Biological control.

Abstract

Abstract The five methods of biological control are introductions (often referred to as classical biological control), inundation, augmentation, inoculation and natural enemy (such as entomopathogens, predators, true parasites and parasitoids) conservation. The approach presented in this chapter tries to provide a balance between the theoretical and the practical, the potential and the realistic, since it is only with a more pragmatic approach that the use of natural enemies in insect pest management will continue to gain credence. Some of the more important attributes of pests, cropping systems and the biological control agent that should influence the choice of control option are highlighted. Predator-prey theory and analytical models are described. Case studies are presented, dealing with the effects of predator exclusion and caging on cereal aphids (Sitobion avenae) in winter wheat; control of the cassava mealybug (Phenacoccus manihoti) in Africa through the introduction of the exotic parasitoid Epidinocarsis lopezi [Apoanagyrus lopezi]; green muscle (a mycoinsecticide based on the fungal pathogen Metarhizium anisopliae var. acridum for locust and grasshopper [Lepidoptera] control); augmentative releases of Encarsia formosa to control the greenhouse whitefly Trialeurodes vaporariorum; the use of inoculative releases of Rhizophagus grandis to control the greater European spruce beetle (Dendroctonus micans); beetle banks (Dactylis glomerata) as overwintering habitats; and impact of wild flowers (such as wild parsnip Pastinaca sativa, wild carrot, Ranunculus acris, and Cicuta maculata) in orchards.