Integrated Pest Management Practices Research Articles

Genome Resequencing Reveals Rapid, Repeated Evolution in the Colorado Potato Beetle

Insecticide resistance and rapid pest evolution threatens food security and the development of sustainable agricultural practices, yet the evolutionary mechanisms that allow pests to rapidly adapt to control tactics remains unclear. Here, we examine how a global super-pest, the Colorado potato beetle (CPB), Leptinotarsa decemlineata, rapidly evolves resistance to insecticides. Using whole-genome resequencing and transcriptomic data focused on its ancestral and pest range in North America, we assess evidence for three, nonmutually exclusive models of rapid evolution: pervasive selection on novel mutations, rapid regulatory evolution, and repeated selection on standing genetic variation. Population genomic analysis demonstrates that CPB is geographically structured, even among recently established pest populations. Pest populations exhibit similar levels of nucleotide diversity, relative to nonpest populations, and show evidence of recent expansion. Genome scans provide clear signatures of repeated adaptation across CPB populations, with especially strong evidence of selection on insecticide resistance genes in different populations. Analyses of gene expression show that constitutive upregulation of candidate insecticide resistance genes drives distinctive population patterns. CPB evolves insecticide resistance repeatedly across agricultural regions, leveraging similar genetic pathways but different genes, demonstrating a polygenic trait architecture for insecticide resistance that can evolve from standing genetic variation. Despite expectations, we do not find support for strong selection on novel mutations, or rapid evolution from selection on regulatory genes. These results suggest that integrated pest management practices must mitigate the evolution of polygenic resistance phenotypes among local pest populations, in order to maintain the efficacy and sustainability of novel control techniques.

Adoption of integrated pest management practices by paddy growers

The present study on “Adoption of integrated pest management practices by paddy growers” was conducted in Bhandara district of vidarbha region of Maharashtra state with sample size of 120 respondents from 10 villages. Data were collected by personal interview method with the help of structured interview schedule. The data were tabulated, analysed and interpreted. The study were noticed that, majority of the respondents i.e. 47.50 per cent were in middle age group, majority i.e. 36.66 per cent respondents were educated upto junior college level, majority i.e. 77.50 per cent of respondents were from medium family size, majority of 42.50 per cent respondents had small land holding, majority 65.83 per cent of respondents had low annual income, majority of the respondents i.e. 68.33 per cent had small area under paddy cultivation, majority of the respondents i.e. 55.00 per cent, 65.00 per cent, 65.00 per cent, 69.17 per cent and 72.50 per cent had medium level of social participation, sources of information, risk preference, economic motivation and knowledge, respectively.Majority 70.00 per cent of the respondents had medium level of adoption about integrated pest management practices of paddy. Majority 90.00 per centof respondents faced the constraints of irregular power supply and lack of technical knowledge and skill involved in various integrated pest management practices of paddy.

Functional conservation of Anopheline linalool receptors through 100 million years of evolution.

Insects rely on olfactory receptors to detect and respond to diverse environmental chemical cues. Detection of semiochemicals by these receptors modulates insect behavior and has a direct impact on species fitness. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are released by animals and plants and can provide contextual cues that a blood meal host or nectar source is present. One such VOC is linalool, an enantiomeric monoterpene, that is emitted from plants and bacteria species. This compound exists in nature as one of two possible stereoisomers, (R)-(-)-linalool or (S)-(+)-linalool. In this study, we use a heterologous expression system to demonstrate differential responsiveness of a pair of Anopheline odorant receptors (Ors) to enantiomers of linalool. The mosquitoes Anopheles gambiae and Anopheles stephensi encode single copies of Or29 and Or53, which are expressed in the labella of An. gambiae. (S)-(+)-linalool activates Or29 orthologs with a higher potency than (R)-(-)-linalool, while the converse is observed for Or53 orthologs. The conservation of these receptors across a broad range of Anopheline species suggests they may function in the discrimination of linalool stereoisomers, thereby influencing the chemical ecology of mosquitoes. One potential application of this knowledge would be in the design of novel attractants or repellents to be used in integrated pest management practices.

