Mike McManus honored as 2005 recipient of the Osmun Award for achievement in Entomology.
October 15, 2005

Mike & Kathy McManus	Mike & Kathy McManus with Mrs. & Dr. Osman

Mike was born and raised in Chicago, IL, but he frequently spent his summers living with relatives in Winamac, IN, where he worked on local farms and at various odd jobs. This is where he developed his love and appreciation for the outdoors. He received his degrees from Purdue University: BS in Agriculture [Entomology] in 1959, MS in 1962 under Prof. Don Schuder, and PhD in 1966 under Prof. Ron Giese. Mike joined the USDA Forest Service in April 1966 as a Research Entomologist at their Forest Insect & Disease Laboratory located in Hamden, CT.

Mike was appointed Research Project Leader in 1973 and in 1975 was selected to be the Research Coordinator for the Department's National Gypsy Moth Research and Development Program; serving in that capacity until 1980. He also was a Lecturer in Forest Entomology at the Yale University School of Forestry & Environmental Studies from 1972-1980.  Mike was appointed Project Leader of the "Insect Pathology and Microbial Control" research project in 1985 and still serves in that capacity today.

Directly or indirectly, Mike has been an important part of the research and development that has led to many of the methods currently used for the control of Lepidopteran forest pests in Northeastern United States. Since 1993, he has traveled extensively in Eastern Europe and initiated cooperative research projects on gypsy moth biocontrol with Forest Research Institutes and universities in 8 different countries.  He has spent his entire career conducting research on aspects of gypsy moth behavior, population dynamics, and microbial control and has been active in the Entomological Society of America, Society of American Foresters, Society of Invertebrate Pathology, and the International Union of Forestry Research Organizations, where he serves as a Working Party Leader on IPM and microbial control of forest defoliating insects.