RELEASE AND ESTABLISHMENT OF TWO SPECIES OF WEEVILS FOR CONTROL OF MUSK THISTLE IN TENNESSEE - PHASE II

Musk thistle, accidently introduced into the U.S. from Europe more than 100 years ago, became a major pest in middle and eastern Tennessee by the 1960s and 1970s. This noxious weed resulted in an extensive annual expenditure of time, labor, and money with the average cost of chemical control of thistle estimated to be $10-15/acre. The University of Tennessee Agricultural Experiment Station in cooperation with the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration initiated research programs in 1989 and 1992 to suppress musk thistle using two plant-feeding insects, Rhinocyllus conicus and Trichosirocalus horridus. The release sites for the weevils were along the state highways and interstate system. From 1989 through 1995, about 70,000 weevils were collected and redistributed into thistle-infested regions in 61 counties within the state. Weevils were recovered from as many as 58 counties where head and rosette weevils had been previously released. By 1995, musk thistle density at the original study sites averaged less then 0.5 plants/sq m, representing a 94% reduction in musk thistle since 1989. The reduction of this invasive weed to a non-pest status will benefit TDOT directly by providing significant savings in expenditures of time and labor, herbicides and application equipment. Control of this weed provides for more diverse habitats adjacent to the roadways, promotes greater biodiversity of the local fauna and flora, and is a permanent, self-perpetuating, non-toxic, non-polluting, environmentally compatible means of controlling musk thistle. The long-term health benefits for the citizenry are potentially enormous in regard to protecting our rivers, lakes and groundwater from potential chemical pollution due to runoff.

• Corporate Authors:

  University of Tennessee, Knoxville

  Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology
  Knoxville, TN  United States  37901

  Tennessee Department of Transportation

  James K. Polk State Office Building, 505 Deaderick Street
  Nashville, TN  United States  37243

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Lambdin, P L
  • Grant, J F
• Publication Date: 1995-12-4

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Appendices; Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 33 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Benefits; Biological control; Cost effectiveness; Environmental impacts; Insects; Measures of effectiveness; Weed control
• Uncontrolled Terms: Effectiveness
• Subject Areas: Environment; Highways; Maintenance and Preservation; I61: Equipment and Maintenance Methods;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00725541
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: TN-STR-RES 1010, Final Report, Proj No. SPR-TNRES1010
• Contract Numbers: CUT-013
• Files: TRIS, USDOT, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Sep 9 1996 12:00AM