CRIS Project Title: The Colorado Potato Beetle: Biology, Behavior and Nutrition

Dr. Dickens is Lead Scientist on a CRIS Project entitled "Colorado Potato Beetle: Biology, Behavior and Nutrition". He also serves as USDA, ARS, Authorized Departmental Officer's Designated Representative for Cooperative Agreements with Universities on "Management of Colorado Potato Beetles and Aphids". Dr. Dickens is recognized both nationally and internationally, as an authority on insect olfaction, in general, and olfaction in Coleoptera, in particular. He has authored or co-authored nearly 90 refereed publications including four patents; the technology specified in each of the patents is either currently in use or is being tested by industry. Two additional patents are being processed in the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office. Among Dr. Dickens' publications are an invitational review on olfaction in bark beetles and invited book chapters on: neurobiology of pheromonal signal processing in insects, chemical communication in the boll weevil, chemical messengers and insect behavior, pheromones and new approaches to pest management, and olfaction in Coleoptera (beetles and weevils). He has over 100 presentations of his research at national and international meetings, including more than 60 invitational presentations in France, Canada, Switzerland, England, Germany, Jamaica, Sweden, The Netherlands, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Puerto Rico, Italy and other countries as well as numerous places throughout the United States.

Objective:

Control of the Colorado potato beetle and other insects using non-insecticidal methods with information gained from studies on semiochemical attractants. Characterize the role of selected allelochemicals in conferring resistance to CPB in wild Solanum species.

Progress:

• Identified attractants and repellants for Colorado potato beetle.
• Discovered and characterized receptor for specific glycoalkaloids in Colorado potato beetle.

1966-1969	University of Richmond, Major-Biology; B.A. 1969.
1970-1972	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, major-Entomology; minor-Chemistry; M.S. 1972. Thesis - "Distribution and Structure of Ocelli in Lepidoptera Previously Reported to be Anocellate and Morphology of a Nerve Complex Associated with the Ocelli". Advisor - Dr. John L. Eaton.
1973	University of Virginia, major-Biology (Neurophysiology); Ph.D. candidate. Advisors Drs. Carl Spirito and DeForest Mellon, Jr.
1972, 1974-1976	Texas A&M University, major-Entomology; minor-Chemistry and Biology; Ph.D. 1977 (Distinguished Graduate Student Award for top Ph. D. student in College of Agriculture, Texas A&M University). Thesis - "Olfactory Perception of Pheromones and Host Volatiles by the Southern Pine Beetle, Dendroctonus frontalis Zimmerman (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)". Advisor - Dr. Thomas L. Payne.

1985	USDA-ARS, Research Personnel Evaluation System Training, Southern Regional Research Center, New Orleans, Louisiana.
1986	USDA-ARS, Seminar on Science, Technology and Public Policy, two-week course (3 hours graduate credit), Western Executive Seminar Center, Denver, Colorado.
1990-1991	USDA-ARS, ARS Fellowship, from 9/1/90 through 5/12/91, ARS Fellowship at the Research Institute for Plant Protection (IPO), Wageningen, The Netherlands, in the laboratory of Dr. J. H. Visser and collaboration with Dr. J. N. C. Van Der Pers.
1992	USDA-ARS, Advanced course on Science, Technology and Public Policy, August 21 - September 1, Western Management Development Center, Denver, Colorado.
1999	"Congressional Briefing Conference for the Agricultural Research Service" by The Government Affairs Institute, Georgetown University, March 15 - 18, Washington, D. C.
2001	"Managing Multiple Projects, Objectives and Deadlines" by SkillPath Seminars, January 18, Beltsville, Maryland.

1977-1979	Wissenschaftlicher Angestellter (Assistant Research Scientist), Forstzoologisches Institut der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Freiburg i. Br., Germany.
1979-1980	Research Associate, USDA-ARS Citrus Insects Research Laboratory and Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, Weslaco, Texas.
1980-1982	Assistant Research Scientist, Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas.
1982	Research Associate, Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas.
1982	Assistant Entomologist, Department of Entomology, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, Mississippi.
1983-1987	GS-12, Research Entomologist, USDA-ARS, Boll Weevil Research Laboratory, Mississippi State, Mississippi.
1988-1992	GM-13, Research Entomologist and Lead Scientist, USDA-ARS, Boll Weevil Research Unit, Mississippi State, Mississippi.
1992-1996	GS-14, Research Entomologist and Lead Scientist, USDA-ARS, Boll Weevil Research Unit and Integrated Pest Management Research Unit, Mississippi State, Mississippi.
1996	Research Entomologist and Lead Scientist, Plant Sciences Institute, Vegetable Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
1997-2000	GS-15, Research Entomologist and Lead Scientist, Plant Sciences Institute, Vegetable Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland. Authorized Departmental Officer's Designated Representative for Cooperative Agreements with Universities on "Management of Colorado Potato Beetles and Aphids".
2000-present	Research Entomologist and Lead Scientist, Plant Sciences Institute, Chemicals Affecting Insect Behavior Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland. Authorized Departmental Officer's Designated Representative for Cooperative Agreements with Universities on "Management of Colorado Potato Beetles and Aphids".

