by Catharina Fjelkner
Geneva, NY - Michael G. Villani will receive the Recognition
Award in Urban Entomology from the Entomological Society of America (ESA)
at their national meeting on December 14, in 
Nashville,
Tennessee. Villani is associate professor of soil insect ecology in Cornell
University's entomology department at the New York State Agricultural Experiment
Station in Geneva, NY.
"I'm pleased that I was recognized for my work in Urban Entomology," said Villani. "What pleases me most is the support of my colleagues in the form of letters on my behalf to the awards' panel. I also hope the award helps to focus the college and the Station on the growing interest and importance in the area of Urban Pest Management."
The Recognition Award is one of several awards provided annually by the ESA to recognize and encourage outstanding scientists who have distinguished themselves by significant contributions in Urban Entomology. Criteria for the award include the recipient's academic record and professional experience in extension as well as results achieved through his or her program efforts. This is the second time Villani was recognized by the ESA. In 1996, the Eastern Branch of the ESA honored him with the Distinguished Achievement Award in Urban Entomology.
Villani's principal professional interests and contributions are in the area of the interrelationships between turfgrass insects, most notably scarab grubs, mole crickets, their host plants, and the soil environment. "Villani's projects on soil insects have put Geneva in the worldwide limelight as the center of excellence," said Wendell Roelofs, chairman of the entomology department.
Villani is highly regarded worldwide as a practicing entomologist. Initially, he found a niche developing a unique radiographic technology to study the behavior of soil insects. His research includes the impact of soil heterogeneity on insect behavioral patterns such as the study of predator/prey and pathogen/host interactions within the soil. Additional focuses include use of new IPM strategies for the control of insects, such as the impact of soil physical properties on chemical and microbial insecticides, use of pheromones in scarab monitoring and management programs, use of fungal pathogens, and entomopathogenic nematodes.
Villani maintains a 20 percent extension assignment. Since his research includes insects that invade commercial plantings as well as ornamentals and urban landscapes, his efforts have become invaluable to the billion dollar turf business in New York State comprised of home owners, golf course managers and pest control agencies concerned with turf damage. Villani states that "this award reinforces the notion that there is an important place for both fundamental and applied research in commodity-focused programs."
The ESA wrote in their newsletter announcing the award that Villani's "unique radiographic techniques and his skills in studying the behavior and ecology of insects living underground has led to collaborations with scientists nationally and internationally on problems in a number of cropping systems including turfgrass, cranberry, onion and maize. Basic research on pest species and the development of new IPM strategies for their control has greatly contributed to the area of urban entomology and pest management."
Recently, Villani served as co-editor of the highly successful ESA Handbook of Turfgrass Insect Pests. He is currently working on the second edition of Turfgrass Insects of the United States and Canada. Villani is currently active on the Operating Committee to accomplish the mission of the New York State IPM Program. He also serves on several Cornell committees, including the Urban IPM Working Group, the Academic Appeals Board, the Interdepartmental Turfgrass Committee, and Ornamentals IPM Committee where he holds a chair.
Villani was born in San Antonio, Texas. He completed a Ph.D. in Entomology at North Carolina State University in 1984, having previously earned a B.A. in Liberal Arts at SUNY-Stony Brook. In 1985, he was appointed assistant professor at Cornell in the department of entomology at the Geneva Experiment Station, where he now holds the rank of associate professor.
A 300 dpi b&w photograph is downloadable by clicking on the photo above.
Return to News Page