Seacoast proposes to develop a low-cost system that can directly monitor chemicals emitted from crops, over a period of days to months, and analyze these chemicals for the indicators of crop stress. Researchers have found a number of chemicals that are emitted when certain plants are under attack from biotic or abiotic stresses. One example, methyl salicylate (MeS) has been found by researchers to be an indicator of thermal, viral, and bacterial stress in walnut trees, tobacco and tomato plants. Thus a monitoring system can be used by growers for site-specific management of insecticides. The system will be optimized for use in greenhouses and could provide a prognostic tool, indicating when crops are in danger before it is too late. The goal is to prevent yield loss, especially for high value crops. Seacoast has previously demonstrated detection of MeS, alpha-pinene and other published volatile plant allomones, with and without preconcentration. In this program, Seacoast will demonstrate detection of a number of plant-stress related volatiles, and push detection limits to the ppb range by identifying the optimal detector technologies to integrate with a low-cost chromatographic system and trap-and-purge preconcentrator. Project Title: Monitoring and attract and kill systems to control ambrosia beetles vectoring the laurel wilt disease in avocado and other Lauraceae. Technical Abstract Production of avocado in Florida is valued at $30 million a year, accounting for twelve percent of the national production. This industry consists of 7,500 acres and about 940 producers/handlers and thousands of employees. The redbay ambrosia beetle (RAB), Xyleborus glabratus vectors the fungal pathogen, Raffaelea lauricola, which causes laurel wilt (LW), a lethal disease of trees in the family Lauraceae, including the most commercially important crop in this family, avocado, Persea americana. Another eight ambrosia beetle species from genus: Xuleborus, Xyleborinus and Xylosandrus species have been identified as potential vectors of the disease. Effective IPM tactics should be aimed at the control and management of all vectors of the disease.RAB and other ambrosia beetles are currently controlled with insecticidal sprays of diseased avocado trees or their removal. Effective semiochemical-based management tactics are not available for these ambrosia beetles. Survey and detection methods depend on non-efficient, expensive and not easily accessible trap-and-lure system (especially that of insect traps). If successful, efficient LW-vector insect trapping systems will accelerate detection of incipient infestations and facilitate sensitive pest monitoring during and after eradication programs. Semiochemical-based monitoring systems are standard tools for the measurement of progress and success of eradication efforts targeting other exotic pests of national importance.
Anticipated Results/Potential Commercial Applications of Research: The long-term goals of this research project are the development of an effective monitoring system (trap and lure) and Killing Station for ambrosia beetles vectoring the laurel wilt disease. To accomplish this, we will test the efficacy of known kairomonal host volatiles, determine which trap designs are most effective for monitoring the pest and conduct preliminary tests of prototype Killing Stations.
