"Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) (Diptera: Drosophilidae) is a global pest of economic importance in raspberry and other berry crops. High fecundity, short generation time, and limited understanding of this invasive pest contribute to the challenges in managing this fly. Current management is largely dependent on frequent applications of broad-spectrum insecticides and this thesis explores new management options for control of this pest in high tunnel raspberries, an increasingly common popular production method for this crop. During 2015 and 2016, surveys were conducted to characterize the arthropod community in high tunnel raspberry plantings in Central and Southwest Michigan. Methods to control the insect pests of raspberries, including D. suzukii, were evaluated over these two years. This includes the use of specialty plastics to reduce ultra-violet (UV) light transmission in the growing environment, which may disorient insects and reduce pesticide degradation, and the use of exclusion netting. While UV blocking plastics did not strongly affect the insect community, they reduced the degradation of insecticides up to 50% compared to plastics that transmitted UV. Moreover, exclusion netting reduced D. suzukii adult and larval populations by up to 75% and delayed their arrival by 4 weeks. Additionally, netting used with insecticides contributed to a greater reduction of D. suzukii than either netting or insecticides alone. This research demonstrates effective new knowledge that can be used to increase sustainability in raspberry production and help rebuild integrated pest management after invasion by D. suzukii."--Page ii.
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