Summer Research Minigrant Program

2024 - Amon, Fisher, Glynn, Hrycyna, Judd, Lewis, Lu, Oker, Robbins, Shoenberger, Terris

Nolan Amon investigated the bacterial communities of flies on dairy farms to determine their structure, relationship with fly natural history, and potential risk for disease transmission to cattle.

Tanner Judd leveraged stable isotopes to investigate the power of grass cover crops for retaining fall-applied manure nitrogen.

Fletcher Robbins determined the impact of various weather factors and circadian rhythm on pest ‘catchability’ for several important pests of alfalfa and soybean.

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Lauren Glynn leverages computer vision and machine learning to monitor biodiversity in agricultural ecosystems. Her research focuses on automating insect identification and classification to improve pest management strategies and support sustainable farming practices.

Chris Lewis studied how small farmers in Chiquimula, Guatemala are managing climate-change-induced water scarcity.

Erica partners with Wisconsin farmers to evaluate the ecosystem benefits of growing Kernza, a perennial grain. She also interviews these growers to understand their experiences and challenges with growing, processing, and marketing this new crop.

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Elizabeth Hrycyna tested how best to use microscopic roundworms as a biopesticide to control a cranberry pest beetle in commercial cranberry marshes.

Maddie Olson (left), Christopher Heckel (middle), Yu Lu (right) after a productive, thoughtful, and insightful discussion about farm financial programs and conservation practices during a farm visit in Wisconsin.

Emma Terris investigated the potential for cross-resistance across insecticides in Colorado potato beetles on Wisconsin organic potato farms.

Summary

A survey of brachyceran fly communities within Wisconsin dairy barns, and their relationship with disease incidence
Student Researcher: Nolan Amon, Bacteriology
Faculty Advisor: Kerri Coon, Bacteriology

Nolan investigated the bacterial communities of flies on dairy farms to determine their structure, relationship with fly natural history, and potential risk for disease transmission to cattle. Mastitis, an inflammation of the udder tissue, can be induced by bacterial pathogens and is the costliest disease globally to the dairy industry, costing almost $20 billion globally in 2016. Over 9,000 fly samples were collected, yielding lots of bacterial community data! Analyses are ongoing, but preliminary results indicate the presence of potentially pathogenic bacteria including E. Coli, Staphylococcus spp., and Klebsiella spp. in all fly taxa studied and show that non-biting nuisance flies harbor a distinct bacterial community compared with biting flies. All fly bacterial groupings were distinct from manure.  Future results may allow for better control of mastitis on dairy farms through targeting specific fly taxa, and increase the overall health and productivity of cattle on dairy farms.

Automating Pest Management with Machine Learning
Student Researcher: Lauren Glynn, Entomology

Faculty Advisor: Emily Bick, Entomology

Biodiversity monitoring is essential for the effective management of ecosystems, especially in agricultural contexts where pest control plays a critical role. A key challenge in pest management is understanding the dynamics of insect populations, including both the abundance of natural predators and their temporal presence, as these factors are vital for biological pest control strategies. However, traditional biodiversity assessments—relying on fieldwork and manual sampling—are often time-consuming, labor-intensive, and prone to human error. To address these challenges, Glynn’s research, supported by the Bick Lab, is focused on advancing technology-based approaches for monitoring biodiversity, with a specific focus on pest dynamics in agricultural ecosystems.

Biological Control of Red-headed Flea Beetle (Systena frontalis) in Cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) with Entomopathogenic Nematodes
Student Researcher: Elizabeth Hrycyna, Entomology

Faculty Advisor: Christelle Guedot, Entomology

The US is the largest producer of cranberries (Vaccinium macrocarpon) in the world, with the greatest production in Wisconsin. The adults of the native cranberry pest Systena frontalis (red-headed flea beetle) defoliate cranberry leaves which reduces plant photosynthetic capacity and leads to reduced fruit yields in the following year. In recent years S. frontalis prevalence and damage to plants has increased. This is in part due to legal restrictions of broad-spectrum insecticides traditionally used to target this pest which remove controls of this pest. Such restrictions are expected to increase. Wisconsin cranberry growers express a high desire for alternative methods of control in the face of diminishing options.

A Direct Approach to Measure Cover Crop Nitrogen Uptake from Dairy Manure via 15N Enrichment
Student Researcher: Tanner Judd, Soil Science

Faculty Advisor: Matt Ruark, Soil Science

For this project, the summer of 2024 included wrapping up the end of the first study year and beginning the second. This project aimed to successfully isotopically label manure with a 15N signature and apply it post-silage harvest with four different cover crop varieties to trace the fate of manure N from fall application to spring termination. In May of 2024, I successfully conducted my final cover crop biomass and soil sampling prior to the termination of cover crops. In August and September 2024, I completed manure collection, application, soil sampling, and cover crop seeding. Throughout the summer, I also had opportunities to share my research through webinars and other stakeholder events in Wisconsin.

