STORED PRODUCT INSECTS ECONOMICALLY IMPACT STORED BULK GRAINS AND PROCESSED FOOD COMMODITIES. STORED-PEST MANAGEMENT HAS TRADITIONALLY RELIED ON THE APPLICATION OF CHEMICAL PESTICIDES, BUT INCREASINGLY BIOLOGICAL CONTROL EFFORTS HAVE BEEN SOUGHT AS AN EFFECTIVE CONTROL STRATEGY BECAUSE NATURAL ENEMIES CAN ACTIVELY SEEK OUT PESTS IN HIDDEN REFUGIA. HOWEVER, CLASSICAL BIOLOGICAL CONTROL EFFORTS DO NOT CONSIDER THE IMPACT OF PATHOGEN DIVERSITY FOR PEST CONTROL, ESPECIALLY THE EVOLUTIONARY CONSEQUENCES FOR PARASITE VIRULENCE ON INSECT PEST POPULATIONS. FURTHERMORE, THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PEST MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES DEPENDS ON THE SPATIAL HETEROGENEITY OF HOST POPULATIONS. THIS KNOWLEDGE GAP IS A SUBSTANTIAL BARRIER TO UNDERSTANDING THE ECOLOGICAL AND EVOLUTIONARY DYNAMICS OF MICROBIAL CONTROL AGENTS. IN THIS POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH PROJECT, I WILL EXAMINE COINFECTION DYNAMICS BY ENTOMOPATHOGENIC NEMATODES IN CONTROLLING THE INDIAN MEAL MOTH, PLODIA INTERPUNCTELLA. FIRST, I WILL EXPERIMENTALLYMANIPULATE DISPERSAL RANGES OF NEMATODES TO EXPLORE HOW MIXED INFECTIONS IMPACT PARASITE VIRULENCE AND PROGENY PRODUCTION. SECOND, I WILL ALTER THE TIMING AND ORDER OF NEMATODE INFECTIONS AND EXAMINE SYMBIONT MEDIATED COMPETITION. LASTLY, I WILL DEVELOP A MATHEMATICAL MODEL TO EXPLORE HOW SPATIAL STRUCTURE CHANGES PARASITE VIRULENCE AND REGULATE INSECT PEST POPULATIONS. THIS PROPOSAL ALIGNS WITH THE PLANT HEALTH AND PRODUCTION AND PLANT PRODUCTION PRIORITY AREA. THIS PROJECT WILL BE COMPLETED UNDER THE PRIMARY MENTORSHIP OF DR. CHARLES MITCHELL (UNC-CHAPEL HILL) AND COLLABORATING MENTORS DR. CORBIN JONES (UNC-CHAPEL HILL) AND MICHAEL BOOTS (UC BERKELEY) . THE PROJECT ALIGNS WITH THE AFRI EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM GOALS BY PREPARING ME VIA INTERACTIVE MENTORING PLANS, SCIENTIFIC TRAINING, CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND A SUBSTANTIVE EVALUATION PLAN.