W. Wyatt Hoback

Oklahoma State University | Oklahoma State · Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology

Sudangrass (Sorghum sudanense Stapf) is widely cultivated as a summer annual forage across the southern Great Plains because of its robust forage yield potential. However, the accumulation of nitrates and the potential harm to livestock have restricted the use of Sudangrass for feeding ruminants. Since 2013, the sorghum aphid (SA), Melanaphis sorgh...

Ongoing worldwide biodiversity declines and range shifts associated with climate change increase the importance of documenting the current distributions of species to establish baseline data. However, financial and logistical constraints make it impossible for taxonomic experts to conduct thorough surveys in most locations. One popular approach to...

Hedgehog grain aphid, Sipha maydis Passerini, is a key pest of many cereal crops and pasture grasses around the world. Because of potential to damage crops, wide range of host plants, and occurrence in varying climatic conditions, frequent assessments of distribution of hedgehog grain aphid are needed with documentation of hosts and assessment of g...

Simple Summary The American burying beetle, Nicrophorus americanus, is federally protected as a threatened species because of population decline in most of its historic range in North America. Recovery of the species requires observation and cataloging of individuals captured in the wild. Previous work has characterized adult beetles as teneral (yo...

In the central plains of North America, the beetle family Silphidae comprised two subfamilies, Silphinae and Nicrophorinae, differentiated by reproductive behaviors. Silphinae, known as carrion beetles, feed on carrion and fly larvae and produce free-living larvae that receive no parental care. Adult Nicrophorinae, known as burying beetles, prepare...

Dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) frequently traverse agricultural matrices in search of ephemeral dung resources and spend extended periods of time burrowing in soil. Neonicotinoids are among the most heavily applied and widely detected insecticides used in conventional agriculture with formulated products designed for row crop and livestock...

The neotropical soybean budborer (Crocidosema aporema [Walsingham, 1914] [Lepidoptera: Tortricidae]) is classified as a major pest of soybean that is difficult to manage with insecticides because larvae cause leaf‐rolling and can bore into the stem. Genetically modified Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) soybean has been effective in managing C. aporema p...

Science and art are intrinsically linked. Science requires curiosity, along with skills in observation, problemsolving, and critical thinking. Art is no different; however, the two disciplines are typically presented as opposites to children at a young age and the emphasis on differences lead to a false dichotomy of career paths and even selfidenti...

The largest North American Silphidae, the American burying beetle (ABB), Nicrophorus americanus Olivier, has been extirpated from ∼90% of its historic range and is federally threatened. Two distinct populations in the Southern (Oklahoma and Arkansas) and North-Central United States (Nebraska and South Dakota) persist at the western edge of the ABB'...

Economic thresholds (ET) for gross tissue removal and piercing-sucking damage by stink bugs are well-established for soybean (Glycine max). However, little is known about the interaction effects of these injuries. During the 2017/18 and 2018/19 crop seasons, field trials were carried out to assess the interaction of defoliation and stink bug (Eusch...

Light-emitting diodes often are used to substitute and enhance fluorescent or incandescent light for plants that are grown in climate-controlled environments. These lights often are chosen over other light sources because of the light-emitting diodes' durability, long life, enhanced wavelength for specific plant species, lower energy costs, lower s...

Short-horned grasshoppers are important constituents of grassland ecosystems, with some species causing substantial damage to rangeland. A statewide, comprehensive inventory between 1959 and 1961 listed 117 species from Oklahoma with 2,101 county records documented. From June 2019 through October 2020, short-horned grasshoppers were surveyed in all...

Main conclusion Three known sugarcane aphid-resistant pollinator parents were sterilized in A3 cytoplasmic male sterility and were confirmed in this study to be resistant to sugarcane aphid allowing for the development of sugarcane aphid-resistant forage hybrids. Abstract We utilized A3 cytoplasmic male sterility and converted known sugarcane aphi...

Although defoliation economic thresholds (ETs) in soybean are well-established, there are concerns about Spodoptera spp. and Helicoverpa spp. damaging soybean pods and flowers. Moreover, S. eridania is the most common species of its genus feeding on soybean in Brazil. On this account, we quantified the feeding of S. eridania larvae on leaves, pods...

During the last century, the range of the American burying beetle (Nicrophorus americanus Olivier) has been reduced by >90%. Only isolated, extant populations of this federally threatened species now exist, primarily in the Great Plains. Although the primary reason for this decline remains unclear, anthropogenic changes to habitat and vertebrate fo...

Nicrophorus is a genus of beetles that bury and transform small vertebrate carcasses into a brood ball coated with their oral and anal secretions to prevent decay and that will serve as a food source for their young. Nicrophorus pustulatus is an unusual species with the ability to overtake brood of other burying beetles and whose secretions, unlike...

