Arun Babu – Postdoctoral Research Associate

Ph.D. in Entomology from North Carolina State University, 2018
M.S. in Entomology from Mississippi State University, 2013
BSc in Agricultural Science from Kerala Agricultural University, Kerala, India, 2008

Research Description: My research focuses on developing chemical and behavioral based management strategies for controlling spotted wing drosophila; Drosophila suzukii population in small fruit crops including blueberries. Current research projects involve: 1. Testing the efficacy of a commercial attract-and-kill formulation, HOOK-SWD for managing D. suzukii in blueberries in the presence of host fruits. 2. Identifying an efficient alternate insecticide component for SPLAT-HOOK formulation, and 3. Identifying the influence of age, sex, and mating status of adult D. suzukii on their attractiveness to SPLAT-HOOK formulation.

arunbabu@uga.edu