I ASSESSING the ROLE of BIOLOGICAL CONTROL AGENTS of CUTWORMS (LEPIDOPTERA: NOCTUIDAE) in FIELD CROPS in the CANADIAN PRAIRIES B
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ASSESSING THE ROLE OF BIOLOGICAL CONTROL AGENTS OF CUTWORMS (LEPIDOPTERA: NOCTUIDAE) IN FIELD CROPS IN THE CANADIAN PRAIRIES By UDARI MADUSHANI WANIGASEKARA A Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies of The University of Manitoba In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department of Entomology University of Manitoba Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada Copyright ©2020 by R.W.M. UDARI MADUSHANI WANIGASEKARA i ABSTRACT Cutworms can cause serious damage to crops in the Prairies Ecozone of southern Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. By far, the best-known biocontrol agents of pest cutworms are parasitoids. However, the community of parasitoids is poorly known, and parasitoids remain as an unutilized resource for controlling cutworms. Thus, this study is designed to identify the economically important cutworms, to characterize the taxonomy and biology of the parasitoid community attacking those cutworm species in relationships to cutworm biology, and to identify and characterize potential plant resources that can enhance pest control services of parasitoids in the Prairies. Cutworms, including redbacked, darksided, dingy, and army cutworms were collected from infested fields and reared in the laboratory conditions during 2012-2016. Hymenopteran parasitoids emerged from cutworms were 64% Encyrtidae, 23% Ichneumonidae, and 13% Braconidae. The percent parasitized by each species was below 10% throughout the study period. Copidosoma bakeri and Copidosoma cuproviridis were the two Encyrtidae species recorded according to their original descriptions, but data obtained from their morphology, morphometry, genetic, collection locality, and host data support did not provide support for two species and new revision for this genus is needed. C. bakeri was the most common parasitoid recorded in the Prairies, and 89.1 % of hymenopteran parasitoids recorded from Manitoba were C. bakeri. Thus, C. bakeri was the only species capable of controlling cutworms in Manitoba. In contrast, both Cotesia spp. and C. bakeri were parasitizing cutworm communities in Alberta. All other hymenopteran parasitoids were recorded in small numbers or recorded only once during the study period. Finally, I assessed potential cover crops that could provide resources to parasitoids with respect to buckwheat, camelina, canola, chickling vetch, field pennycress, flax, oriental mustard, phacelia, and tillage radish and found camelina is the best candidate for cover ii cropping. This study is the critical first step in developing sustainable management practices for cutworms in canola and will develop the framework for future research on parasitoids and habitat management to develop effective biocontrol strategies. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to my supervisor, Dr. Barb Sharanowski, for taking up the responsibility of supervising and mentoring me during my pursuit of a Ph.D. degree. Her strong support and continuous encouragement motivated me throughout my study leading to the successful completion of my Ph. D. project. I was blessed to have an advisor like you in my life. Secondly, I extend my sincere appreciation to my dissertation Supervisory Committee Members, Dr. Rob Currie, Dr. Alejandro C. Costamagna, and Dr. Yvonne Lawley for providing their invaluable guidance, support, and suggestions on my dissertation project. My appreciation goes to the Canola Agronomic Research Program (CARP) and the Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development (MAFRD) Agri-Food Research and Development Initiative (ARDI) for providing funding for this project. I would like to acknowledge Dr. John Gavloski, Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives for providing information on cutworm infested fields in Manitoba, and we thank Dr. Kevin Floate, Jenifer Otani, Jeremy Hummel for collecting, rearing and providing us specimens. Also, I am deeply grateful to Dr. Jose Fernandez-Triana, Dr. Andrew Bennett and Dr. Gary Gibson (Canadian National Collection, Ottawa, Canada) for species identification. I would also like to thank Whitney Lodge-Zaparnick, Amber Bass, Melanie Scallion, Chalsie Warren, Pablo Krüger Fernandes Regan Bell, Iris Vaisman, Eric Wallace at the University of Manitoba for assistance with fieldwork and insect rearing, Also I would like to extend my thanks to Miles Zhang, Ryan D. Ridenbaugh and Leanne Peixoto at the University of Florida for providing me with the technical support for the molecular and morphometrics work. Also, I would like to thank technicians, Mr. David Holder, Mr. Phil Snarr, Mr. Derek Eyer for iv their assistance in both lab and field experiments. I wish to thank Mr. Jordan Bannerman for invaluable assistance provided to me in data analyses. This work could not have been done without the support of farmers in Manitoba, Alberta, and Saskatchewan, and I would like to extend our gratitude to farmers for granting permission for us to collect samples from their fields. I wish to thank all the members of the support and administration staff of the Department of Entomology, the University of Manitoba for their kindness and support during my studies. I would like to express my gratitude to the Government of Manitoba, Faculty of Agriculture and Food Sciences, Faculty of Graduate Studies, Entomological Society of America, Entomological Society of Canada, and Entomological Society of Manitoba for the financial support offered throughout my project. Special thanks to my past and present lab mates for their company, especially my dear friends, Miles Zhang, Amber Bass, and Melanie Scallion. A friendly chat with you was priceless for me in difficult situations. I also thank fellow students who were not part of the Sharanowski Lab, but who have provided friendship and support, and with whom I have shared laughter, frustration and companionship. I particularly extend my gratitude towards the Tharshinidevy Nagalingam family for accommodating me in their home when I first came to Canada and for their kind support and encouragement during my study. Finally, I acknowledge the people who mean a lot to me, my parents and in-laws for showing faith in me and giving me the liberty to choose what I desired. I salute you all for the selfless love, care, pain and sacrifices you made to shape my life. And most of all, I owe my deepest gratitude to my husband, Lahiru Ishan, for his affection, encouragement, understanding v and patience. He supported me without any complaint or regret that enabled me to complete my Ph.D. This acknowledgement would be incomplete without thanking my little one, Nethula Methsithu, whose smiling face always made me happy and inspired me. Having him midway during my Ph.D. was certainly not easy for me but he has made my life wonderful. vi DEDICATION To Lahiru Ishan, my amazing husband, whose sacrificial care for me and our little one made it possible for me to complete this work, and to my parents and teachers, who have taught me the importance of cultivating compassion and universal loving-kindness for lifetime happiness and success vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................... iv DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................... vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ...................................................................................................... viii LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................................. xii LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................... xiv LIST OF APPENDICES ..................................................................................................... xviii THE PUBLICATION STATUS OF EACH CHAPTER OF THE THESIS, AND THE ROLE OF EACH COAUTHOR IN RELEVANT CHAPTERS ....................................... xix LIST OF COPYRIGHTED MATERIALS ......................................................................... xxi Chapter 1 ....................................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Cutworm biology, damage, and control ............................................................................ 1 1.2 Hymenopteran parasitoids, potential biological control agents of cutworm .................... 4 1.3 Habitat management for conservation biological control ................................................. 5 1.4 Objectives ......................................................................................................................... 6 1.5 Thesis organization ........................................................................................................... 7 Chapter 2 ..................................................................................................................................... 12 Cover crops as a tool for insect pest management with a focus on oilseed brassicas ....... 12 2.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 13 2.2 Cover crops for conservation biocontrol of arthropod pests