IV - 3:45 PM – 5:00 PM
Unusual Fruits and Nuts – No DEC credits for this session
3:45 PMWelcome and Sponsor Information
3:50 PM Nuts for the Northeast – Samantha Bosco, Cornell. Nut crops may offer berry growers another valuable cash crop while using land that is less than perfect for berry crops.
4:10 PMCommercial production of Kiwifruit – Iago Hale, University of New Hampshire. Hardy kiwifruit offers growers a late season, long storing delicious fruit crop.
4:30 PMIntroduction to juneberry production - Mike Davis, Cornell. Juneberries are earlier than many other fruit and have delicious flavor.
4:45 PMGrowing honeyberries in northern NY – Duane Smith, Seaway Cold Hardy Grapes, Evans Mills, NY. Hascap or honeyberry are very hardy and could offer an early cash crop.
Learn how to apply monitoring and sampling to protect your crops from SWD infestations. Watch this webinar!Monitoring and sampling tools to improve spotted-wing drosophila management. Presented on Wednesday, November 10th, 2022this webinar is now available on YouTube.
Scentry trap for SWD set in a raspberry patch.
In the Annual Sustainable SWD Management Webinar the project scientists cover trapping technologies, lures and baits, potential trap thresholds, best techniques to gauge fruit infestation, all investigated by the Sustainable SWD Management Project team.
Learn about the current guidelines for SWD adult and larval sampling methods and practical applications of these tools for fruit growers. Presenters include:
Rufus Isaacs & Steve Van Timmeren (Michigan State University)
Hannah Burrack (NC State University)
Cesar Rodriguez-Saona (Rutgers University)
Phil Fanning (University of Maine)
Vaughn Walton (Oregon State University)
A Trece red sticky card trap and lure set in a tart cherry tree to monitor for SWD.
These SWD experts work on the SWD-susceptible crops you love to grow and sell: raspberry, highbush blueberry, lowbush blueberry, blackberry, and cherry.
Data from 10 years of trapping for first catch of SWD, posted below, shows a trend towards earlier first arrival of SWD into fruit plantings. During the 2021 season, first trap catch occurred over a 14-week-long period, May 11 (Niagara County) to August 17 (Steuben County). This year we tested the utility of red sticky cards, baited with SWD lures. The SWD team achieved another year of successful SWD monitoring!Please join me in thanking the 15 extension scientists who contributed to this effort across 23 counties. Growers in and outside the network locations rely on this information to alert them about the need to protect their at-risk fruits crops from SWD infestation as harvests draw near.
Earlier first trap catch
From the initial year of trapping for SWD, in 2012, we have seen a trend for first trap catch to be earlier, 76 days earlier. Other northern states with trapping programs have noticed this trend. Could it be SWD is adapting to our climate and more adults are surviving the winters? Could it be related to climate change and milder winters or autumns with fewer early freeze events? Or are the trap lures simply getting better?
Asynchronous first trap catch
Map showing first catch months for counties having traps. Counties colored white have no traps.
Where was SWD during late May and early to mid-June? We don’t know. Most trapping sites weren’t catching SWD during this period, and only one reached sustained catch in early June. “Normally” (is there a normal?) by mid-June, many traps will have caught SWD. Were the lures off? Not the case, we were using both Scentry (in jar traps) and Trece (with sticky cards) lures and these traps, from a quick perusal of my data, yielded comparable results. Perhaps simply another puzzle for researchers to ponder over — weather effects?, natural enemies?, spray programs?
Baited red sticky cards
Male SWD can be detected readily on red sticky card traps.
We achieved success with the red sticky cards, though deployment and use of the cards can be tricky. Stay tuned for more information on this in a future blog. Laura McDermott will be leading a two-year project to work more with these types of SWD traps and educate growers and consultants on their use.
Now, on to thanking everyone!
These 15 Cornell University extension scientists participated in SWD monitoring this year in 23 counties. A special thanks go out to them for setting traps, changing lures, servicing traps, and identifying SWD. This network would not be possible without their support and contributions — suggestions for improvement, ideas for mapping, perspectives on grower needs and steadfast cooperation.
Andy Galimberti, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Ariel Kirk, Steuben County CCE
Barb Neal, Tioga County CCE
Dave Thorp, Livingston County
Don Gasiewicz, Wyoming County CCE
Elisabeth Hodgdon, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Elizabeth Tee, Lake Ontario Fruit Program
Faruque Zaman, Suffolk County CCE
Janet van Zoeren, Lake Ontario Fruit Program
Jim O'Connell, Ulster County CCE
Juliet Carroll, NYS IPM Program
Laura McDermott, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Liz Alexander, Chemung County CCE
Natasha Field, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Sarah Tobin, Eastern NY Commercial Hort Program
Most importantly, we acknowledge the support of our funding partners:
From the initial year of trapping for SWD, in 2012, we have seen a trend for first trap catch to be earlier, 76 days earlier. Other northern states with trapping programs have noticed this trend. Could it be SWD is adapting to our climate and more adults are surviving the winters? Could it be related to climate change and milder winters or autumns with fewer early freeze events? Or are the trap lures simply getting better?