Michelle Fountain
Michelle Fountain | |
|---|---|
| Alma mater | University of Reading (PhD) |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | East Malling Research Station |
Michelle Fountain is a British entomologist and ecologist, she is Head of Pest and Pathogen Ecology at the National Institute of Agricultural Botany's East Malling Research Station.[1]
Education and career[edit]
Fountain studied her doctorate at the University of Reading, her focus was on springtails (Collembola) in urban soils.[2]
Research[edit]
Fountain's research looks at biological control techniques to reduce pest insects on fruit and vegetables, such as using pheromones to manipulate male or females to reduce the reproduction rate of a pest.[3] She led some of the first work to quantify the role of [hoverflies] in [pollinating] [strawberry] crops, she showed that hoverflies can reduce pests by predating on aphids as larvae and then pollinating fruit flowers as adults.[4]
Fountain has researched control methods for the pest insect spotted wing drosophila in the UK.[5] She researched how earwigs could be beneficial in orchards, as they can eat pest of fruit trees such as wooly aphid and codling moth.[6] Fountain pioneered a technique where predatory mites on mature tree branches are introduced to orchards of young trees, to help control insect pests.[7]
She appeared on BBC Radio 4 Today Programme in 2014 talking about the unusual abundance of fruit flies and explained this was likely due to a mild winter.[8]
In 2019 she edited a book 'Integrated management of diseases and insect pests of tree fruit' with Professor Xiangming Xu, published by Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing.[9]
Her publication list can be found at [1]
References[edit]
- ^ "Dr Michelle Fountain". niab.com. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ "Biodiversity of springtails (Insecta : Collembola) in urban soils". ethos.bl.uk. British Library. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ Gilbert, Gerard (27 June 2014). "How the strawberry took over the world - with a little help from the science lab". The Independent. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ Searle, Fred (23 March 2018). "Hoverflies offer 'dual benefit to strawberry growers'". Fresh Produce Journal. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ "Spotted wing drosophila key focus of trial work". certiseurope.co.uk/. Certis Europe. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ Calcutt, Sarah (2 February 2016). "Earwigs are good for top fruit". South East Farmer. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ Anderson, Rachel (22 March 2016). "Orchard diversity comes into focus as industry rethinks approach to growing food". Produce Business UK. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ "Fruit fly 'plague' caused by 'exceptionally mild winter'". BBC News. 7 November 2014. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
- ^ Xiangming Xu, Michelle Fountain. "Integrated management of diseases and insect pests of tree fruit". shop.bdspublishing.com/. Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing. Retrieved 17 September 2020.