samurai wasp

My PhD project in a nut shell

July 2, 2019 By Tom Leave a Comment

I started my PhD in October 2017 at the University of Auckland.

My supervisor is Associate Professor Greg Holwell. Greg is interested in evolution—particularly sexual selection—and uses arthropods to work on some of the biggest questions in this area. My co-supervisor is Dr Gonzalo Avila, leader of the biocontrol team at Plant & Food Research, Auckland. Gonzalo is interested in evaluating parasitoids for their uses in classical biocontrol programmes.

This post is a brief overview of the rationale and methods of my project.

…

Stink Bugs of NZ

July 24, 2018 By Tom 12 Comments

My PhD project focuses on biocontrol: using beneficial species to manage the impacts of undesirable species.

I’m looking at Trissolcus japonicus, or the ‘samurai wasp.’ This tiny Asian wasp has been proposed for release against the brown marmorated stink bug in New Zealand (if and when the stink bug is found to have established here). My work focuses on testing the likelihood this wasp would attack New Zealand’s native and naturalised stink bug species if it were released. In order to do this, I’m rearing NZ stink bug species so I can use their eggs to test the behaviour of the wasp.

Most researchers conducting these types of tests would have to compile a short-list of stink bug species to test, based on things like their biological classification, their rarity, their economic importance, etc. But New Zealand has so few species of stink bug, I can include all potential non-target species in my tests. Here is a visual guide to New Zealand’s stink bugs.

When stink bugs hatch, they aggregate together around the egg shells until after their first moult. Image CC-BY-NC 4.0 by fairyeagle / iNaturalistNZ

…

Better Biosecurity Conference 2018

May 10, 2018 By Tom Leave a Comment

I was in Wellington on Monday 7th and Tuesday 8th May for the 2018 Better Border Biosecurity (B3) Conference.

Everything ready for #B32018 plant border #biosecurity conference at Te Papa NZ tomorrow May 7 with 150 attendees and presentations from @MPI_NZ @PBCRC @BioHeritage_NZ @BioprotectionNZ @CEBRA_UoM @TiraWhakamataki @docgovtnz @SITplusPD @drjoluck @CSIROnews and more

— B3 Director (@B3Director) May 6, 2018

…

Zapping Severed Antennae for Science

April 18, 2018 By Tom Leave a Comment

Last week I travelled to Lincoln to meet with Dr Kye Chung Park. The reason for my visit was to learn some interesting electrophysiology techniques from Dr Park. He was clearly passionate about the work he does, as well as an excellent teacher. I thank him for his patience and generosity during my stay. I’m also grateful to Lee-Anne Manning for showing me around and answering questions during my stay.

Dr Kye Chung Park welcomed me into his lab and taught me the basics of electrophysiology.

…

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug

November 14, 2017 By Tom Leave a Comment

Scientific name: Halyomorpha halys (Stål 1855)
Common name: Brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB)
Native range: China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan
Current invaded range: Canada, USA, Chile, at least 11 EU countries

BMSB – By Hectonichus via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

…

Samurai Wasp vs Sneaky Stink Bug: A PhD in the Making

November 7, 2017 By Tom Leave a Comment

Insects fascinate me, and I want my science to have real impact. That’s why I’m teaming up with Dr Gonzalo Avila from Plant & Food Research, and Dr Greg Holwell from The University of Auckland. I started a PhD project last month to improve the way that classical biological control agents are tested before release. I’m looking at a current hot-topic in pest management: Brown marmorated stink bug.

…