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Oral Presentation

Poster Display

Student Competition

Ticketed Event

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Student Poster Display Competition

Plant-Insect Ecosystems

Student Competition

Student

Grad Poster Competition: P-IE, Parasitoids, Parasites, and Predators

The impact of salinity on plant-insect interactions

Monday, November 10, 2025

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Pacific

Location: Exhibit Hall A-A1, OCC

Presenting Author(s)

Sahil Vinod Pawar

Pennsylvania State University
State College, Pennsylvania

Co-Author(s)

RM

Rorri Mueller

Penn state university
State College, Pennsylvania
BS

Bijay Subedi

Pennsylvania State University
State College, Pennsylvania
MP

Michelle Peiffer

Penn state university
State College, Pennsylvania
GF

Gary Felton

Pennsylvania State University
University Park, Pennsylvania

The progressive salinization of cultivable land poses a major problem for tomato production. Additional pressures by insect herbivores cause further yield losses. But how are insect herbivores affected by rising salinity? In this study, we examined the effects of salt on the tomato fruitworm Helicoverpa zea, its parasitoid wasp Microplitis croceipes, and the predatory ladybeetle Harmonia axyridis. We find that salt stress negatively impacts H. zea caterpillar growth and moth ovipositon. We also find that the parasitoid wasps show delayed development parameters in salt-treated H. zea larvae, while predators consume a higher amount of salt-treated H. zea larvae. The negative effects of salt cascade across trophic levels, but have huge implications for pest control strategies in saline agricultural lands.