Progress report for WPDP24-028
Project Information
Orthoptera – a diverse insect Order including grasshoppers and crickets – is ecologically important yet can cause substantial harm to farmers and ranchers. Orthoptera has been identified as a key pest species threatening western agricultural and non-agricultural areas. Out of the estimated 400 species found within western states, only a handful cause economic damage; regardless, impacts are realized across millions of acres during outbreak years. To minimize losses and reduce the health and environmental risks associated with their control, chemical applications should only be applied against pest species at their vulnerable live stages, and at appropriate thresholds. Further education is needed within the agricultural community to best accomplish these goals.
We propose to hold five train-the-trainers workshops focusing on Orthoptera identification, survey methods, and management throughout Northern California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho (see letters of support). Participants (e.g. Extension faculty, State and Federal government field staff, crop consultants, and certified Master Gardeners) will collectively provide a minimum of 800 additional training hours to their regional communities, using self-collected Orthoptera specimens and online and printed Extension resources developed as part of this program.
To best understand and respond to Orthoptera threats, both currently and in anticipation of future needs, we will additionally foster collaboration between the Oregon State Arthropod Collection (OSAC) and our agricultural partners. Dr. McNary, a visiting specialist, will train OSAC personnel in the identification of Orthoptera species, native and non-native. OSAC will then work to ID participant collections through photo and specimen submissions. This puts us in the best position to monitor for future changes in Orthoptera diversity and population dynamics. By combining insect ID and coordination with OSAC with the promotion of IPM principles, we will minimize the impact of Orthoptera outbreaks at reduced risk, while also preserving the biodiversity of this Order and its associated communities.
After the short-course, participants will
- be able to identify all major Orthoptera pest species found within their target regions, including their adult forms and
nymphal stages. - be able to differentiate pest species from non-pest species.
- have learned current IPM techniques used to monitor and manage Orthoptera outbreaks.
- be able to direct their audiences to appropriate online and mobile app materials when making their own Orthoptera management choices.
Within a year of attending the short-course, participants will have
- built specimen collections of regionally-recovered Orthoptera species, to be used as an in-house teaching tool when disseminating information to their audience of growers, ranchers, and gardeners. Specimen collections will be verified by an Orthoptera taxonomic specialist.
- collectively delivered a minimum of 800 hours of trainings about IPM principles as they relate to Orthoptera management in their home communities.
This project will furthermore establish relationships between the trainers and the Oregon State Arthropod Collection, as a means to increase our understanding about the diversity and distribution of Orthoptera species within the region.
The project timeline has been revised due to two key factors: the Oregon IPM Center received the funds in June 2024, and supplies and teaching materials were delivered in July 2024. Additionally, one of the training sessions did not meet the minimum participation requirements, so it has been rescheduled for 2025.
The adjusted timeline, as of January 2025 is found here: Revised timeline grasshopper 2025
Original Timeline
| April 2024 | Contact agricultural professionals to finalize training needs |
| May & June 2024 |
Publicize 2024 short-course (e.g. mailing list, social media, professional societies sites). Purchase, produce, and distribute materials. |
| August 2024 |
Train-the-Trainer Short-Courses, 2024:
Visiting taxonomist specializing in Orthoptera ID curates specimens, and provides additional training to OSAC on identification of novel species. |
| September to December 2024 |
Follow-up with 2024 attendees; collections (photos or specimens) sent to OSAC. Produce Extension Orthoptera Identification and IPM Management Guides; send for peer-review & printing. |
| April to June 2025 |
Publicize 2025 short-course (e.g. mailing list, social media, professional societies sites). Purchase, produce, and distribute materials. Distribute Extension Guides to 2024 attendees for their local trainings. Trainings start in June. |
| July & August 2025 |
Train-the-Trainer Short-Courses, 2025:
Perform periodic check-ins and monitor for reporting of local trainings completed by 2024 participants. |
| September 2025 |
Final survey of 2024 participants to obtain results of local training efforts, ways to improve extension resources, and identify future training topics. Follow-up with 2025 attendees; collections (photos or specimens) sent to OSAC. |
| September to December 2025 | Evaluate training materials. |
| April to June 2026 | Distribute Extension Guides to 2025 attendees for their local training sessions.
