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Lessons From a 10-yr Invasive Species Webinar Program: Emerald Ash Borer University.

ABSTRACT: Information about invasive species needs to be spread rapidly across a wide geographic area following an invasion. However, in-person events can be time-consuming and costly for the participants, organizers, and presenters. Online programming like webinars can bridge this gap, but there is limited published data on how best to run these programs. We report on a 10-yr webinar program, Emerald Ash Borer University, and offer suggestions for improving their effectiveness as a communication tool. Webinar participants viewed the webinars positively and undertook recommended management actions. In addition, most of our survey respondents extended the reach of this program by widely sharing the information from the webinars. Posting the webinars on popular streaming platforms greatly extended their reach long after the live viewing event. Despite their longevity, viewers of recorded videos watched them differently than those viewing live events. We suggest modifying the format of future webinar presentations to accommodate these differences to improve information transfer.

SUBMITTER: Barnes EE

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8211870 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Lessons From a 10-yr Invasive Species Webinar Program: Emerald Ash Borer University.

Barnes Elizabeth E EE Usborne Robin R Stone Amy A Sadof Clifford S CS

Environmental entomology 20210601 3

Information about invasive species needs to be spread rapidly across a wide geographic area following an invasion. However, in-person events can be time-consuming and costly for the participants, organizers, and presenters. Online programming like webinars can bridge this gap, but there is limited published data on how best to run these programs. We report on a 10-yr webinar program, Emerald Ash Borer University, and offer suggestions for improving their effectiveness as a communication tool. We ...[more]

PMID: 33590856

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Project description:IntroductionDecision support models that predict both when and where to expect emerald ash borer (EAB), Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), are needed for the development and implementation of effective management strategies against this major invasive pest of ash (Fraxinus species) in North America and other regions such as Europe. We present a spatialized model of phenology and climatic suitability for EAB for use in the Degree-Days, Risk, and Phenological event mapping (DDRP) platform, which is an open-source decision support tool to help detect, monitor, and manage invasive threats.MethodsWe evaluated the model using presence records from three geographic regions (China, North America, and Europe) and a phenological dataset consisting primarily of observations from the northeastern and midwestern United States. To demonstrate the model, we produced phenological event maps for a recent year and tested for trends in EAB's phenology and potential distribution over a recent 20-year period.ResultsOverall, the model exhibited strong performance. Presence was correctly estimated for over 99% of presence records and predicted dates of adult phenological events corresponded closely with observed dates, with a mean absolute error of ca. 7 days and low estimates of bias. Climate stresses were insufficient to exclude EAB from areas with native Fraxinus species in North America and Europe; however, extreme weather events, climate warming, and an inability for EAB to complete its life cycle may reduce suitability for some areas. Significant trends toward earlier adult emergence over 20 years occurred in only some areas.DiscussionNear real-time model forecasts for the conterminous United States are available at two websites to provide end-users with decision-support for surveillance and management of this invasive pest. Forecasts of adult emergence and egg hatch are particularly relevant for surveillance and for managing existing populations with pesticide treatments and parasitoid introductions.

Project description:BackgroundInsects rely on olfaction to locate food, mates, and suitable oviposition sites for successful completion of their life cycle. Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (emerald ash borer) is a serious invasive insect pest that has killed tens of millions of North American ash (Fraxinus spp) trees and threatens the very existence of the genus Fraxinus. Adult A. planipennis are attracted to host volatiles and conspecifics; however, to date no molecular knowledge exists on olfaction in A. planipennis. Hence, we undertook an antennae-specific transcriptomic study to identify the repertoire of odor processing genes involved in A. planipennis olfaction.Methodology and principal findingsWe acquired 139,085 Roche/454 GS FLX transcriptomic reads that were assembled into 30,615 high quality expressed sequence tags (ESTs), including 3,249 isotigs and 27,366 non-isotigs (contigs and singletons). Intriguingly, the majority of the A. planipennis antennal transcripts (59.72%) did not show similarity with sequences deposited in the non-redundant database of GenBank, potentially representing novel genes. Functional annotation and KEGG analysis revealed pathways associated with signaling and detoxification. Several odor processing genes (9 odorant binding proteins, 2 odorant receptors, 1 sensory neuron membrane protein and 134 odorant/xenobiotic degradation enzymes, including cytochrome P450s, glutathione-S-transferases; esterases, etc.) putatively involved in olfaction processes were identified. Quantitative PCR of candidate genes in male and female A. planipennis in different developmental stages revealed developmental- and sex-biased expression patterns.Conclusions and significanceThe antennal ESTs derived from A. planipennis constitute a rich molecular resource for the identification of genes potentially involved in the olfaction process of A. planipennis. These findings should help in understanding the processing of antennally-active compounds (e.g. 7-epi-sesquithujene) previously identified in this serious invasive pest.

Dataset Information

Lessons From a 10-yr Invasive Species Webinar Program: Emerald Ash Borer University.

Publications

Lessons From a 10-yr Invasive Species Webinar Program: Emerald Ash Borer University.

Similar Datasets

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