Biological Control through Augmentative Releases of Natural Enemies: A Strategy Whose Time Has Come

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
The augmentation of natural enemies for biological control of agricultural pests has long been considered a viable strategy in the field and greenhouse. However, research on and the practical application of this method have not been developed fully compared with other strategies designed to encourage natural enemy populations (e.g., environmental manipulation). Reasons for this include: (1) high cost of natural enemies and hence the economics of such programs, (2) problems associated with the availability and quality of natural enemies, (3) lack of rigorous research projects documenting success versus release rates as wel1 as economic analyses, and (4) the widely held belief that such a strategy utilizes natural enemies as a pesticide and therefore takes the ecology out of biological control. Whereas some of these limiting factors are still a concern today, the situation is changing dramatically in favor of augmentative releases. This article discusses the changing attitudes regarding this biological control strategy with respect to the limiting factors presented above. In addition, it provides an experimental approach, methodology, and validation criteria utilizing augmentative releases of parasites for biological control of leafminers attacking greenhouse-grown chrysanthemums through the development of a predictive mathematical model.

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: