Stop Stink Bug Project

USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Sharon Durham, Public Affairs Specialist, USDA, Agricultural Research Service, on September 13, 2013 at 12:00 PM

The brown marmorated stink bug, a winged pest from Asia that is eating crops and infesting U.S. homes. U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are launching a campaign to ask volunteers to count the number of stink bugs in their homes. USDA-ARS photo by Stephen Ausmus.

Calling all insect enthusiasts and frustrated gardeners!  USDA scientists need your help in documenting Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs (BMSB) in your home. Beginning September 15^th through October 15^th, we’re asking citizens across the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States to record daily counts of this pest on the exterior of their homes, along with their location and the time of each count. While USDA scientists are focusing on the Mid-Atlantic region, any data they can get from other U.S. regions would also be helpful to their research.

The quest to find out just how many stink bugs there are, and how they behave, is the brainchild of a consortium of researchers from USDA, the University of Maryland, Pennsylvania State University, Rutgers University, Virginia Tech, the Northeastern IPM Center, Oregon State University, North Carolina State University, Cornell University, the University of Delaware and Washington State University. This project is represented on the website, “Stop BMSB (www.stopbmsb.org),” which was launched in 2011.

The project involves more than 50 scientists who are investigating the impact BMSB have on grapes, orchard crops, small fruits, ornamental crops and vegetables, as well as ways to prevent or minimize the pest’s impact. BMSB have been found in 40 states and have caused the most damage in the Mid-Atlantic region. The value of at-risk crops where BMSB have been established or identified exceeds $21 billon.

Because landscape features such as woodlands, structures, roads and different land use types affect the spread of the insects, it is important to collect data related to BMSB locations. BMSB survive cold winter temperatures near farmland in homes, office buildings and warehouses.

Scientists are just beginning to understand how landscape features will be a key component in combating stink bugs. Volunteers willing to count their stink bugs can contact USDA-Agricultural Research Service (ARS) entomologists Tracy Leskey (tracy.leskey@ars.usda.gov), Doo-Hyung Lee or Torri Hancock at (304) 725-3451, at the ARS Appalachian Fruit Research Laboratory in Kearneysville, West Virginia.

Participant forms to record BMSB counts can be printed by going to http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/19310505/BMSB%20Citizen%20Scientist%20Particip

Smokejumpers - Out of the Sky and Into the Fire

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USDA Blog Post:

Posted by Donna Drelick, Office of Communications, U.S. Forest Service, on August 22, 2013 at 10:45 AM

A smokejumper exits a plane. (US Forest Service photo)

This blog is part of a series from the U.S. Forest Service on its wildland firefighting program to increase awareness about when and how the agency suppresses fires, to provide insights into the lives of those fighting fires, and to explain some of the cutting-edge research underway on fire behavior. Check back to the USDA Blog during the 2013 wildfire season for new information. Additional resources are available at www.fs.fed.us/wildlandfire/.

Imagine jumping from a plane into a fire, with enough provisions to last for several days.  That’s what highly trained Forest Service smokejumpers do to provide quick initial attack on wildland fires.

The attack is a well-choreographed scenario.  Aircraft can hold anywhere from eight to 16 jumpers, a ‘spotter’ who stays with the plane, the pilot and provisions to make the jumpers self-sufficient for 72 hours. The spotter is responsible for the safe release of the jumpers.  Once the jumpers have landed, the aircraft will circle around and drop their cargo by parachute from just above treetop height.  The spotter also is responsible for communicating essential information about the wind, fire activity and the terrain to the jumpers, the pilot and to dispatch centers.

“Jumping from a plane is fun, don’t get me wrong,” said Forest Service smokejumper Colby Jackson.   “But it is the people we interact with that makes this job so great.”

Jackson has been a smokejumper for the past 10 years, currently working out of the Missoula, Mont., smokejumper base. Prior to that, he was on a hotshot crew and has had extensive wildland fire management experience.

“One thing is certain,” Jackson said. “We definitely learn something new from every experience we encounter.”

Smokejumpers must be in top physical condition.  They oftentimes carry more than 110 pounds on their backs when they are packing out from the fire.

Training for smokejumpers includes parachute maneuvering and emergency procedures, landing rolls, safe aircraft exiting, and you guessed it – tree climbing.  Some training sites even have ‘virtual reality’ parachute jump simulators that provide on the ground practice.

“When people ask me what it takes to be a smokejumper, I say if you like the outdoors, you like adventure, you like fire, you are in good shape and you like to put in a hard day’s work, this job is for you,” said Jackson.  “But be prepared, our assignments can last for 14 days in remote areas in some very challenging conditions.”

More than 270 smokejumpers are working from Forest Service bases in California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.