PERCEPTION OF FARMERS ON HANDLING PESTICIDE AND ADOPTION OF IPM IN WEST RUKUM OF NEPAL

The survey was conducted to study the perception of farmers on the handling of pesticides and the adoption behaviours of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in western Nepal. For this study, 60 farmers involved in the registered cooperative were selected by using a simple random technique. Focused Group Discussion (FGD) was done with farmers of three different agriculture cooperatives of Rukum west regarding agricultural pests and pesticide use along with the adoption behaviours of IPM practices. Our findings revealed that most of the households had better knowledge about major diseases and insects of vegetable crops that cause economic damage every year. The households ranked damage caused by insects as first followed by disease infestation and damage caused by rodents. More than half of the households had been practising chemical methods of pest control followed by organic methods (23.67%) and integrated chemical and organic methods (21%). Cow urine, jhol mol, and Neem-based pesticides were some of the common organic pesticides used by the farmers there. More than half of the farmers used masks only and 38% of the farmers used all the protective measures like masks, gloves, boots, and protective cloth while spraying pesticides. Around 60% of the farmers had not taken any training related to IPM and only 30% of the households followed IPM practices for the control of diseases and pests. The study revealed that lack of technical support, the low market price for organic products and lack of technical knowledge required for pest management were the major constraints regarding the adoption of IPM practice.

Adoption and efficacy of integrated pest management practices against pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) in Bt-cotton

The results revealed that, due to adoption of IPM practices along with good agricultural practices, mean kapas yield was high in IPM demonstration plots (2352.0 kg/ha) with per cent increase of 16.6% over the farmers’ practice (2011.0 kg/ha) during kharif 2017–2019. The mean incidence of pink bollworm damage, per cent of rosette flowers, green boll, green boll locule, open boll and open boll locule damage were significantly low with 8.3%, 8.8%, 1.6%, 2.0% and 3.3% in demonstration plots against to farmers’ practice i.e., 14.6%, 13.2%, 2.3%, 5.8% and 9.1% respectively during experimental period. Pheromone trap catches were recorded @ 29.3 moths/trap. In the IPM demonstration plots, the insecticidal usage was reduced and an amount of Rs. 2,300/acre was saved on sprating cost. The demonstration plots had shown higher gross returns of Rs. 1,17,126.00/ha, net returns of Rs. 71,861.70/ha with a higher benefit-cost ratio 2.7 as compared to farmers’ practice Rs. 96,367.50/ha, Rs. 58,134.20/ha and 2.0, respectively during the three years of study. Cost of cultivation was saved for Rs. 3,302.00/ha and an additional net return of Rs. 13,727.50/ha was obtained in demonstration plots.

Intensity of adoption of integrated pest management practices in Rwanda: A fractional logit approach

The push-pull technology (PPT) is considered as an alternative integrated pest management strategy for the control of fall armyworm and stemborer, among smallholder maize farmers in sub-Sahara African to conventional pesticides. However, the extent of PPT use in Rwanda where the technology was introduced in 2017 remains largely unexplored. This paper employed a fractional logit model to assess the factors influencing the intensity of adoption of PPT among smallholder maize farmers in Gatsibo and Nyagatare districts of Rwanda using survey data obtained from 194 PPT adopter households selected using a cluster sampling technique. While only 5 percent of smallholder farmers in Rwanda have adopted PPT as an integrated pest management strategy, on the average, these farmers cultivated 26 percent of their maize plots to the technology. Our results show that the perceived benefits of PPT, its perceived effectiveness in pest control, group membership, livestock ownership, and gender of the farmer had significant effects on the intensity of adoption of the PPT in Rwanda. These findings give compelling evidence to recommend that development initiatives should give emphasis on creating awareness on the perceived benefits of PPT adoption using group approaches that are gender disaggregated.

An Integrated Pest Management Program Outperforms Conventional Practices for Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) in Cambodia

For several years, pest management in tomato production in Cambodia has generally focused on the use of synthetic pesticides. We compared conventional pest management (farmers’ traditional practices) with an integrated pest management (IPM) program on 12 farms in the northwestern part of Cambodia. The IPM program combined cultural, biological, and chemical practices. We found that IPM practices reduced aphid damage by 46%, and diseases such as Fusarium wilt and damping-off were substantially reduced. Our results indicate that the IPM package increased tomato yield and income by an average of 23 and 34%, respectively, compared with conventional practices during both dry and rainy seasons.

