Chapter 10 - Naturally occurring biological controls in genetically engineered crops

Abstract

The chapter provides a framework to predict and measure the impact of crop genetic engineering on conservation of biological control agents, a framework that may help guide future development and use of genetically engineered crop cultivars. The number of times and extent to which insecticide use can be prevented by pest-resistant cultivars is very important in determining the prospects for conservation of biological control agents. The extent to which broad-spectrum insecticide use can be reduced also determines the extent to which diversity in the arthropod community can be enhanced with both new natural enemies and new prey contributing to biological control. In the near term, conservation is most likely to come from the reduction in insecticide use, upon which development and sales of these new cultivars largely depend. Future cultivar improvements, however, being added to a system with reduced reliance on insecticides, may increase natural enemy populations, and reduced pest outbreak potential may be able to focus on more subtle means of conserving natural enemies. By careful and strategic consideration of potential traits targeted for genetic engineering and likely management practices for the cultivars possessing those traits, developers of genetically engineered cultivars can contribute substantially to the conservation of biological control agents in crop systems.