Szczepaniec Lab
Applied Entomology and Sustainable Pest Management
Research conducted over the last 10-15 years has made significant strides in enhancing our knowledge of the mechanisms that drive direct and indirect plant resistance to herbivores, and we understand them better than ever before. These advances have rarely been applied to integrated pest management, however, and crop protection remains largely dependent on applications of insecticides to prevent and treat pest outbreaks. Szczepaniec Lab is keenly interested in plant-insect interactions but firmly rooted in applied research, and we integrate molecular approaches with field and greenhouse research to promote deeper understanding of mechanisms that lower resistance of plants in managed landscapes. The goal of our work is to make meaningful contributions to extend this knowledge to plant protection to improve long-term sustainability of pest management in diverse systems including trees and shrubs, vegetables, alternative and niche crops.
Our Current Projects
IPM of Hemp Pests
Industrial hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) is one of the fastest growing industries in the country, and Colorado is one of the leading producers of floral hemp used for cannabinoid extraction. Our lab works collaboratively to develop integrated pest management that is effective, feasible for growers, sustainable, and ecologically sound. Current work includes research on suppression of hemp russet mites, Aculops cannibicola Farkas (Acari: Eriophyidae), and IPM for pests associated with organic hemp production.
Alfalfa Mosaic Virus in Chili Peppers
Chili peppers have been a profitable specialty crop in Arkansas Valley of Colorado, requiring few pest control tactics and costly insecticide inputs. However, recent incidence of a viral disease, alfalfa mosaic virus (AMV) transmitted to peppers by aphids has threatened the sustainability and profitability of this valuable specialty crop. The goal of this work is to develop effective integrated pest management tactics to suppress this virus and its vector in chili peppers.
IPM for a New Emerging Pest of Quinoa
Quinoa, Chenopodium quinoa Willd (Amaranthaceae) – a traditionally Andean grain cultivated in South America for over 5,000 years is an excellent climate-resilient crop that has been grown in the US since the late 1980’s. However, a stem-boring insect has recently colonized quinoa in Colorado (and neighboring states) – an agromyzid fly, Amauromyza karli Hendel (Diptera: Agromyzidae). This insect has affected all acreage of quinoa in Colorado. We are working on developing IPM for A. karli to suppress its devastating impact on quinoa.
Lab News
December 2024
PhD students Lara Amiri-Kaziz and Neha Panwar were each awarded professional awards from the Agricultural Biology Department! Lara and Neha both received the William M. Brown Professional Development Award and Lara also received the Bert Bohmont Graduate Student Award for Excellence in Extension Education! We are so proud of you, Lara and Neha!! Way to go, ladies!!! 🙂
November 2024
The Entomological Society of America’s annual meeting was held this month in Phoenix, Arizona and several lab members attended. A very special shoutout goes to lab PhD student, Lara Amiri-Kaziz, as she was awarded second place for her talk in the graduate student competition!! Way to go, Lara!!
October 2024
This month we welcomed Kadie Britt, our new IPM Program Manager! Kadie comes to us from the University of California, where she completed a postdoc focused on pest management in hemp and cannabis as well as coordinated an areawide integrated pest management program to manage navel orangeworm in almonds and pistachios in Fresno County, California. Prior to her postdoc, she earned her master’s in entomology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and PhD in entomology from Virginia Tech!
July 2024
Neha Panwar, PhD student, has published a new open access paper on endophytic entomopathogenic fungi as biological control agents of insect pests. Congratulations, Neha!!
March 2024
Neha Panwar, PhD student, and Paige Olson, M.S. student have been busy sharing their research at recent meetings of the Entomological Society of America. They both presented their work at the national ESA meeting in National Harbor, MD in November 2023, and the North Central Branch of the Entomological Society of America in Fort Collins in March 2024. Congratulations on great presentations!
Our students, Lara Amiri-Kazaz, Neha Panwar, and Paige Olson served on the Local Arrangement Committee for the North Central Branch of the Entomological Society of America meeting. The students worked tirelessly to support the meeting and the attendees, and we received many compliments from attendees. Thank you for your service on this committee!
February 2024
Congratulations to Paige Olson, who successfully defended her M.S. project on Valentine’s Day, 2024!
We recently published a paper on suppression of hemp russet mite in Environmental Entomology
October 2023
Taylor Janecek (M.S. Entomology) successfully defended his thesis on alfalfa mosaic virus transmission in chili peppers. The project will be continued by Lara Amiri-Kazaz (Ph.D. in Sustainable Insect Pest Management), who joined the Szczepaniec lab this fall. Welcome Lara, and congratulations Taylor!
April 2023
Taylor Janecek (M.S. Entomology) delivered his first professional talk at the North Central Branch of the Entomological Society of America discussing his research on alfalfa mosaic virus transmission in chili peppers.
Dr. Ada Szczepaniec wrote a blog post for Entomology Today about the devastating impacts of Amauromyza karli on quinoa production in Colorado. In the blog post, Dr. Szczepaniec highlights the benefits of quinoa cultivation, our current understanding on the biology of A. karli, and future research projects for sustainable management of this pest.
February 2023
Dr. Ada Szczepaniec and her research associate, Gabe Alnajjar, recently published a pest profile in the journal of IPM describing a new stem-boring pest (Aumoromyza karli) of quinoa in the United States. There are currently no management recommendations for A. karli, which has recently devastated quinoa production in Colorado. Therefore this article is an important first step toward developing sustainable management programs for this novel pest.
Spring 2023
Two new graduate students have joined the Szczepaniec lab so far this year. Paige Olson is pursuing a M.S. in insect pest management, while Neha Panwar is pursuing a Ph.D. entomology. In addition, we have recently hired two undergraduate students to assist with various research projects. Justice Rogers is majoring in fish, wildlife, and conservation biology, and Annabelle Williamson is an agricultural biology major.
December 2022
Taylor Janecek (M.S. Entomology) received the Howard Schwartz Award for Excellence in Integrated Pest Management for his work on alfalfa mosaic virus transmission in chili peppers.
Summer & Fall 2022
Three undergraduate students joined the Szczepaniec lab in 2022. Carlo Vaughn and Rebecca Lampl are both majoring in horticulture, while Luke Deyle is a soil & crop science major. Luke graduated at the end of the year and is now a graduate student in the Nachappa lab.