Friday, February 24, 2023

Moths are the new tool to protect Canada's wetlands

Waterloo biologists, in partnership with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the University of Toronto, are working on a North American pilot program that uses moths as a management tool to control the invasive plant threatening Canadian wetlands.

“We’re one of the first 13 sites in North America to trial insect-based biocontrol for invasive phragmites,” says Dr. Rebecca Rooney. “This offers hope for chemical free invasive phragmites control.”

Phragmites, Phragmites australis, also known as European common reed is an invasive perennial grass that spreads quickly and out-competes native species for water, sunlight, and nutrients. It releases toxins from its roots into the soil to further hinder the growth of and kill surrounding plants - leading to a decrease in biodiversity and habitat.

There is no single method that is a ‘quick fix’ to manage phragmites, instead a continuous, multi-method approach is required for success and long-term results. Current removal methods include herbicides, prescribed fire, cutting underwater, flooding and physical removal.

However, two moth species - Lenisa geminipuncta and Archanara neurica - are natural enemies of the invasive plant. The goal is to use the moths as a biological control agent to help wetlands re-establish a natural balance.

"The biocontrol program for invasive Phragmites is the result of work by a large international team and has been in development for over 20 years," says Michael McTavish, a Waterloo alumus and current post doctoral fellow at the University of Toronto. "Starting with releases in 2019, AAFC and the University of Toronto have developed an operational protocol to rear, release, and monitor Phragmites biocontrol agents, and we are excited to expand the releases across southern Ontario with a growing team of collaborators."

Claire Schon, a Waterloo biology master’s student in the Rooney lab, is assessing different methods of moth-release and will be monitoring both the damage to the phragmites plant as well as documenting any changes to the wetland plant community over time.

“As larvae, these two species of moths will bore into the stem of phragmites and eat all the tissue there, which damages the plant,” says Schon. “Moth-damaged stems typically either die, or form side shoots in an effort to compensate for the feeding damage."

To investigate this, Schon is using a total of 68 testing sites at two locations - on campus and at rare Charitable Research Reserve. She is testing two different release strategies for both species of moths. She is releasing moth eggs and larvae to see which stage is more effective at damaging phragmites in our climate.

Egg cups are placed on the plant with either 60 or 120 eggs in mid to late April. The hope is for the eggs to hatch when the plant puts up new shoots. This strategy is more efficient than using moth larvae which have to be grown in the lab, placed on some stems stuck into a foam that’s placed in the middle of a patch during mid to late May.

Early results suggest the moth larva are causing damage to the phragmites plant by burrowing into the stem, killing the section of plant above where the moth larva fed. While doing her stem density and height measurements, Schon noticed the health of the plants around her.

“In early June I was very excited to find my first moth-damaged stem, it looked like it was dying and I was able to find evidence of the larva’s entrance and exit hole” said Schon. “To me, this amazing as it was the first-time I got to see evidence of my experiment working."

Around mid-July the moth matures and can fly. At this point, it will mate and lay their eggs on leaf sheaths. This is important as only the invasive phragmites keeps its leaves. Native phragmite plants drop their leaves in the late summer so the moth eggs won’t mature and can’t eat the plant in spring. This is an important distinction that allows the moths to be effective at damaging only the invasive phragmites plant.

In the late summer, Schon measured how many stems were damaged in a square metre, as well as the number of larvae entrance and exits holes. She also took plant physiology measurements including the rate of carbon assimilation, and how efficient that plant is at using water as well as measurements of plant growth and reproduction like the plant biomass, plant height, and how many seeds are produced that will be processed during the winter.

Moth-damaged phragmites stem.

Early results are promising for this new method of Phragmites control.

“We have found that moth-damaged stems are much shorter than healthy stems and rarely produce seed. Moth-damaged stems produce less biomass, and their rates of carbon assimilation are limited by the larval feeding,” explained Schon. “At our campus field site, we also found evidence that the moths had survived to adulthood.”

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Next summer, she hopes to revisit the field sites and document any new moth damage from surviving eggs as well as record the changes to the plant community.

Celebrating retirees in 2022's fourth quarter

Human Resources has announced that the following employees retired on October 1, November 1 and December 1, 2022.

October 2022

• Barbara Redfearn, who joined the University in September 2000, retired as Account Co-ordinator in Co-operative and Experiential Education (CEE);
• Roslyn Keller, who started working at Waterloo in August 1970, retired as Library Associate - Catalog & Info Services in the Library;
• Vito Logiudice, who began working at the University in June 2008, retired as Director, Quantum-Nano Core Fabrication and Characterization Facility in the Office of Research;
• Dr. Christine Wiedman, who started her career at Waterloo in July 2006, retired as faculty member in the School of Accounting and Finance;
• Dr. Glen Heppler, who began working at the University in May 1986, retired as faculty member in Systems Design Engineering;
• Gracia Murase, who started at Waterloo in July 1980, retired as Microbiology Lab Technician in the Biology Department;
• Dennis Cok, who joined the University in July 2016, retired as ACE Project Manager in the Chemistry Department;
• Giselle Scanlon, who started at Waterloo in January 2015, retired as Lecturer at Renison University College;
• Laura Holtby, who began working at the University in September 2004, retired as Project Manager in the Propel Centre after a leave;
• Maria Sousa, who started at Waterloo in February 2000, retired as Custodian II in Plant Operations; and
• Anne Dvorachek, who started her career at the University in November 1984, retired as Secretary in the Classical Studies department.

