Dane Elmquist | Washington State University (original) (raw)
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Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho"
Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC)
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Papers by Dane Elmquist
Journal of Economic Entomology
Polistes paper wasps in the Fuscopolistes subgenus (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) can be serious pests w... more Polistes paper wasps in the Fuscopolistes subgenus (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) can be serious pests when they swarm at tall man-made structures. Chemical attractants may be useful to trap such paper wasps when they achieve pest status. Polistes venom has been shown to elicit a variety of behavioral responses in congeneric wasps, making it a source for potential chemical attractants. The compound N-(3-methylbutyl)acetamide is a principal volatile component in the venom of many female vespid wasps, including numerous Polistes species. We report the presence of N-(3-methylbutyl)acetamide in autumn gynes of Polistes metricus Say, Polistes bellicosus Cresson, and Polistes dorsalis (F.), as well as workers of Polistes aurifer (Saussure), P. bellicosus, P. metricus, and P. dorsalis. In field tests conducted in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Washington, N-(3-methylbutyl)acetamide attracted male and female P. aurifer and P. metricus, as well as male P. dorsalis and P. bellicosus. Thus, N-...
Environmental Entomology
We investigated associative learning of food odors by the European paper wasp Polistes dominula C... more We investigated associative learning of food odors by the European paper wasp Polistes dominula Christ (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) because of consistent low rates of attraction to food materials in laboratory assays. We hypothesized that wasps in nature exhibit nonspecific food-finding behavior until locating a suitable food, and then respond more strongly and specifically to odors associated with that food reward. Female P. dominula workers exhibited higher rates of attraction in a flight tunnel to piped odors of fermented fruit purees following previous experience with that puree, compared to wasps with no prior experience with the fermented fruits. Attraction behavior included upwind-oriented flight and casting within the odor plume, indicative of chemoanemotaxis. Synthetic chemicals representative of volatiles P. dominula may encounter in nature while foraging was also tested. Similar increases in attraction responses occurred following feeding experience with a sugar solution that included either 3-methyl-1-butanol or pear ester, but not eugenol. These experimental results support the hypothesis of associative learning of food odors in P. dominula. We discuss the ecological relevance of our results and suggest an alternative approach to trap paper wasps in pest situations utilizing learned chemical attractants.
Annals of the Entomological Society of America
Citizen Science: Theory and Practice
Members of the public are the foundation and the backbone of citizen science, but much remains un... more Members of the public are the foundation and the backbone of citizen science, but much remains unknown about how the public views citizen science. We conducted a survey of public familiarity with, and perceptions of, citizen science. We found that less than half of respondents were familiar with the term "citizen science," but over 70% were familiar with the concept by another name. Most respondents were more confident in hypothetical citizen science findings when professional scientists were involved to some degree, compared to situations in which only citizen scientists were involved. Confidence in citizen science findings tended to increase with age, despite the fact that self-confidence in respondents' own abilities to perform citizen science tasks decreased with age. Fewer than half of respondents (31-47%), and more men than women, were confident in their own ability to perform science process tasks, with the exception of collecting data (53% confident), and only slightly more predicted they would enjoy such activities. Based on our findings, we suggest ways in which leaders of citizen science projects can better promote recruitment, retention, and engagement on the part of volunteers and the public as a whole.
Journal of Economic Entomology
Polistes paper wasps in the Fuscopolistes subgenus (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) can be serious pests w... more Polistes paper wasps in the Fuscopolistes subgenus (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) can be serious pests when they swarm at tall man-made structures. Chemical attractants may be useful to trap such paper wasps when they achieve pest status. Polistes venom has been shown to elicit a variety of behavioral responses in congeneric wasps, making it a source for potential chemical attractants. The compound N-(3-methylbutyl)acetamide is a principal volatile component in the venom of many female vespid wasps, including numerous Polistes species. We report the presence of N-(3-methylbutyl)acetamide in autumn gynes of Polistes metricus Say, Polistes bellicosus Cresson, and Polistes dorsalis (F.), as well as workers of Polistes aurifer (Saussure), P. bellicosus, P. metricus, and P. dorsalis. In field tests conducted in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Washington, N-(3-methylbutyl)acetamide attracted male and female P. aurifer and P. metricus, as well as male P. dorsalis and P. bellicosus. Thus, N-...
Environmental Entomology
We investigated associative learning of food odors by the European paper wasp Polistes dominula C... more We investigated associative learning of food odors by the European paper wasp Polistes dominula Christ (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) because of consistent low rates of attraction to food materials in laboratory assays. We hypothesized that wasps in nature exhibit nonspecific food-finding behavior until locating a suitable food, and then respond more strongly and specifically to odors associated with that food reward. Female P. dominula workers exhibited higher rates of attraction in a flight tunnel to piped odors of fermented fruit purees following previous experience with that puree, compared to wasps with no prior experience with the fermented fruits. Attraction behavior included upwind-oriented flight and casting within the odor plume, indicative of chemoanemotaxis. Synthetic chemicals representative of volatiles P. dominula may encounter in nature while foraging was also tested. Similar increases in attraction responses occurred following feeding experience with a sugar solution that included either 3-methyl-1-butanol or pear ester, but not eugenol. These experimental results support the hypothesis of associative learning of food odors in P. dominula. We discuss the ecological relevance of our results and suggest an alternative approach to trap paper wasps in pest situations utilizing learned chemical attractants.
Annals of the Entomological Society of America
Citizen Science: Theory and Practice
Members of the public are the foundation and the backbone of citizen science, but much remains un... more Members of the public are the foundation and the backbone of citizen science, but much remains unknown about how the public views citizen science. We conducted a survey of public familiarity with, and perceptions of, citizen science. We found that less than half of respondents were familiar with the term "citizen science," but over 70% were familiar with the concept by another name. Most respondents were more confident in hypothetical citizen science findings when professional scientists were involved to some degree, compared to situations in which only citizen scientists were involved. Confidence in citizen science findings tended to increase with age, despite the fact that self-confidence in respondents' own abilities to perform citizen science tasks decreased with age. Fewer than half of respondents (31-47%), and more men than women, were confident in their own ability to perform science process tasks, with the exception of collecting data (53% confident), and only slightly more predicted they would enjoy such activities. Based on our findings, we suggest ways in which leaders of citizen science projects can better promote recruitment, retention, and engagement on the part of volunteers and the public as a whole.