Insects

Mech receives public service award from Maine Forest Products Council

Angela Mech, associate professor of forest entomology at the University of Maine, received the Maine Forest Products Council’s 2025 Abby Holman Public Service Award in recognition of her passion, loyalty and dedication to Maine’s forest products industry, government and economy. As director of UMaine’s Spruce Budworm Processing Lab, Mech has led research to support the […]

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UMaine seeks to thwart ticks by helping landowners weed out invasive forest plants

Ask anyone who frequents the forests of New England and they will likely speak of unwelcome companions — ticks. Blacklegged ticks are expanding their range and rising in numbers, infecting people with pathogens that cause conditions like Lyme disease and babesiosis. Climate change is frequently blamed, but researchers have noticed another man-made problem may be […]

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Pest predictor identifies ingredients for ecological recipe for destruction

If you’ve felt the familiar itch of browntail moth rash, seen the grayish-green needles of an infested hemlock or watched as woodpeckers bore into ash trees for a meal hidden beneath the surface, you’ve experienced the devastating effects of non-native pests. Browntail moth, hemlock wooly adelgid and emerald ash borer are only three of the […]

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MAFES researcher spotlight – April 2024 – Dr. Philip Fanning

  Philip Fanning, Assistant Professor of Agricultural Entomology School of Biology and Ecology   How I got here: I grew up on a small dairy farm in Tipperary, Ireland. Living on a farm is what I credit for my interest in becoming a scientist. I completed my Bachelor of Environmental Science degree at University College […]

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Field manual for managing eastern white pine health in New England published

The Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station has published MP764: Field Manual for Managing Eastern White Pine Health in New England. Authors William H. Livingston, UMaine Isabel Munck, USDA Forest Service Kyle Lombard, NH Division of Forests & Lands Jennifer Weimer, NH Division of Forests & Lands Aaron Bergdahl, Maine Forest Service Laura S. Kenefic, […]

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New miscellaneous report on bees and their habitats in four New England states

The Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station has published MR448: Bees and Their Habitats in Four New England States. Authors Alison C. Dibble, UMaine Francis A. Drummond, UMaine Anne L. Averill, University of Massachusetts Kalyn Bickerman-Martens, UMaine Sidney C. Bosworth, The University of Vermont Extension Sara L. Bushman, UMaine Aaron K. Hoshide, UMaine Megan E. […]

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Emerald ash borer

The working group on improving microbial control of arthropod pests

Invasive plant and animal species have been responsible for considerable problems in both natural and managed landscapes, with resulting damage, losses, and efforts to manage them estimated to cost the U.S. economy over $120 billion per year. Management of invasive species, particularly invasive insects, requires immediate, innovative, cost-effective strategies that are compatible with maintenance of […]

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