Abstract
Transforming modern agriculture towards both higher yields and greater sustainability is critical for preserving biodiversity in an increasingly populous and variable world. However, the intensity of agricultural practices varies strongly between crop systems. Given limited research capacity, it is crucial to focus efforts to increase sustainability in the crop systems that need it most. In this study, we investigate the match (or mismatch) between the intensity of pesticide use and the availability of knowledge on the ecosystem service of natural pest control across various crop systems. Using a systematic literature search on pest control and publicly available pesticide data, we find that pest control literature is not more abundant in crops where insecticide input per hectare is highest. Instead, pest control literature is most abundant, with the highest number of studies published, in crops with comparatively low insecticide input per hectare but with high world harvested area. These results suggest that a major increase of interest in agroecological research towards crops with high insecticide input, particularly cotton and horticultural crops such as citrus and high value-added vegetables, would help meet knowledge needs for a timely ecointensification of agriculture.
Highlights
MethodsTo obtain a systematic overview of available natural pest control literature, we performed a keyword search in the ISI Web of Science literature database
Chemical pesticides are a cheap and efficient way for farmers to address pest problems.Yet, the social and environmental costs of pesticide use are increasingly evident in problems as far ranging as human birth outcomes, air pollution and pollinator declines [1]
This study finds that despite strong interest in pest control research in recent years, knowledge gain has not focused on crops for which estimated insecticide use agroecological knowledge gain has not focused on crops for which estimated insecticide
Summary
To obtain a systematic overview of available natural pest control literature, we performed a keyword search in the ISI Web of Science literature database. ‘agriculture’ as setting (as opposed to studies in natural systems). ‘beneficial’ or ‘pest insects’ as focus of the study factors potentially affecting natural pest control in crop fields, such as ‘landscape’ and ‘flower strips’. Keywords in each section were expanded to encompass a range of synonyms or related meanings, forming the complete search string (see Appendix A). Despite the small time frame represented, the studies published within the last two years account for 25% of the total studies on natural pest control since 2000 (1559 studies) and are most likely to inform on drivers and scales we know to be important.
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