Trainings start in June. |
| July & August 2026 | Perform periodic check-ins and monitor for reporting of local trainings completed by 2025 participants. |
| September 2026 | Final survey of 2025 participants to obtain results of local training efforts, ways to improve extension resources, and identify future training topics. |
| October & November 2026 |
Summary of all participant responses, products, & outreach. Prepare and submit journal publication demonstrating program efficacy. |
| March 2027 |
Final report to WSARE. |
Cooperators
- - Technical Advisor
- - Technical Advisor
- - Technical Advisor
Education
01.17.2025 Extension Teaching Plan Grasshoppers training_
Extension Education Design
Program: Identification and management of Orthoptera pests in the Pacific Northwest
Course designers (s): Oregon IPM Center educator Paola Sotelo-Cardona; Oregon State Arthropod Collection, Christopher Marshall
Cooperators: depending on the region.
Session time: 16 hours.
Estimated class size: 20 participants & 3 trainers.
Learning environment: Classroom and field/on-site.
Intended audience: Agricultural specialists, Extension faculty, government field staff, and crop consultants.
Longer-term goal: Instructors will train the next generation of IPM practitioners on identifying and managing Orthoptera pests to minimize chemical usage in the Pacific Northwest.
Program outcome statement: Educators will develop a 2-day, 16-hour train-the-trainer course combining classroom and field training to teach agriculture specialists the skills for identifying, surveying, and IPM management principles related to Orthoptera pests in the Pacific Northwest. Five short courses will cover at-risk regions in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Northern California (up to 20 participants per course per region).
Expectations: For the practical portion of this training, participants will be encouraged to collect different stages of Orthoptera; the lectures/discussions described below will be mixed with field collection trips. Collection material will be provided /. Participants will be expected to view short videos about collecting, preserving, and mounting specimens.
The Oregon IPM Center has launched a website for participant registration in the grasshopper training series. The site provides easy access to online education materials and a detailed workshop agenda. https://agsci.oregonstate.edu/oipmc/grasshopper-workshop-2024
Education & Outreach Initiatives
Participants in the training will be able to identify all major Orthoptera pest species found within their target regions, including their adult forms and nymphal stages.
- An extension course has been designed to cover this objective.
- Timothy McNary, the Orthoptera curator from the C. P. Gillette Museum at Colorado State University, traveled to Oregon State University July 2024 to work with Christopher Marshall from OSAC (https://new-test.osac.oregonstate.edu/) to confirm the identification and curation of the grasshopper collection and revise the historical material that will be used as part of the teaching material on all training sites.
- As part of the grasshopper collection efforts needed for the teaching training materials, two volunteers and extension personnel from OSU at Eastern and Southern Oregon (Amanda Woodlee and Nicole Sanchez) sent grasshopper material to OSAC for curation, identification, and preservation.
- An undergraduate student, Phoebe Richards, developed a poster Richards URSA poster FINAL final on grasshopper identification. It was presented during the Spring Poster Symposium on Thursday, May 16, as part of OSU's URSA Engage program (https://undergradresearch.oregonstate.edu/ursa-engage).
After the training, agriculture specialists will have the skills to identify, survey Orthoptera pests in the Pacific Northwest.
Participants will learn the essential knowledge of Orthoptera distribution and ecological significance, as well as about the biology, life cycles, morphological characteristics, geographical range, and their ecological significance.
With the basic knowledge of insect morphology, participants will learn about the most important aspects of Orthoptera, differentiating major suborders and facilitating recognition of different important groups within Orthoptera.
