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- LSU AgCenter, College of Agriculture name new entomology department head
(09/19/16) BATON ROUGE, La. – Michael Stout, a 19-year veteran of the LSU AgCenter and LSU College of Agriculture Department of Entomology, has been named head of the department. Stout replaces Jim Ottea, who had served as interim head.
Stout received a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of California, Berkeley and a doctorate from the University of California, Davis. He came to LSU in 1997 as a rice entomologist. His research focuses on helping rice growers manage pests in their fields.
“I’ve always been interested in plant-insect interactions, how plants defend themselves, and trying to determine what are the traits that help plants tolerate insects,” Stout said.
Stout will continue to conduct research on plant-insect interactions and teach a course on plant resistance.
Stout said the Department of Entomology is responsible for developing solutions to insect-related problems in Louisiana and around the world. Researchers in the department look at three main areas – pests feeding on crops, insects that transmit diseases and insects that attack structures.
“We have an extremely talented faculty working on issues that have global relevance – Zika virus, termites, crop pests,” he said. “My vision is to grow the department and build on the strong foundation that is already there.”
The Department of Entomology has 14 faculty members and 35 graduate students. The department also teaches undergraduates through general education courses and a minor in entomology.
Michael Stout
The LSU AgCenter and the LSU College of Agriculture