Participatory Approaches to Climate-Resilient Agriculture in the Guatemalan Dry Corridor
Student Researcher: Christopher Lewis, Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies
Faculty Advisor: Claudia Irene Calderon, Horticulture

The purpose of his travel to Guatemala in summer 2024 was preliminary PhD fieldwork focused on how smallholder farmers in the Guatemalan Dry Corridor are responding to climate change. The goal was to 1) build relationships with key partners, including at the Universidad de San Carlos, Centro Universitario de Oriente (CUNORI), 2) make initial contact with members of rural communities, and 3) conduct scoping conversations with farmers focused on the climate change impacts they are seeing, how they are responding, and their interests and desires for future research. The results from all of these activities will be used to develop a dissertation research project.

Sustainable Farmers’ Land Management Practices and Agricultural Financial Programs in the Upper Midwest
Student Researcher: Yu Lu, Forest and Wildlife Ecology

Faculty Advisor: Adena Rissman, Forest and Wildlife Ecology

Farmers’ conservation land practices, such as cover crops and perennials, have profound impacts on soil health and water quality. Agricultural financial programs, including crop insurance, agricultural loans, and conservation cost-share programs, are important in enabling farmers to adapt to climate change and market risks while influencing land management practices and farm soil and water conservation. Yu’s research aims to explore farmers’ perceptions and experiences with these financial programs and their relationships to the adoption of conservation practices, such as conservation tillage, cover crops, rotational grazing, and pollinators or prairie plants. Based on a farmer survey and follow-up interviews with participants across eight states in the Upper Midwest, Yu found that crop insurance has positive relationships with certain cropland conservation practices, like conservation tillage, but tends to discourage the adoption of biodiversity practices on croplands, such as pollinator or prairie plantings, as well as conservation practices on grasslands. In contrast, conservation cost-share programs were positively associated with the adoption of a wider range of conservation practices, particularly those aimed at enhancing soil and water conservation. However, they did not show a significant relationship with the adoption of biodiversity conservation practices. The results of this project were presented at four agriculture and conservation conferences during the summer of 2024 and will be disseminated through research briefs and peer-reviewed papers.

Research Proposal: Delivering Effective Pest Scouting Recommendations Based on Insect Circadian Rhythm
Student Researcher: Fletcher Robbins, Entomology
Faculty Advisor: Emily Bick, Entomology

This study set out to evaluate the relationship between the “catchability” of several pests in alfalfa and soybean and the circadian rhythm and weather conditions. This work will improve the accuracy of pest scouting activities by quantifying the impact of various factors which may introduce bias into the outcome. Doing so will enhance the capacity to design scientific protocols by reducing potential random errors that are currently introduced through sampling protocol. This could also improve the resulting decision making based off of the results of these sampling regimes.

Sowing Sustainability: Cultivating Kernza Networks for Resilient Agriculture in Wisconsin
Student Researcher: Erica Shoenberger, Entomology

Faculty Advisor: Valentin Picasso, Agronomy

The summer of 2024 was pivotal in establishing Wisconsin’s first coordinated Kernza-farmer network. This project aimed to assess Kernza’s role in reducing nutrient loss and soil erosion on sloped lands, particularly its potential to minimize phosphorus (P) loss and improve soil health. To achieve this, I planned to collect field data, conduct interviews with farmers, and organize a field day for growers to share experiences and knowledge. These activities were designed not only to gather vital research data but also to foster relationships within a growing community of farmers, researchers, and stakeholders committed to sustainable agricultural practices.

Characterizing the potential for resistance and cross-resistance to insecticides on Wisconsin organic potato farms
Student Researcher: Emma Terris, Entomology
Faculty Advisor: Russell Groves, Entomology

Wisconsin is one of the primary potato producers in the United States, with close to 70,000 acres dedicated to the crop in an average year. As such, mitigating yield loss from pests, pathogens, and weeds is of great importance to Wisconsin growers. The Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata, CPB) is considered the most devastating insect pest of potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) worldwide and therefore, a major threat to potato cultivation. Specifically in Wisconsin, there is a mixture of both conventional and organic potato farms that exist in relative proximity, and many growers (especially organic) struggle to effectively control this pest.