Dr. Steven Alm
Professor of Entomology
Department Chairman

Education:

B.S., 1976, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry
M.S., 1979, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Ph.D., 1985, Ohio State University

Teaching:

• ENT387 Insects of Turf and Ornamentals

• ENT411/511 Pesticides and the Environment

• ENT550 Insect Taxonomy and Systematics

Research:

My current research interest is in the use of entomopathogenic nematodes, bacteria and fungi for control of turf and ornamental pests. Recent publications have dealt with the field efficacy of several nematode species and the pathogenicity of the nematode associated bacteria, Xenorhabdus spp., to Japanese beetle grubs. With increasing interest in microbial control of pests, we have also explored the use of Bacillus popillia, B. thuringiensis, and Metarhizium anisopliae for control of turf and ornamental pests.

Other research interests include the use of semiochemicals and pheromones in pest management. Pheromone and floral lure baited traps have been used to suppress Japanese beetle populations on golf courses and could lead to significantly reduced pesticide use. Further research will focus on the use of pheromones for monitoring and possible control of the oriental beetle, which quickly is becoming the most important pest of turfgrasses in the Northeastern U.S.

Selected Publications:

Facundo, H. T., A. Zhang, P. S. Robbins, S. R. Alm, C. E. Linn, Jr., M. G. Villani, and W. L. Roelofs. 1994. Sex pheromone responses of the Oriental beetle, (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). Environmental Entomology 23: 1508-1515.

Yeh, T. and S. R. Alm. 1995. Evaluation of Steinernema glaseri (Nematoda: Steinernematidae) for biological control of Japanese and oriental beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). Journal of Economic Entomology 88: 1251-1255.

Alm, S. R., T. Yeh, C. G. Dawson and M. G. Klein. 1996. Effects of trapped beetles, various trap heights, and string pheromone lures on captures of Japanese beetle adults (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). Environmental Entomology 25: 1274-1278

Alm, S. R., M. G. Villani, T. Yeh and R. Shutter. 1997.Bacillus thuringiensis japonensis strain Buibui for control of Japanese and oriental beetles, (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). Applied Entomology and Zoology 32: 477-484

Alm, S.R., M.G. Villani and W. L. Roelofs. 1999. Oriental beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae): current distribution in the United States and optimization of monitoring traps. J. Econ. Entomol. 92: 931-935.

Liburd, O. E., S. Polavarapu, S. R. Alm, and R. A. Casagrande. 2000. Effects of trap size, placement, and age on captures of blueberry maggot flies (Diptera: Tephritidae). J. Econ. Entomol. 93: 1452-1458.

Bartlett, K., S. R. Alm, R. LeBrun, and H. Ginsberg. 2002. The horse and deer flies (Diptera: Tabanidae) of Rhode Island. Ann. Entomol. Soc. of Am. 95: 547-551.

Bartlett, K., M. Goldsmith, S. R. Alm, R. LeBrun, and H. Ginsberg. 2002. Use of random amplified polymorphic DNA to distinguish species of horse and deer flies. J. of Med. Entomol. (submitted).

Browning, M., C. Dawson, S. R. Alm. 2002. Butyric acid for control of plant parasitic nematodes. Journal of Nematology (submitted)

Alm, S. R., and C. G. Dawson. 2003. Evaluation of two prototype traps and existing trap designs for captures of Japanese beetles, Popillia japonica Newman (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). J. Econ. Entomol. 96: 453-455.

Hamill, J., O. Liburd and S. R. Alm. 2003. Comparison of biodegradable, plastic, and wooden insecticide treated spheres for control of Rhagoletis mendax (Diptera: Tephritidae) flies. Florida Entomologist 86: 206-210.

Research Grants:

Extension Grants: