Three systemic insecticides (clothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam) are now being used as seed treatments for protection of corn and soybeans against insect pests. All three insecticides are in the neonicotinoid chemical family and closely resemble nicotine in mode of action. Neonicotinoids have high activity against sucking insects such as aphids and against chewing pests such as beetles and some Lepidoptera (cutworms, for instance). These chemicals are highly systemic in the plant roots and new leaf tissues thereby making them potentially efficient as seed treatments. Information will be presented on these three insecticides with respect to their chemical properties along with performance data on pest species such as corn rootworms, black cutworms, bean leaf beetles, soybean aphids and white grubs.

Biography:  Dr. Rice is responsible for the statewide extension entomology programs for field and forage crops. He seeks to inform Iowa farmers and crop advisors by developing educational programs that are dynamic, responsive to change, and based on current research. He serves as the executive editor of Integrated Crop Management, a 26-issue, full-color newsletter written for the agricultural community. He also coordinates entomology activities at the Field Extension Education Laboratory and teaches a hands-on identification course of crop insects and injury. His primary research activities are in applied pest management solutions in Iowa's major crops. Current projects focus on using transgenic corn to manage stalk borer, European corn borer, and other Lepidoptera, and biology and management of both bean leaf beetle and bean pod mottle virus. He also has conducted research on biodiversity of Coleoptera, including Cerambycidae and Scarabaeidae, and natural history of Mantispidae. Dr. Rice was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to teach in the Crop Science Department, University of Zimbabwe, during 1998. He has a strong interest in providing educational and professional opportunities that prepare graduate students for careers in extension entomology.