Tracking insect outbreaks: using the Budworm Tracker citizen science program to study budworm dispersal and enhance public engagement

R&D Topics Addressed:

Continue outreach and public engagement in the Budworm Tracker program. Use genetics to assess population connectivity among sites. Provide a genetically-informed model of effective dispersal capacity. Assess whether low-density populations (e.g., southern NB, NS) are independent populations or whether they are in fact the offspring of migrants from the outbreak epicentre in QC.

Investigators:

D. Pureswaran (LFC) & R. Johns (AFC)V. Martel (LFC) P. James (U. Montreal) E. Owens, M. Stastny, I. DeMerchant, J. Allison J. Bowden (AFC)C. MacQuarrie, J.-N. Candau (GLFC)