Entomophagy is a rare practice in the United States and western Europe, but there are signs that it is gaining in popularity. This study seeks to gauge potential growth in entomophagy through two methods. First, we conducted a survey of 1,021 Americans to gauge their willingness to consume food products containing cricket powder compared with raw o...

The relationship between canopy defoliation by insects and yield loss in potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) has been extensively researched. However, detailed analysis of varieties with different properties and examination of methods of defoliation are still lacking. Absence of research results has led many producers to use a very conservative economic...

Main conclusion: The findings of this study suggest that known resistant sorghum genotypes compensate for feeding pressure of sugarcane aphid by maintaining/increasing photosynthetic capacity and/or have higher chlorophyll content than susceptible genotypes. Knowledge of the physiological response of sorghum, (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench), to suga...

Burying beetles (Coleoptera: Silphidae) utilize the nutrients in vertebrate carrion to reproduce. The beetles utilize the bodies of rodents and birds as a reproductive resource by burying and preparing them with secretions. Although the importance of carrion to forest and savanna soil fertility has been documented, the benefit of burying beetle bro...

Military bases are important areas for mosquito surveillance to maintain active duty combat readiness and protect training exercises. The aim of this study was to assist Camp Gruber National Guard training facility personnel to assess their mosquito community and West Nile virus (WNV) risk using biweekly sampling of 50 sites. Between May and Octobe...

The establishment and spread of non-native species often results in negative impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem function. Several species of saltcedar, Tamarix spp. L., have been recently naturalized in large portions of the United States where they have altered plant and animal communities. To test the prediction that saltcedar negatively affec...

The sugarcane aphid, Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner) is a serious economic threat to grain sorghum across the U.S. sorghum belt. It can develop on multiple grass hosts but only appears to survive winter temperatures in Texas near the Mexican border, Florida and Louisiana. Because survival and reproduction of aphids is dependent on access to appropri...

This work updates species and county distribution of Scarabaeinae dung beetles in Oklahoma. Historical collections and literature records, as well as data from a private regional collection, were compiled to document species in the state. The study adds eight new dung beetles for the state, bringing the total to 39 species. In addition, 78 new coun...

Little is known about prey use by the orangebelly darter, Etheostoma radiosum, and what is known has been described from relatively large river systems. We examined prey use by orangebelly darters from first- and second-order tributaries in the Lower Mountain Fork River of southeastern Oklahoma. Adult darters (n = 141) were captured from five tribu...

Vector-borne diseases in the United States have recently increased as a result of the changing nature of vectors, hosts, reservoirs, pathogens, and the ecological and environmental conditions. Current information on vector habitats and how mosquito community composition varies across space and time is vital to successful vector-borne disease manage...

Normal growth and production of plant tissues requires water, carbon dioxide, nutrients, and light. Light-emitting diodes (LED) are being used increasingly as a substitute for fluorescent or incandescent light sources in greenhouse horticulture because of their small size, durability, wavelength specificity, long operating life, and efficiency in o...

Ornate Box Turtle Diet

The ontogenetic diet shift to piscivory can be energetically beneficial for fish growth and allows larger, more energetically profitable prey to be consumed. A shift to piscivory may be easier for longer individuals within a cohort due to larger gape size, and an early shift is likely advantageous, potentially leading to increased growth rates and...

Background. The North American prairie biome is considered one of the most endangered ecoregions. Prairie fishes have been affected by many anthropogenic disturbances, including the construction of bridges and culverts as road crossings over streams. The objective of our study was to test fish assemblage characteristics upstream and downstream of s...

Background. The North American prairie biome is considered one of the most endangered ecoregions. Prairie fishes have been affected by many anthropogenic disturbances, including the construction of bridges and culverts as road crossings over streams. The objective of our study was to test fish assemblage characteristics upstream and downstream of s...

Ten sorghum, Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench, lines near or in commercial release were evaluated with the intent of identifying the phenotypic expression of host-plant resistance to the sugarcane aphid Melanaphis sacchari (Zehnter) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Two of the 10 entries (OL2042 and SP7715) expressed a high degree of resistance to the sugarcane a...

Survival and mobility of American cockroaches, Periplaneta americana L, that originated from a wild population were compared in semi-natural and laboratory cool-temperature conditions. In a non-heated building all American cockroaches died when air temperatures were ≤0°C despite having access to wood mulch substrate that remained above freezing. Un...

The sugarcane aphid Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner) was discovered infesting grain sorghum close to Beaumont, TX, near the Texas and Louisiana state line a few kilometers inland from the Gulf Coast in the late summer of 2013, and has been a perennial pest of grain, forage, and sweet sorghums. Our research was aimed at identifying sorghum germplasm t...

