Rebecca Hallett

Prof. Rebecca Hallett, School of Environmental Sciences, and technician James Heal were part of a team that helped discover a new insect, a hairy midge, with their work featured by the Western Producer Feb. 9. A researcher in Saskatchewan found the bug and sent it to U of G, where Hallett and Neal confirmed that this larger and hairier species is different from the well-known Swedish midge. Researchers know the midge can damage canola flowers, but more study is planned to determine how significant the damage is and whether the insect can affect other parts of the plant.