With the essential knowledge about this group, participants will be able to ID main species, monitor pest, understand the phenology of the insects to be able to use decision support tools to predict outbreaks. They will also learn the fundamentals of principles of pest management to choose appropriate control options.
Participants in the training will be able to differentiate pest species from non-pest species.
- An extension course has been designed to cover this objective.
-
Grasshoppers and related Orthoptera (e.g., morning crickets) have been identified as one of the main issues affecting producers (e.g., forage, grass seed, alfalfa, cattle industry, etc.) around the region. Correct identification is the basis of all integrated pest management programs.
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With the help of the Oregon Department of Agriculture (Todd Adams and Thomas Valente), who have been tracking grasshopper populations for several years (https://www.oregon.gov/oda/programs/IPPM/SurveyTreatment/Pages/GrasshoppersCrickets.aspx), we will use the data to explain the use of decision-support tools (USPest. org). Both, Mr. Adams and Dr. Valente will join us in some of our trainings.
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The Oregon IPM Center is actively participating in the Grasshopper and Mormon Cricket Advisory Group created by ODA. This emergency working group was created to respond to producers' needs during an outbreak of grasshoppers and Mormon crickets in 2024 (capitalpress.com).
- The Oregon IPM Center is connecting and coordinating activities with ODA and extension to help us with these events, Oregon IPM Center: IPM News for June 2024
With the essential knowledge of taxonomic keys, adult and nymphal stages, and Orthoptera identification, participants will identify specimens at the family and species levels and determine whether the species is a pest or non-pest. Participants will identify pests from non-pest Orthoptera to scout and adequately manage grasshopper outbreaks in at-risk regions.
Material will be created in the form of pictorial fact sheets that will be posted on the Oregon IPM Center website
https://agsci.oregonstate.edu/oipmc/grasshopper-workshop-2024.
Participants in the training will have learned current IPM techniques used to monitor and manage Orthoptera outbreaks.
An extension course has been designed to cover this objective.
The program includes an integrated pest management chapter, where participants learn about the basics of pest management. Phenology and the use of decision-support tools will also be part of the pest management package.
Participants will be able to navigate the decision support tool system already available at the USPEST.ORG Web Server Home Page.
With the essential knowledge of IPM theory and strategies for Orthoptera control, pesticide management, and degree day modeling to predict the emergence of grasshoppers, participants will learn current IPM techniques used to monitor and manage Orthoptera outbreaks.
Participants will receive a list of all the resources available to help them prepare to train the next generation of trainees around the "grasshopper' theme.
An extension course has been designed to cover this objective.
All main resources that participants can use in their own training efforts will be available online at the Oregon IPM Center website: https://agsci.oregonstate.edu/oipmc/grasshopper-workshop-2024. All information will be freely available and regularly reviewed for accuracy (peer-reviewed).
With the essential knowledge of the identification of Orthoptera using online tools, participants will implement the acquired knowledge by training their audiences to use online and mobile app materials to identify and manage Orthoptera pests.
Educational & Outreach Activities
Participation Summary:
Project Outcomes
Since the training will not occur until May 2025, we currently have no outcomes to report/measure apart from those identified in the Extension Program. However, the project includes a well-thought-out way to evaluate the knowledge gained by our participants after taking our courses, which will be later reported.
With the timeline reorganization, we have made extraordinary progress gathering most of the information for our courses, purchasing all the material needed for our classes, and getting ready the content for the workshop series. We have coordinated with all our counterparts around the region, secured all locations, and blocked all the times for each of the planned workshops. Our entire team is looking forward to delivering our workshop series.
Several clients have reached out after seeing fliers about our upcoming workshop series to secure a spot. Our team believes that this series could serve as a template for delivering similar training on other important pest management topics needed by our constituents.
We thank WSARE for allowing us to revise this project's timeline and for their flexibility in permitting the Oregon IPM Center to update the grasshopper training series. This adjustment will help us meet the project's goals.