Dr. Don Vacek has spent his career (37 yrs.) supporting American agriculture while serving as a Supervisory Geneticist and a Microbiologist. Don started his career by working on Colorado Potato Beetle, developing new biological control methods using parasitoids and predators to help control the pest insect. Following that work he developed microbiological methods for differentiating eastern and western strains of Alfalfa Weevil, which was a pivotal accomplishment for that USDA biological control program.
His work on molecular methods to differentiate several species of Encarsia and Eretmocerus parasitoids from worldwide foreign exploration efforts were key to the success of the national biological control program against Sweetpotato Whitefly. Several species in both genera were undescribed and the molecular evidence helped taxonomists to differentiate and describe new species.
Don Vacek went on to develop RAPID diagnostic methods which separated Boll Weevil, an important economic pest of cotton, from a closely related non-pest species of Thurberia Weevil. This scientific advancement helped the Boll Weevil eradication effort to focus its insecticidal treatments to only those fields affected by the damaging insect pest species.
Recently, Dr. Vacek has supported the LRGV eradication effort against Mexican Fruit Fly, by using his background in microbiology. He has developed methods to identify pathogenic bacteria, fungi, and yeast species that adversely affect the MFF Mass Rearing facility that rears MFF for the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) releases across the LRGV of Texas. He has developed disinfection techniques that help eliminate Serratia marcesans a highly pathogenic bacteria that causes significant mortality and reduction in yields of mass reared MFF. His efforts have helped the mass rearing facility meet its insect production numbers so that adequate SIT flies can be aerially released across the LRGV.
Several of the projects Don has worked on in his career have directly benefited South Texas agriculture. They include his contributions to the Sweetpotato Whitefly, Cotton Boll Weevil, and Mexican Fruit Fly SIT programs.