Linking crop history to <i>Melanotus communis</i> (Coleoptera: Elateridae) abundance in North Carolina and Virginia agroecosystems

Melanotus communis Gyllenhal (Coleoptera: Elateridae) is a significant wireworm pest of potato and sweetpotato in the southeastern United States. However, the impact of habitat proximity to surrounding crop fields on M. communis abundance remains unclear in this system. More refined risk assessment models to forecast populations as they relate to land use will aid in determining where fields are most vulnerable to damage, enabling more precise management interventions. Between 2022 and 2024, traps baited with M. communis sex pheromone were used to monitor adult male activity for ∼10 wk across 41 locations in North Carolina and Virginia. We combined trap data with remotely sensed land use data to correlate M. communis adult activity to surrounding habitats. The dependent variable used in models was overall mean abundance per location. Abundance was positively associated with the average proportional area of corn over 5 yr. These results are consistent with prior field-scale studies that showed that corn is a preferred host. Model estimates were expanded to understand the frequency of corn surrounding 2,884 potato or sweetpotato fields in 2024. Results showed clear spatial structuring of potato or sweetpotato fields that include corn as an abundant land use type over the prior 5 yr. This study provides a methods framework for expanding traditional landscape studies to communicate infestation risk over broad regions.