USDA funds research to convert beetle-killed trees to bioenergy

Biomass Magazine

By USDA | November 06, 2013

 

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Ethanol research may move insects to pest status

Rapid City Journal

October 21, 2013 2:01 pm  •  Associated Press

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Moth presents snag in biofuels progress

ArgusLeader.com
Cody Winchester • cwincheste@argusleader.com • December 5, 2010

Eating habits of insect pose problem for researchers

Scientists at South Dakota State University are shedding new light on an insect that could compete with humans for switchgrass, a potential biofuel crop, underscoring the need for more research in this developing area.

In a study published Oct. 25 in Zootaxaca, a taxonomy journal, entomologist Paul Johnson and agronomist Arvid Boe describe the life cycle of the moth Blastobasis repartella, whose larvae bore into the stems of switchgrass stalks. The lead author was a taxonomist from the Smithsonian Institute.

Switchgrass, long grown for conservation and forage, is a strong candidate as a biofuel and a source of cellulosic ethanol. If native grasses like it are to be farmed commercially, science and industry need to know more about their natural ecologies - including their natural pests, Johnson said.

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Solar panels could be a threat to aquatic insects, new research shows

Guardian.co.uk - The Observer
The Observer, Sunday 6 June 2010

Scientists urge caution after finding that insects fall into 'ecological trap' by mistaking panels for pools of water

Solar panels could wipe out fragile populations of insects, according to a new study that raises fresh doubts about the ecological impact of some forms of renewable energy.

Scientists have discovered that aquatic insects such as the mayfly can mistake shiny photovoltaic panels for pools of water, which they rely on to reproduce. They urge caution on the increasing use of panels until experts work out how they could affect insects and other creatures that feed on them.

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New crops to boost biofuel

The State News
By Emily Wilkins

Corn is about to get some competition in the biofuel industry.

A team of professors from MSU’s Department of Entomology examined several biofuel crops to see how many beneficial insects were attracted to the plants and found several other potential biofuel crop candidates.

Corn is a common biofuel source and makes up 30 percent to 40 percent of the cropping landscape in the Great Lakes region, said Douglas Landis, an entomology professor who worked on the project.

Research from the team’s report, which was published Saturday in an online edition of the journal BioEnergy Research, shows farmers could benefit from diversifying biofuel crops.

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Biofuel crop diversity adds value, Michigan State researchers say

Michigan State University
Published: Jan. 22, 2010

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Diverse biofuel plantings such as native prairie attract more beneficial insects than do single crops such as corn, Michigan State University scientists find. Therefore, biofuel policies should take such added value into account, they urge, based on their pioneering studies of beneficial insects in biofuel crops.

Lady beetles, bees and other beneficial insects provide numerous ecosystem services, including controlling pests and pollinating crops. Earlier research by MSU scientists estimated that such insects in soybeans provide about $240 million worth of biological pest control per year in the U.S.
"We found that the diversity of the plants has a direct effect on the number and diversity of beneficial insects," said Doug Landis, MSU professor of entomology and co-author of the study, to be published in a special issue of the journal BioEnergy Research. "As policymakers consider which biofuel crops to support with incentives, we want to make sure they know about all the benefits provided by a range of crops. Some of these benefits, such as greenhouse gas benefits, pest suppression and pollination, are not currently being counted."

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2010: The Year of The Pest

Biofuels Digest
January 18, 2010 Jim Lane

In South Dakota, news that researchers have discovered that an obscure but fast-growing moth species has a potentially destructive appetite for switchgrass, raises a question. Is the appearance of this destructive pest good news or bad news?

Generally, pests and invasive species are considered very, very bad news. We are conditioned to think this way. The ISSG defines the 100 World’s worst invasive alien Species, as species that are a major threat to biodiversity (the collected wealth of the world’s species of plants, animals and other organisms) as well as to agriculture and other human interests.

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Western Corn Rootworm Will Survive on Miscanthus

Prairie Farmer
Compiled by staff
Published: Jan 14, 2010

Though populations were 70% lower than on corn, this could be a concern.

The western corn rootworm beetle, a pest that costs growers more than $1 billion annually in the U.S., can also survive on the perennial grass Miscanthus x giganteus, a potential biofuels crop that would likely be grown alongside corn, researchers report.

Rootworm beetle larvae can survive to adulthood on Miscanthus rhizomes, and adult beetles will lay their eggs at the base of Miscanthus plants grown near cornfields, the researchers found. Their study, in the Public Library of Science journal PLoS ONE, is the first to identify Miscanthus as a host of the corn rootworm.

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SDSU Scientists ‘Re-discover’ Switchgrass Moth

Biomass Magazine January 2010
By Lance Nixon

The rediscovery of the switchgrass moth indicates that native prairie plants are just as vulnerable to insects as other crops are, and that pest management programs will be needed if these prairie grasses are going to be produced commercially.

South Dakota State University scientists have “re-discovered” an insect that was first described by a scientist in 1910, but hasn’t been studied since.

What they are learning about its diet and life cycle suggests it could be one of the first major pests of a new biobased economy that grows native grasses for energy.

SDSU professor Paul Johnson, a research entomologist, said SDSU scientists found larvae of an unidentified insect that were responsible for losses on a private farm specializing in seed production of native grasses in 2006. At an SDSU research farm in 2007, professor Arvid Boe, a forage breeder, calculated that 40 percent or more of new tiller growth was lost to the caterpillar.

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