Measuring Adoption of Integrated Pest Management Practices by Citrus Farmers in Tartous Governorate, Syria

Faskha, S.M. 2021. Measuring Adoption of Integrated Pest Management Practices by Citrus Farmers in Tartous Governorate, Syria. Arab Journal of Plant Protection, 39(4): 257-267. https://doi.org/10.22268/AJPP-039.4.257267 A questionnaire study was conducted to analyze the IPM adoption by citrus farmers in Tartous Governorate during two seasons (2018 and 2019). The questionnaire was designed to collect the required information from a representative sample of farmers (370 farmers). Responses were tabulated, and the extracted data were statistically analyzed by using Chi–Square (X 2 ) at P=0.05. The results obtained indicated that the mean rate of farmer adoption was 5.55 points based on a 10-point scale. Accordingly, practices of the surveyed farmers came in the third level: “IPM level” (based on a proposed scale for adoption consisting of four levels, namely, conventional control, entry level IPM, normal IPM level, and bio-intensive IPM level). The implemented cultural practices, the handling of pesticides, and farmers' knowledge were at the forefront of good practices with mean index of attribute values of 0.66, 0.72 and 0.85, respectively. On the other hand, the Adoptability Index values showed that the non-use of attractant traps, planting mixed varieties, and voluntary lack of commitment to stop spraying (conservation biological control) were -0.46, -0.44 and -0.75, respectively, and those were among the most negative indicators in IPM practices adoption, although 31.35% of farmers did not use chemical control. Keywords: Integrated pest management, IPM, adoption, citrus, Syria.

Knowledge Level on Bagworm in Oil Palm and its Control Using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Practices Among Independent Oil Palm Smallholders in Johor

Bagworm (Psychidae) and nettle caterpillars (Limacodidae) are among the major insect pests of oil palm in Malaysia. Bagworm from the species Metisa plana is the most destructive insect pests compared to nettle caterpillar in oil palm plantations. Outbreaks of bagworms were frequently occurred in various areas own by independent oil palm smallholders in Johor. At present, no scientific study has been conducted to indicate the level of knowledge among the independent oil palm smallholders on bagworm and its control, especially using the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine knowledge level on bagworm and its control using IPM among 313 independent smallholders in three infestation areas in Johor, which are Mukim Chaah Bahru, Mukim Chaah, Mukim Paloh and Mukim Chamek. Data were collected by interview guided with a questionnaire consisting 23 questions regarding bagworm and its IPM practices. Most of the respondents are more than 51 years (61.1%), with 77.7% males and 22.3% females. They are mostly having primary (47.1%) and secondary (47.5%) school qualifications. This study found that most of the respondents have a basic understanding of bagworm in oil palm and its control measures using IPM practices, but their knowledge is still at a low level. Correlation analysis showed a significant relationship between the level of knowledge on bagworm and its control methods with race, education level and field management experience among the respondents. Therefore, more focus should be given by extension agents to enhance smallholder knowledge on bagworm management, especially in the potential and affected areas in Johor.

Drivers of farmers’ intention to adopt integrated pest management: a case study of vegetable farmers in Pakistan

AbstractIntegrated pest management adoption is quite low around the globe, particularly in developing countries, due to different factors. Here, we examine the factors affecting the intention of Pakistani farmers to adopt integrated pest management practices in vegetable production using a structured questionnaire. We interviewed 301 vegetable growers in Multan, Pakistan. The reliability and validity of the data, along with the underlying relationship between the observed variables, were identified through exploratory factor analysis. The majority of the farmers (79.4%) relied on pesticides for pest control. More than four out of 10 of the respondents (43.8%) reported that okra received the highest application of pesticides followed by potato (24.5%) and cauliflower (17.9%). Integrated pest management was currently non‐existent among the vegetable growers of the study area. The latent factors—“knowledge of the adverse effects of pesticide,” “belief in the efficacy of non‐chemical pest control measures,” “perceived barriers to the adoption of integrated pest management,” “progressive farming approach,” and “intention to adopt integrated pest management”—were subsequently confirmed using confirmatory factor analysis. The structural equation model suggested that the intention to adopt integrated pest management is significantly affected by farmers’ knowledge of the adverse effects of pesticides (β = 0.274, z‐value = 3.082, P = 0.002). An increase in farmers’ awareness of the harmful effects of pesticides could lead to integrated pest management adoption for pest control. The scale for intention to adopt integrated pest management developed in this study can be used in future studies and provide valuable insights to the policymakers for devising integrated pest management adoption campaigns in the study area.

