July 20th- Blog Post 4

The remaining two insect species that I work with, and which take up the majority of my time, are the two Green Lacewings species (Chrysoperla carnea and Chrysoperla oculata) and the Aphids (Aphidoidea). Meg and I often look for new insect genetics in the fields outside to keep our colonies healthy, which is why we occasionally have two different species of a particular insect.

GREEN LACEWINGS (both Chrysoperla carnea and Chrysoperla oculata)

While the purpose of our Green Lacewings and Stink Bugs is the same (to feed on Aphids in our greenhouses), we rear both species just in case. If, for example, one species were to get a disease, have decreased population size or inefficiently work as a biological control, then we have another species to use as backup. However, the Green Lacewings greatly differ from the Stink Bugs in the manner of how they are reared and what we feed them. Meg and I feed the Lacewings a brown food (a mix of proteins and essential nutrients) , aphids and we provide them with a water dish. Their habitat is enclosed within one of our mesh bug houses and includes water for drinking, pepper plants for habitat and hiding, and cut up grass and peppers for hiding and as a location to lay eggs. An example of this is shown below;

Lacewings are the insect crop that takes up the most of my time as they are quite demanding. This work includes collecting their pupa, checking pupa cages for new emergents, watering pepper plants, releasing adults to greenhouses and of course, feeding. Collecting pupa is the most delicate and small jobs that I do here at the Research Station as the pupa are so small and hidden. Underneath the cut grass and pepper plants you will find pieces of dirt, but no visible pupa! With a small paintbrush, I brush along the floor of the cage until I feel a sticky ball catch on my paintbrush or I see a sticky white ball clumped to dirt- these are the pupa! I then gently pick them up with the paintbrush, record how many I collect, then transfer them to a smaller bug house where they can emerge before being released to a greenhouse. Shown below is me collecting Green Lacewings pupa (top) and the Green Lacewing houses for pupa and eventually, new emergents (bottom).

Lacewings can either be released to the greenhouse from the emergents bug house or from the adult house if it is overpopulated. At the moment, most of the ornamental crops from Meg’s greenhouse have been planted throughout the grounds so we have no use for the lacewings. However, the greenhouse department has year-round indoor crops such as tomatoes and raspberries so they are contently fighting with greenhouse pests and have use for our predatory insects. When working with the Lacewings, I have to keep a close eye out that none escape, and if they do, I have to catch them and return them to their bug house. Catching Green Lacewings is a very amusing job that I really enjoy doing as it feels like I’m taking part in calf roping in a rodeo. They are caught by pinching the wings together- which is tricky if they are very nervous and flying around.

APHIDS (Aphidoidea)

The aphids are reared solely for the purpose of feeding the Green Lacewings, so it is important that we do everything possible to keep their population size maintained. Aphid habitat is within a covered and contained Styrofoam cup (shown below) which needs to be changed twice a week.

Each cup is filled 1/6 full with water then a plastic SOLO cup with a small hole in it is placed above the water line. The stem of a freshly cut pepper leaf is then placed in the small hole so the water can keep the leaf fresh and provide the aphids with habitat and food. Shown below is a new colony cup with a fresh leaf (left) and an old colonies cup where the leaf is covered in aphids (right).

Following this, we need the Aphids. From previous colonies, we take the Aphid filled leaf from the Styrofoam cup and find three sexually mature adults to move to the new colony. As shown below, this work is done under a microscope so you can identify the distinct bump on the rear of an adult aphid which distinguishes it from the juveniles.

It is important to have 3-5 sexually mature adults in the new colony so that enough young can be born and raised for food. Sometimes, leaves from an old colony become overpopulated and it is impossible to retrieved sexually mature adults without affecting others. Overpopulation can be distinguished either by the number or the color of the aphids- if some have turned from their pale green to a pale pink color, that is a sign of stress from overpopulation. In these cases, that portion of the leaf can be discarded and will be fed to the Lacewings. Once the appropriate amount of adult Aphids have been placed in the new colony, the Styrofoam container can be sealed with a piece of tissue paper and a top exposed plastic drink lid. In peak greenhouse season (December-June), 12-14 cups will be made up. However, in the off months (mid June-December), 6-8 cups are prepared.

Note: It is important to avoid entering a greenhouse directly after working with aphid colonies as they are often on your person (though you can’t always see or feel them) and you can infect the crops.

THE OPEN HOUSE

On Saturday July 16th, our research station paired with the UBC Dairy Farm and hosted an Open House where approximately 1000 public  visitors toured our farm and experienced a bit of what we do. Lots was required of staff to prepare the grounds, lectures, tours, displays, interactive activities and food. I was honored to be asked to run the first ever kids zone- I love working with kids so much and event planning is one of my favorite things to do! The kids zone was completely student run with 4 volunteers working at all times running snail races, superworm races, craft station and face painting. I’m so thankful to my helpers as they made the station run so much more smoothly and their enthusiasm made my day so much fun. Running the kids zone reinforced to me the importance of involving people of all ages in our work, whether that be agriculture, science, animal welfare or environmental protection, as our community is diverse and every person plays a part in it. It is never too early to inspire people or expose them to the more complex world that our farm studies.

Below are some pictures of the day.