09/07/2000

Fire Ant Research Project Nets AU Grad Student International Award in Map-Making

AUBURN, Ala.—An Auburn University graduate student in entomology who is writing his thesis on fire ant control in pastures has won an international award in the unlikely area of map-making.

Matthew Aubuchon of the AU Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology was presented the National Geographic Society/British Cartographic Society Student Award Sept. 7 in Oxford, England, during the cartographic society's annual symposium. Aubuchon, who shared the honor with a student from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, England, is the first American to win the award. As co-winner, Aubuchon received a cash award, a certificate and a world atlas.

Cartography is the art, science and technology of making maps. Entomology, meanwhile, is the study of insects. It was through his research to identify environmentally safe, cost-effective fire ant control plans for cattle producers that Aubuchon brought the two disciplines together.

For his research project, which he launched in 1999, it was essential that Aubuchon count and keep track of every fire ant mound on the 18 acres of grazed pastureland included in his study. Although he knew nothing of cartography, he realized early on that he needed maps to effectively illustrate his data.

"Maps are much more dynamic than charts and graphs; they add an incredible dimension to a presentation," Aubuchon said. "A picture is worth a thousand words, but a map is worth a thousand pictures."

His search for information on map-making landed him in a mapping course taught by Phil Chaney, AU assistant professor of geography. The course focused on the basics of mapping, the use of geographic information systems (GIS), and a map-making software program called ArcView GIS.

Because his research project already was under way, Aubuchon put what he learned in the classroom into immediate use out in the field. Outfitted with a backpack global positioning system (GPS) unit and a palm-held computer, he worked for hours on end to create maps showing the precise locations of almost 2,000 fire ant mounds on his 18-acre study site. He also used the system to map how mounds were affected by different applications of a commercially available fire ant bait.

In Aubuchon's research presentation, his comprehensive package of maps clearly illustrates each phase of his project, from the initial pre-treatment infestation levels in the pastures through the detailed analyses of the two different treatment techniques he applied over a four-month period. It was the impressive grasp of cartography that Aubuchon displayed in creating that collection of maps that helped him beat out competitors from around the world to win the mapping award.

Aubuchon credits both Chaney and John Beck, an Auburn graduate student in agronomy and soils, with providing invaluable technical assistance throughout his map-making ventures.

The National Geographic Society/British Cartographic Society Award is presented annually to a student who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in cartography and in applying the technique to demonstrate geographic patterns and trends.

Aubuchon, a native of St. Louis, Mo., received his bachelor's degree in environmental management and science from Indiana University. He plans to graduate from Auburn in the spring of 2001 with a master of science degree in entomology. He is working under the direction of AU Entomology Professor Gary Mullen.

Aubuchon said he intends to keep his mapping skills honed and to incorporate them into his future work in entomology.

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09/07/00