Preventative pest management in field crops influences the biological control potential of epigeal arthropods and soil-borne entomopathogenic fungi

• This study examined how pesticides influence beneficial biota in field crops. • Pesticidal seed treatments and sprays decreased total predator activity-density. • In year one, seed treatments and sprays decreased spider activity-densities. • In year three, spider activity-density increased with seed treatments alone. • Overall, the use of pesticides did not improve crop yield in maize or soybean. Field crop growers in the United States have adopted prophylactic pest management strategies to control sporadic crop pests that are spatially and temporally difficult to predict. While evidence shows these preventative management practices, specifically pesticidal seed treatments, can be important in regions with predictable pest pressures, employing them ubiquitously in field crops across the northeastern U.S. can have variable returns on productivity. Further, prophylactics may also limit the potential of integrated pest management (IPM). A three-year field experiment (2017–2019) was conducted in a maize-soybean cropping system to compare the influence of a preventative pest management practice and a scouting-based IPM practice on biological control organisms. Aboveground predator densities were measured via pitfall trapping and predation temporal dynamics were assessed using a standard sentinel-bait assay at two time points per year. Belowground biological control potential was determined using a sentinel-bait bioassay to quantify the abundance of soil-borne entomopathogenic fungi (EPF). The variable responses of beneficial communities to pesticide inputs were strongly influenced by season and time of application, underscoring the importance of applying pesticides only when necessary. Compared with no pesticide use, pesticidal seed treatments and foliar sprays together in a maize-soybean production system suppressed total predator activity-density, spider activity-density, predation, and infection potential of soil-borne entomopathogenic fungi in one out of three years of the field study. In the third year, the activity-density of spiders increased across all fields in preventative plots that included seed treatments only. Overall, the use of pesticides did not improve crop yield in either maize or soybean. These findings highlight that the use of a prophylactic pesticide program may not always be necessary for maximum crop productivity and that this management approach can occasionally have unintended negative consequences on above- and belowground soil biota and the ecosystem services they provide.

Management‐dependent effects of pollinator functional diversity on apple pollination services: A response–effect trait approach

AbstractFunctional traits mediate the response of communities to disturbances (response traits) and their contribution to ecosystem functions (effect traits). To predict how anthropogenic disturbances influence ecosystem services requires a dual approach including both trait concepts. Here, we used a response–effect trait conceptual framework to understand how local and landscape features affect pollinator functional diversity and pollination services in apple orchards.We worked in 110 apple orchards across four European regions. Orchards differed in management practices. Low‐intensity (LI) orchards were certified organic or followed close‐to‐organic practices. High‐intensity (HI) orchards followed integrated pest management practices. Within each management type, orchards encompassed a range of local (flower diversity, agri‐environmental structures) and landscape features (orchard and pollinator‐friendly habitat cover). We measured pollinator visitation rates and calculated trait composition metrics based on 10 pollinator traits. We used initial fruit set as a measure of pollination service.Some pollinator traits (body size and hairiness) were negatively related to orchard cover and positively affected by pollinator‐friendly habitat cover. Bee functional diversity was lower in HI orchards and decreased with increased landscape orchard cover. Pollination service was not associated with any particular trait but increased with pollinator trait diversity in LI orchards. As a result, LI orchards with high pollinator trait diversity reached levels of pollination service similar to those of HI orchards.Synthesis and applications. Pollinator functional diversity enables pollinator communities to respond to agricultural intensification and to increase pollination function. Our results show that efforts to promote biodiversity provide greater returns in low‐intensity than in high‐intensity orchards. The fact that low‐intensity orchards with high pollinator functional diversity reach levels of pollination services similar to those of high‐intensity orchards provides a compelling argument for the conversion of high‐intensity into low‐intensity farms.

An act of defiance? Measuring farmer deviation from personalised extension recommendations in Zambia

AbstractGiven the recognised role of blanket extension advice in the low uptake of productivity‐enhancing technologies among developing country farmers, personalised or site‐specific extension approaches are gaining attention. Focusing on the case of the plant clinic extension model which provides personalised crop protection services to smallholder farmers, we investigate to what extent and how accurately farmers adopt personalised extension advice, and the implications for agricultural productivity. We combine a unique database of personalised integrated pest management (IPM) recommendations provided to 420 plant clinic attendees in Zambia with survey data on the actual IPM practices implemented by these same clinic attendees. We find that more than 80% of the sample farmers deviated from the personalised IPM recommendations they received from plant clinics. Based on the degree of deviation from the personalised recommendations, we identify five categories of adopters of IPM practices and show their heterogeneous effects on maize productivity. For example, our multi‐valued treatment effect estimates suggest an 82% yield penalty for non‐adopters compared to full adopters of recommended IPM practices, while the yield gain for full adopters is more than double that of partial adopters, as well as that of those who adopted additional practices beyond what was recommended. Our findings have important implications for the promotion of personalised extension services and for the measurement of the impact of complex agricultural technologies.