The American burying beetle (ABB), Nicrophorus americanus (Olivier; Coleoptera: Silphidae), historically occurred in the eastern 35 U.S. States from Canada to Texas and is classified as a habitat generalist. The ABB was listed as a federally endangered species in 1989 with remaining distribution in only six U.S. States. Within these states, populat...

Plains topminnow Fundulus sciadicus are endemic to the Great Plains (USA), and because of declines in their geographic range and local abundance, are granted protection throughout their native range. Experimental reintroductions were conducted to improve conservation techniques and enhance the long-term outlook for plains topminnow persistence in N...

The nocturnal American burying beetle (Nicrophorus americanus Olivier, 1790; Silphidae), once widely distributed in the eastern United States, is currently listed as endangered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. The factors driving its decline remain largely unknown. Curiously, a closely related and ecologically similar burying beetle, the roundn...

Aedes aegypti is an important subtropical vector species and is predicted to have a limited year-round distribution in the southern United States. Collection of the species has not been officially verified in Oklahoma since 1940. Adult mosquitoes were collected in 42 sites across 7 different cities in Oklahoma using 3 different mosquito traps betwe...

The American burying beetle, Nicrophorus americanus, is a federally endangered insect that once occurred in 35 U.S. states and 3 Canadian provinces. Today, it remains at the periphery of its former range with the largest populations concentrated in Nebraska and Oklahoma. We assessed beetle occurrence records throughout the western ranges in Nebrask...

Terrestrial insects in water can often delay or escape drowning by floating and swimming. However, we observed that flooding of pitfall traps baited with rotting carrion results in high overnight mortality of captured beetles and reasoned that this risk may be enhanced by microbial respiration. By assessing carrion beetle (Coleoptera: Silphidae) re...

Silphid beetles in the genus Nicrophorus bury themselves during periods of inactivity, however, the influence of soil characteristics on burial behavior remains unclear. We examined soil preferences of the federally endangered Nicrophorus americanus, as well as of N. carolinus, N. marginatus, N. obscurus, and N. orbicollis, in a series of experimen...

Conservation of lotic fishes requires consideration of complex patterns among a changing mosaic of fish assemblage structure at multiple spatial scales. Studies have demonstrated the influence of localized competition and predation among stream fishes, but researchers have been largely unable to determine to what extent interspecific interactions a...

Mark-recapture population estimates require the use of permanent marks that do not alter the survival or behavior of marked individuals. A number of marks have been developed to monitor populations of the federally endangered American burying beetle, Nicrophorus americanus Olivier. Surveys that employ marks are needed to determine population size a...

Patterns of mandible chirality have been virtually unexplored in beetles, apart from a single study in 2010. Here we present the mandible chirality trends found in 58 beetle species representing the families Carabidae (52 species), Cerambycidae (three species), and Silphidae (three species) that display overlapping mandibles. Mandible chirality was...

This exercise examines the correlation between gravitational-force (g-force) tolerance and the sizes of organisms, emphasizing differences between vertebrates and invertebrates, particularly the effects of size and scale on biological processes. Students form a hypothesis based on background information and then test it by spinning subjects in a ce...

The leaves of the carnivorous Sarracenia purpurea (Purple Pitcher Plant) provide habitat for obligate insects. Within the pitchers of this plant, Metriocnemus knabi (Pitcher Plant Midge) larvae coexist with Wyeomyia smithii (Pitcher Plant Mosquito) larvae. No other mosquito species has been reported to utilize this habitat in the presence of the mi...

Establishing rates of injury to plants and the physiological impact of this injury provides essential data in the development of economic injury levels, but variation of sex effects is not often considered. Here, we examined injury by the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), larvae and adult males and...

Melanoplus punctulatus (Uhler) occurs only in the USA and Canada, where its current known distribution extends west only to the eastern quarter of the Great Plains States. In 2014, we discovered two new populations of M. punctulatus in the Pine Ridge area of western Nebraska. This discovery extends the known range of this species westward by over 6...

Stream fragmentation can be detrimental to lotic fish species by preventing important life history movements. The maximum swimming speed and jumping ability of 10 stream fish species were evaluated to describe potential water velocity and height barriers to fish movement. A 10-L swim tunnel was used to test maximum swimming performance and an artif...

Grasshopper species belonging to subfamilies Melanoplinae, Gomphocerinae and Oedipodinae were tested for their feeding rate on three types of grass. All grasshopper species were offered Shawnee and Kanlow cultivars of switchgrass, Panicum virgatum L. and big bluestem, Andropogon gerardii Vitman. The grasshoppers, Melanoplus femurrubrum and Melanopl...

The establishment of nonnative species and subsequent replacement of native species is among the greatest threats to freshwater biodiversity worldwide. However, little is known of the effects that invasive species have on individual species and specific mechanisms by which species displacement occurs. The expansion of western mosquitofish Gambusia...

