MSU Extension

See a list of Zsofia Szendrei's publications on Google Scholar.

Vegetable Entomology

Follow the Szendrei Lab on Twitter: @msuvegent

Bio

My lab focuses on the ecology and management of arthropods that occur in vegetable production. Research themes include chemical ecology, biological control, habitat management, and behavioral pest management. The methods we use range all the way from the field to the molecular lab.

Current assignment: Teaching 10% | Research 40% | Extension 50%

Program Description

Teaching

I consider teaching and mentoring an integral part of my position, whether it is graduate or undergraduate students in the lab or students in the classroom. I’m interested in working with students who are enthusiastic about science and the investigative process it entails. My philosophy of student mentoring is that the time spent in the lab should be simultaneously fun, educational and productive, where research is conducted in an intellectually stimulating team environment. Personality and work ethic are a priority before grades or test scores when selecting students. Students learn most by hands-on experience, so I tend to emphasize research over course work. Although I look for creative and independent students, I provide closer guidance in the first year in my lab. My office is open to lend advice to graduate and undergraduate students. One of the key components to mentoring my graduate students is to include them in my professional activities; for example I ask them to participate in giving talks at field days and extension meetings, partake in writing factsheets and grant proposals and be teaching assistants in the classes I teach.

Research

Excessive reliance on chemical inputs for pest management in agriculture is neither economically nor ecologically sustainable but in conventional vegetable production systems synthetic pesticides are still the predominant way of controlling arthropod pests. Alternatives are needed and chemical ecology and biological control offer sustainable approaches for suppressing insect pests; these themes have been a central focus in my research. In particular, I’m interested in developing pest management systems where these can be used in combination and as part of an integrated approach to manage pest populations.

My program has gained acceptance and recognition among peers for our work on local (field-scale) habitat management and biological control. We have contributed to our understanding of the interactions of habitat traits and arthropods in agroecosystems. In our investigations we use novel techniques that allows the growth of a field called 'molecular detection of trophic interactions'.

Extension

Much of my extension/outreach impacts have evolved from building strong relationships with vegetable growers, industry personnel and MSU Extension Educators. Through this network, I was able to identify issues that needed my expertise and provide leadership in the implementation of changes to address industry needs. The overall goal of my extension activities is to protect vegetables from arthropod pests while maintaining profitability and environmental sustainability. My goal is to reduce the amount of insecticides applied and introduce practices (such as degree day models, monitoring, thresholds) that help growers achieve high quality produce with less inputs.

Current graduate students

1. Kayleigh Hauri

2. Jennifer Zavalnitskaya

3. Natalie Constancio

Research Focus

• Biological control
• Chemical ecology
• Insect behavior
• Agroecology

Professional Experience

• 2009-Present - Professor, Dept. of Entomology, Michigan State University
• 2008-2009 - Research Associate, Dept. of Entomology, Rutgers University
• 2005-2008 - Postdoc, Biological Control, USDA-ARS

 Recent Publications

2019

• Grode, A.S., Brisco-McCann, B., Wiriyajitsonboom, P., Hausbeck, M.K., Szendrei, Z. (2019) Managing onion thrips can limit bacterial stalk and leaf necrosis in Michigan onion fields. Plant Disease (link to 'first look')
• Ingrao, A.J., Walters, J., Szendrei, Z. (2019) Biological control of asparagus pests using synthetic herbivore-induced volatiles. Environmental Entomology, 48(1): 202-210, pdf
• Lund, M., Brainard, D., Szendrei, Z. (2019) Cue hierarchy for host plant selection in Pieris rapae (Lepidoptera: Pieridae). Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata in Special Issue: Host plant selection and feeding ecology (in press)
• Dawidson-Lowe, E., Szendrei, Z., Ali, J.G. (2019) Asymmetric effects of a leaf-chewing herbivore on aphid population growth. Ecological Entomology, 44(1): 81-92, pdf

2018

• Wood, T., Kaplan, I., Szendrei, Z. (2018) Wild bee pollen diets reveal patterns of seasonal foraging resources for honey bees. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 6:210, open access
• Buchanan, A.L., Grieshop, M., Szendrei, Z. (2018) Assessing annual and perennial flowering plants for biological control in asparagus. Biological Control, 127: 1-8, pdf
• Karp, D.S., Chaplin-Kramer, R., Meehan, T.D., .....Ingrao, A.J.,....Szendrei, Z.....(2018) Crop pests and predators exhibit inconsistent responses to surrounding landscape composition. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, pdf
• Schoville, S.D., Chen, Y.H., Andresson, M.N., ....Szendrei, Z., ....Richards, S. (2018) A model species for agricultural pest genomics: the genome of the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Scientific Reports, 8: 1931. Open access