—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, June 24,1978
106
War
By JOANNE SPAHR
LANCASTER - Tuesday
was D-Day. More
specifically, it was
distribution day for cereal
leaf beetle parasites in
several counties around the
Commonwealth. And,
hopefully, D-Day also
marked the beginning of the
end for a large number of
cereal leaf beetles in the
state.
The beetle is primarily a
European-Asian pest that
was first identified in the
United States in 1962 in
southwest Michigan. A
flying insect, the beetle has
since spread by prevailing
winds to the north and east,
and to a lesser extent to the
south. It did not miss Penn
sylvania in its travels.
In about 1966 the cereal
leaf beetle became a
problem in the western part
of the Commonwealth and
only in the last four years
has it found its way into the
eastern and southeastern
counties.
It does it damage in both
the adult and larval stages
by feeduig on the leaves of
oats, wheat, barley, and
other small grains. The
insect chews out all the
green chlorophyll-containing
cells. Heavy feeding gives
the plant a white, frosted
appearance
In southeastern counties of
Pennsylvania, where the
population has only been
building up over the last four
years, the tactic in con
trolling this pest is to
establish a parasite
population which will grow
at an equal rate as the beetle
and keep it under check.
This type of control - one in
which natural enemies, and
not pesticides, are used - is
known as a biological con
trol.
This week’s drop of cereal
leaf beetle parasites marked
the third such consecutive
attack in three years. Three
agencies were involved - the
United States Department of
Agriculture, the Penn
sylvania Department of
Agriculture, and the
Cooperative Extension
Service of the Pennsylvania
State University.
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ESH SPRAY
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on against cereal leaf beetle
Early on June 13,
representatives of the
USDA’s Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) collected cereal
leaf beetle parasites at an
insectary at Rock Springs.
After the parasites were
collected and packed in
specially prepared con
tainers, they were flown to
designated airports around
the state where the Penn
sylvania Bureau of Plant
Industry coordinators
distributed them to county
agents waiting to pick them
up.
This year, however, there
was a limited number of
parasites reared at the m
sectary. As a result, not
every county received the
wasp. Only a few counties in
Lancaster Farming’s
coverage area - including
Chester and Berks - were
able to receive them.
Jim Murningham, officer
m-charge of APHIS’ Plant
Protection Quarantine
Programs in Meadville,
explained that the wasps
were distributed to counties
where they had never before
been dropped and, also, to
the counties with the highest
production of small grains.
For the past two years
both Lancaster and York
finances
tons?
Counties have received the
cereal leaf beetle parasite
and were, therefore, unable
to participate this year.
Lebanon County has such a
small population of the
beetle that treatment for it is
not worthwhile, says County
Agent Denis Hoke.
Tony Dobrosky, agent for
York County, did note,
however, that in York more
calls were received in one
week this year than in all of
last year.
Berks County agent
Herbert Wetzel says he
scattered his cereal leaf
beetle parasites in three
drops over the entire county.
who
we do
A
H)K MOKK INFORMATION. CONTACT
\OIH FO( \l. (OINTV OFFICK.
The parasites are tiny
wasps imported from
Europe which attack only
the cereal leaf beetle and do
hot sting.
The wasps seek out the
beetle’s larvae (the growth
stage following the egg
stage) and lay their own
eggs inside the host. When
the parasite eggs hatch, the
young wasps eat their way
out, destroying the cereal
leaf beetle larvae in the
process.
The cereal- leaf beetle
parasite release program is
part of the federal-state
effort to reduce the use of
pesticides in controlling
We do. The Farm Credit System
Millions of tons of meat,
grain, fruits, melons, berries,
other crops that move from
the farm,ranch, or orchard
into storage, processing and
marketing by farmer
cooperatives. We’re the
Production Credit Associations,
and Federal Land Banks.
Owned by and operated
for the benefit
of farmers
and growers.
plant pests. A growing
concern over contamination
of the environment and a
reduced cost over a long
period of time has motivated
the shift to biological con
trol.
A significant economic
feature of biological control
is its moderating influence
with respect to new in
festations. Unlike chemical
pesticides, biological con
trols as a rule only have to be
repeated until parasite
populations become
established, according to
Henry F. Nixon, Director of
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