The Platte River caddisfly, Ironoquia plattensis Alexander & Whiles (Trichoptera: Limnephilidae), was once the most abundant component of the benthic macroinvertebrate community in Platte River backwater sloughs, attaining larval densities of approximately 1,000 individuals per m2 and accounting for approximately 40% of the emerging secondary produ...

Movement behaviors attributed to spawning, dispersal, or altered habitat availability are essential to the ecology of many lotic fishes and, although considerable research has described movements of sport fish, little is known about the movement patterns of nongame species. Streams and rivers, wherein plains topminnow Fundulus sciadicus are prevale...

The spined soldier bug, Podisus maculiventris (Say), is an important biological control agent of agricultural and forest pests; and it preys on eggs and larvae of lepidopteran and coleopteran species. Genetic variability among field samples collected from Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Florida and established laboratory colonies was examined usin...

Temporary waters that occur after rainfall events and spring snow melt support macro-invertebrates that survive in disiccation-resistant eggs and complete their life cycles in a fish free environment. Among these organisms, floodwater mosquitoes capable of transmitting disease to humans and other mammals may flourish. A number of crustaceans also u...

Cobble substrate for walleye (Sander vitreus) spawning was added at Sherman Reservoir, Nebraska, in January 2008. We evaluated changes in relative adult walleye abundance and egg density in response to the cobble substrate and estimated site fidelity of adult walleye during the spawning seasons of 2007, 2008, and 2009. A 15% increase in electrofish...

The caddisfly, Ironoquia plattensis Alexander and Whiles, is a benthic macroinvertebrate endemic to the backwater sloughs and prairie wetlands in central Nebraska. These areas are subject to spring rains which wane to subsequent drying, and I. plattensis larvae are adapted to this hydric cycle, partitioning time as larvae in water and on land. Floo...

Distribution patterns of live scleractinian coral colonies on vertical faces of concrete blocks were compared with distribution patterns of environmental parameters known to affect coral recruitment and growth. Coral coverage was not random across the blocks and among regions of their faces. Variations in colonization did not correspond to differen...

Conservation efforts leading to the recovery of the federally endangered American burying beetle (ABB), Nicrophorus americanus Olivier, have been challenging because of the unknown causes of its decline, difficulty in establishing habitat requirements, and unclear population distribution across the species’ range. Extant populations of this widespr...

The sagebrush grasshopper, Melanoplus bowditchi Scudder (Orthoptera: Acrididae), is a phytophilous species that is widely distributed in the western United States on sagebrush species. The geographical distribution of M. bowditchi is very similar to the range of its host plants and its feeding association varies in relation to sagebrush dis- tribut...

Burying beetles are carrion beetles and utilize dead animal carcasses for feeding and reproductive efforts. They assist with decomposition, prevent the spread of disease, and reduce the number of pest species. The largest species of carrion beetle, the American burying beetle, is a federally endangered insect and its distribution has been reduced b...

Nebraska’s Rainwater Basin has an abundance of natural wetlands and is a focal point in the annual migration corridor used by millions of waterfowl and shorebirds. However, these wetlands are in a landscape dominated by agriculture and as a result, siltation and poor water quality are continual problems. We evaluated twelve wetland sites on federal...

The Platte River caddisfly (Ironoquia plattensis Alexander and Whiles 2000) was recently described from a warm-water slough along the Platte River in central Nebraska and was considered abundant at the type locality. Surveys of 48 sites in 1999 and 2004 found eight additional sites with this species on the Platte River. The caddisfly was not found...

The growth of age-0 fishes influences survival, especially in temperate regions where size-dependent over-winter mortality can be substantial. Additional benefits of earlier maturation and greater fecundity may exist for faster growing individuals. This study correlated prey densities, growing-degree days, water-surface elevation, turbidity, and ch...

Dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) are exposed to hypoxic conditions throughout their life cycle, including exposure to periods of severe hypoxia and hypercapnia within dung pats and closed burrows as adults. For rollers and tunnelers, underground brood chambers may also be exposed to flooding from seasonal precipitation. Because of their rout...

This investigation compared color and artificial container size as attractants for the gravid female Aedes triseriatus (Eastern Tree-hole Mosquito) oviposition site selection. Three colors (white, green, and black) were investigated in combination with two container sizes (3672 ml and 12,000 ml). Presence of mosquito larvae was used to determine pe...

A technique for mass-marking fish was evaluated that forces fluorescent pigment into dermal tissue with compressed air. A five month trial was conducted where mark retention, readability, and marking mortality were evaluated with six fish species that represent a variety of taxonomic groups. Approximately 100 of each species were marked; a percenta...

Spined soldier bug Podisus maculiventris (Say) is a predatory hemipteran found in North America. It is an important biological control agent for agricultural and forest pests. This predatory species mainly feeds on the eggs and larvae of the lepidopteran and coleopteran species. To assess the genetic variability among the populations from different...