Recipient of over 28 honors and awards including Former Students Association, Texas A&M University, Distinguished Graduate Student Award, 1977.

USDA-ARS Fellowship Award, 1990 (10 months working with Dr. J. H. Visser, Research Institute for Plant Protection, Wageningen, The Netherlands); and more than 9 performance-related awards and 4 invention awards from USDA-ARS.

Selected member of Beta Beta Beta Biological Honor Society, Phi Sigma Biological Honor Society, Phi Kappa Phi Scholastic Honor Society and Sigma Xi Research Honor Society.

EDITORIAL BOARDS

Member of Editorial Board of Agricultural and Forest Entomology, an international journal of the Royal Entomological Society.

1996	"Synthetic Attractant for Tarnished Plant Bug, Lygus lineolaris". Funded by Cotton Incorporated for, $20,000. Principal investigator, collaborators J. E. Oliver and J. R. Aldrich.
1997	"Synthetic Attractant for Tarnished Plant Bug, Lygus lineolaris". Funded by Cotton Incorporated, $20,000. Principal investigator, collaborators J. E. Oliver and J. R. Aldrich.
1998	"Synthetic Attractant for Tarnished Plant Bug, Lygus lineolaris". Funded by Cotton Incorporated, $23,000. Principal investigator, collaborators J. E. Oliver and J. R. Aldrich.
1999	"Development of an attractant for management of the Colorado potato beetle". Funded by ARS Potato Research Program, $37,910. Principal investigator, collaborator A. R. Alford, University of Maine.
2000	"Development of attractant technology for management of Colorado potato beetle". Funded by ARS Potato Research Program, $40,500. Principal investigator, collaborator A. R. Alford, University of Maine.
2001	"Management of Colorado potato beetle through attractant technology". Funded by ARS Potato Research Program, $47,104. Principal investigator, collaborator A. R. Alford, University of Maine.

• Hedin, P. A., Davis, F. M., Dickens, J. C., Burks, M. L. and Bird, T. G. Sex pheromone composition for southwestern corn borer. United States Patent no.: 4,632,829. 1986.
• Dickens, J. C., Billings, R. F. and Payne, T. L. Green leaf volatiles as inhibitors of bark beetle aggregation pheromones. United States Patent no.: 5,273,996. 1993.
• McKibben, G. H., Dickens, J. C. and Smith, J. W. A plastic bait composition for attracting and killing crop pests. United States Patent no.: 5,290,556. 1994.
• Dickens, J. C., Billings, R. F. and Payne, T. L. Green leaf volatiles as inhibitors of bark beetle aggregation pheromones. United States Patent no.: 5,468,770. 1995.
• Dickens, J. C. Green leaf volatiles as synergists for insect pheromones. United States Patent Application no.: 08/015,260. 1993. Pending.
• Dickens, J. C. and Alford, A. R. Attractants and repellants for the Colorado potato beetle. United States Patent Application no. 60/225,789. 2000. Pending.

• Dickens, J. C. Electrophysiological investigations of olfaction in bark beetles. In "Dispersal of Forest Insects: Evaluation, Theory, and Management Implications". Mitt. Schweiz. Ent. Ges. 52:203-216. 1979.
• Dickens, J. C. and Payne, T. L. Chemical messengers and insect behavior, pp. 201-230. In Mandava, N. B. (ed.) Handbook of Natural Pesticides: Methods, Volume 1: Theory, Practice and Detection. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL. 534 pp. 1985.
• Dickens, J. C. Specificity in perception of pheromones and host odors in Coleoptera, pp. 253-261. In Payne, T. L., Birch, M. C. and Kennedy, C. E. J. (eds.) Mechanisms in Insect Olfaction. Oxford University Press, Oxford, England, U.K. 364 pp. 1986.
• Dickens, J. C. 1991. Weevil snouts, odor detection and new approaches to pest management, pp. 49-57. In Fell, R. D. (ed.) Entomology in Virginia: New problems and new approaches. Virginia Agric. Exp. Sta. Series 90-91, Blacksburg, VA.
• Dickens, J. C. Chemical communication in the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis Boh. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae): Neural and behavioral mechanisms. In Cate, J. W. and Coppedge, J. W. (eds.) One Hundred Years with the Boll Weevil. 1993.
• Dickens, J. C. Neurobiology of pheromonal signal processing in insects, pp. 210-217. In Cardé, R. T. and Minks, A. K. (eds.) Insect Pheromone Research New Directions. Chapman & Hall, New York. xxii+684 pp. 1997.