Georgina V. Bingham

Dr. Georgina V. Bingham

Leading the Stored Product Pest Laboratory, Department of Entomology, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

4Years (2023-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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21 December 2023 in Insects
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
Georgina V. BinghamGeorgina V. Bingham
Georgina V. Bingham
David W.  HagstrumDavid W. Hagstrum
David W. Hagstrum
Sanitation is essential for the cost-effective pest management of stored-product insects. The Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938 led to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tightening regulatory standards, and many local surveys, courses and conferences were organized to prepare the industry for these new regulations. Sanitation removes insects and residual food, which may also provide shelter for insects, with heat treatments and insecticide applications. The number of insects removed by cleaning may be reduced as the number of available hiding places increases. Decreased sanitation negatively affects the efficacy of most other pest management practices, with means of 1.3- to 17-fold decreases in efficacy. The majority of studies quantifying the efficacy of sanitation have been performed on the farm storage of grain, but some studies have been conducted for grain elevators, food processing, and the marketing system. Results ranged from no effect of sanitation alone to very effective alone or with other methods. Sanitation can also reduce insect infestation prior to harvest. Some cost–benefit analyses have been conducted for sanitation.

31 January 2023 in Insects
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
BOBismark Opoku
Bismark Opoku
EOEnoch Adjei Osekre
Enoch Adjei Osekre
GOGeorge Patrick Opit
George Patrick Opit
ABAugustine Bosomtwe
Augustine Bosomtwe
Georgina V. BinghamGeorgina V. Bingham
Georgina V. Bingham
Using low-quality maize, resulting from insect pests and fungal attack, for formulating feed reduces chicken performance. This study evaluated the effectiveness of hermetic storage bags to keep insect pest and mycotoxin levels in check in yellow maize. The study was conducted in storehouses at three poultry farms in Dormaa Ahenkro, Bono Region, Ghana. The experiment was set up in a Randomized Complete Block Design with ZeroFly® Hermetic (ZFH), Purdue Improved Crop Storage (PICS), and Polypropylene (PP) bags as treatments. In each treatment, twelve 50 kg samples of untreated maize were each put in 100 kg capacity bags. Two bags in each treatment were destructively sampled monthly for 6 months. The number of insects was significantly higher in the PP bag (161.00 ± 4.25), compared to the PICS and ZFH bags: 7.00 ± 0.29 and 4.50 ± 0.76, respectively. The PICS and ZFH bags had less insect damage and lower weight loss than the PP bags. Aflatoxin and fumonisin levels were below the recommended safe thresholds of 15 ppb and 4 ppm, respectively, in all the bags. With the exception of ash, proximate analyses were higher for all variables in the PICS and ZFH bags. The study showed that PICS and ZFH bags conserved maize quality better than the PP bag.

22 May 2025 in Insects
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
AOAyhan Ogreten
Ayhan Ogreten
SESedat Eren
Sedat Eren
ÇMÇETİN MUTLU
ÇETİN MUTLU
TATarkan Ayaz
Tarkan Ayaz
ASAmna SAEED
Amna SAEED
William MorrisonWilliam Morrison
William Morrison
Stored grain pests cause significant economic losses during cereal grain storage. Insecticides have long been central to pest control; however, growing concerns over resistance, environmental harm, and human health demand alternative strategies. Diatomaceous earth (DE) treatments are a safe, eco-friendly alternative to insecticides, although their efficacy depends on the temperature, humidity, dose, and insect species. This study assessed the insecticidal effects of two natively-sourced raw (Ankara and Aydin) and one commercial (Silico-Sec) DE treatments against the key pest species Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) and Sitophilus granarius (L.) on stored wheat. Five doses (0, 250, 500, 750, and 1000 ppm) of each DE treatment were tested under two temperatures (25 °C and 30 °C) and two humidity levels (40% and 60%). Mortality was assessed at 7, 14, and 21 days after treatment (DAT). All DE treatments caused higher mortality in S. granarius than R. dominica. The highest mortality occurred in S. granarius at 30 °C and 40% RH with the highest dose. Aydin DE was most effective, but did not reach 100% mortality in S. granarius by 21 DAT. In contrast, it caused 100% mortality in R. dominica under the same conditions. There was no F1 progeny produced by surviving individuals of both species. Given the similarity of the environmental conditions to the optimal conditions for DE efficacy present in Turkish storage facilities, natively sourced Aydin DE is a promising control option.

20 August 2024 in Insects
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
LRLeslie C Rault
Leslie C Rault
William MorrisonWilliam Morrison
William Morrison
AGAlison R. Gerken
Alison R. Gerken
Georgina V. BinghamGeorgina V. Bingham
Georgina V. Bingham
Background: Food security is an increasingly pressing global issue, and by 2050, food production will not be sufficient to feed the growing population. Part of global food insecurity can be attributed to post-harvest losses, including quantity and quality losses caused by stored-product pests like insects. It is thus timely to find management strategies to mitigate these losses and counteract food insecurity. The red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), a global stored-product pest with a wide range of food sources, was used in this study to assess repellency to a selection of essential oils. Methods: Multiple behaviorally relevant methods were used to determine the efficacy of the essential oils in assays to pinpoint the most promising repellents. Experiments were used to assess individual and group behaviors with or without airflow and examined the behavioral variation in distance moved and the time spent away from the oil. Results: It was found that exposure to essential oils and conditions of experimentation considerably influenced T. castaneum’s behavioral response, but a clear candidate for repellency could not be chosen based on the collected data. Conclusions: Follow-up research is needed to pinpoint repellents for integrated pest management practices to protect grains from stored-product pests and to justify their use in and around commodities.

23 April 2025 in Preprints.org
Verified
Preprint
Open access
PDF file
AOAyhan Ogreten
Ayhan Ogreten
SESedat Eren
Sedat Eren
CMCetin Mutlu
Cetin Mutlu
TATarkan AYAZ
Tarkan AYAZ
ASAmna SAEED
Amna SAEED
William MorrisonWilliam Morrison
William Morrison
Stored grain pests cause significant economic losses during cereal grain storage. Insecticides have long been central to pest control, but growing concerns over resistance, environmental harm, and human health demand alternative strategies. Diatomaceous earths (DEs) are safe, eco-friendly alternatives, though their efficacy depends on factors like temperature, humidity, dose, and insect species. This study assessed the insecticidal effects of two native raw (Ankara and Aydin) and one commercial (Silico-Sec) DEs against Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) and Sitophilus granarius (L.) on stored wheat. Five DE doses (0, 250, 500, 750, 1000 ppm) were tested under two temperatures (25°C, 30°C) and two humidity levels (40%, 60%). Mortality was assessed at 7, 14, and 21 days after treatment (DAT). All DEs caused higher mortality in S. granarius than R. dominica. The highest mortality occurred in S. granarius at 30°C and 40% RH with the highest dose. Aydin DE was most effective, but did not reach 100% mortality in S. granarius by 21 DAT. In contrast, it caused complete mortality in R. dominica under the same conditions. Survivors of both species produced no F1 progeny. Given similar conditions in Turkish storage facilities, native Aydin DE is a promising control option.