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Student 10-Minute Presentation Competition

Plant-Insect Ecosystems

Student Competition

Student

Grad 10-min Competition: P-IE, Biocontrol

Evaluating the effect of biological control strategies against wheat stem sawfly (Cephus cinctus) in Colorado wheat

Monday, November 10, 2025
8:36 AM - 8:48 AM Pacific
Location: Oregon Convention Center, E145, OCC
Oral Presentation Student Competition
The wheat stem sawfly (WSS), Cephus cinctus Norton, is a major pest of wheat crops in Colorado and the Great Plains, causing significant economic losses. Yield losses from WSS can be due to stem boring and/or stem cutting, which causes plants to lodge. While solid-stem cultivars and cultural practices offer partial control, there remains a critical need for additional sustainable measures. This research explores two complementary biological control approaches: entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) and the parasitoid wasp, Bracon cephi. Greenhouse trials were conducted to assess the efficacy of commercial EPF strains Beauveria bassiana GHA and Isaria fumosorosea FE 9901 against WSS larvae. Treated wheat plants (cultivars BYRD and Amplify) were exposed to natural oviposition, and larval survival was subsequently evaluated. In addition, B. cephi parasitoids sourced from Nebraska were experimentally released in infested wheat fields across Colorado. Parasitism rates were assessed pre- and post-harvest across the released fields to evaluate establishment. Preliminary findings suggest successful establishment of B. cephi in Colorado wheat-growing regions. Collectively, these efforts aim to develop regionally adapted biological control tools that can be integrated into existing IPM frameworks for the long-term suppression of WSS populations.