November 2022

• Lynda McCutcheon, who joined the University in January 1991, retired as Grants & Contracts Manager in the Office of Research;
• Beverly Kuepfer, who started at Waterloo in August 1990, retired as On-Campus Courier in Central Stores;
• Georgia Mulholland, who started at the University in October 2015 on contract and was full-time as of March 2022, retired as Financial Officer in University Relations;
• Neil McManus, who began working at Waterloo in February 1988, retired as Senior Lab Instructor, Nanotechnology in the Department of Chemical Engineering;
• Christina Roberts, who started at the University in October 1981, retired as Director, Marketing and Undergraduate Recruitment in the Office of the Registrar;
• Thomas Dean, who began working at Waterloo in October 2010, retired as Technical Operations Director in the Department of Chemical Engineering;
• Janet Venne, who joined the University in August 1981, retired as Research Lab Assistant in the Institute for Quantum Computing; and
• Debbie Holden, who began working at Waterloo in January 2013, retired as Assistant Manager, Cleaning Services in Campus Housing.

December 2022

• Brad Winder, who joined the University in January 1991, retired as Residence Attendant in Campus Housing.

In addition, a retirement from September 2022 seems to have been overlooked in previous updates. Elena Hutuleac, who joined the University in October 28 but was on leave since January 2005, retired as Custodian in Plant Operations.

Congratulations to our last retiring cohort of 2022.

MAID needs to be an authentic choice

By Jon Parsons. This article originally appeared on Waterloo News.

Medical assistance in dying (MAID) raises many ethical issues, one of which is whether an absence of social support makes MAID an authentic choice.

That’s the view of Dr. Andrew Stumpf, an assistant professor of philosophy at St. Jerome’s University, a federated institution of the University of Waterloo. Stumpf’s research focuses on ethics and end-of-life care.

“We need to support and promote people’s autonomy and the right to make important decisions about their body,” Stumpf says. “And what could be bigger than the decision about what happens regarding your death? But we need to be putting at least as much energy and attention into giving people the kind of support they need to live dignified lives.”

Providing adequate supports

With the federal government recently putting a pause on implementing the latest update to MAID, Stumpf says it’s a good time to re-examine key ethical issues.

Under the current rules for MAID, people with what are defined as grievous and irremediable medical conditions may seek assistance in ending their own lives. But sometimes this is not happening because of any medical condition on its own, but because they cannot access adequate housing or health-care.

Such cases have been widely reported in Canada in recent years, for example in CBC, Global News, CTV News, and City News.

“Having adequate social supports for people is a huge investment, but it’s something we need to do,” Stumpf continues. “It seems our current cultural attitude says, well, when you’re older or disabled, we just shift you off to the side and forget about you, but now here’s this other option of MAID you can avail yourself of. We need to be doing better on programs and supports that allow people to live their lives fully.”

Expanding and promoting palliative care

One key support that Stumpf sees as central to any discussion around MAID is palliative care – an approach to health-care and quality of life for people with serious or terminal illnesses. Palliative care is not always specific to immediate end-of-life care and may be appropriate for people who have illnesses for many years.

“The current approach makes MAID available to people and lets everybody know about MAID, but most people don’t know much about palliative care,” Stumpf says. “And palliative care is not readily accessible to people, at least in a high-quality form. That’s not really promoting autonomy, as I see it.”

Expanding availability and awareness of palliative care and providing adequate social support are things he sees as fundamental to creating authentic choices for MAID.

As part of his ongoing research, Stumpf founded the Kernel Network, an organization that aims to foster collaboration between academics and community partners on end-of-life research.

Waterloo sponsors International Women's Day activities

The University of Waterloo is a sponsor of International Women’s Day activities hosted by Women in Communications & Technology, Waterloo Region. Join Barriers to Equity: Women, Political Representation & Family for an intimate discussion with Dr. Laura Mae Lindo, moderated by Jasmin Habib, chair of Political Science. The event will take place on Wednesday, March 1 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Federation Hall. Register for the event.

Friday's notes

W Store and W Print locations will be closed all day on February 24 for inventory counting. Please send any questions to wstore@uwaterloo.ca or wprint@uwaterloo.ca.

The February 2023 IT Review Interim Report is now available for review. This report offers an update and identifies timelines for tasks/action items, other ideas being discussed within the working groups (lead by the co-leads), and cross-theme connections. Learn more on the IT Review website.

Senate nominations close on February 28. All eligible students, staff, and faculty are encouraged to put their name forward for consideration.

Nominees must provide a brief statement (100 words maximum) along with a completed nomination form to appear on the ballot.

Senate plays a crucial role in the day-to-day academic policy of the institution. Their responsibilities includes regulating curricula for all courses, determining standards of admission, and conferring degrees. Senate elections take place from March 2 to 9.

Senators serve two-year terms commencing in May. Senate meetings are held at 3:30 p.m. on the third Monday of each month. Senate does not meet in July and August.

For more information visit https://uwaterloo.ca/secretariat/nominations-elections.

IST is reporting that Quest will be down for scheduled maintenance on Saturday, February 25, from 6:45 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. During that time Quest will be down and unavailable.