Changes in Production Practices by Green Industry Growers from 2009 to 2019

Abstract As a result of the latest economic recession (2007 to 2009), the U.S. green industry suffered significant economic losses, leading to major industry structural changes. To be competitive and effectively manage risk, nursery and greenhouse operators need reliable and up-to-date information. However, the availability of such data from federal government sources has become limited. This report summarizes the state of the industry, focusing on trends in production-related characteristics from the 2009, 2014, and 2019 survey years. As firm size increased, the percent of annual sales attributed to large plant species (e.g., deciduous trees) increased, while herbaceous (e.g., perennials) and specialty (e.g., Christmas tree) plants made up a larger percentage of annual sales for small- and medium-sized firms. The majority of respondents (73.3%) indicated a proportion of their sales came from container-grown plants. The most frequently used integrated pest management (IPM) practice was removal of infested plants (81%), followed by cultivation/hand weeding. As firm size increased, participation in IPM strategies increased. Interestingly, statistical differences between small- and medium-sized firms were infrequent, indicating similar levels of use; however, most of the IPM strategies used were more frequently employed by large-sized firms when compared to small- or medium-sized firms. Index words: Container-grown, greenhouse, integrated pest management (IPM), nursery, ornamental plants.

Knowledge on Integrated Pest Management Among Vegetable Growers of Udaipur: A Critical Analysis

While eco-friendly agriculture practices are gaining importance across the world, limited evidence exists from the regional context in developing countries. Among the different alternative farming approaches, Integrated Pest Management is attaining prominence within the small and marginal farming community. In this paper, the authors made an attempt to discuss the knowledge possessed by the farmers about Integrated Pest Management practices in vegetable cultivation. Using purposive sampling, primary data was collected from vegetable growers of the Udaipur district of Rajasthan. Descriptive statistics and ranking were used to assess the knowledge on different IPM practices. The findings indicate that the farmers had significantly high knowledge of chemical pesticides, whereas the knowledge on mechanical pest control measures was not so high and knowledge on bio-pesticides was poor. The results highlight the importance of scaling, training, and awareness about Integrated Pest Management among vegetable cultivators to promote environment-friendly agriculture and sustainable production.

Knowledge and Attitude of Malaysian Fruit Growers on Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

Integrated pest management (IPM) is a sustainable approach for pest control. However, the adoption of IPM remains low in Malaysia. The main objectives of this study were to identify the knowledge level and attitude of Malaysian fruit farmers on IPM. A total number of 150 respondents were selected through a non-random sampling method and the data was collected through an online questionnaire. The knowledge level and attitude of the respondents were accessed on a scoring scale of one to five. The respondents recorded a moderate knowledge of IPM with a mean score of 3.36. However, farmers showed poor knowledge on different modes of action of pesticides (2.25), and the ability to identify insect pests (2.25). The respondents showed a positive attitude on IPM with a mean score of 3.58. Among the attitude aspects, farmers displayed a positive attitude on the cost-effectiveness of IPM (3.53) and are willing to learn and adopt IPM practices (4.35). The Spearman’s correlation test revealed that there was no significant correlation between age and educational level of farmers on their knowledge on IPM. The findings of this study could assist in the development of IPM programs for better country wide IPM adoption.

Analysis of Socioeconomic Factors Influencing Adoption of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) among Smallholder Tomato Farmers in Buuri Sub-County, Meru County, Kenya

The study examines the socioeconomic factors that influence the adoption of Integrated Pest Management in 152 smallholder tomato farmers in Buuri Sub-County, in Meru County Kenya. A random stratification sampling procedure was used to obtain smallholder tomato farmers and a semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect primary data which was analyzed using a binary logistic regression model. The results showed that the average land size for tomato production in the area was 1 acre, with average yields of 35 tonnes per acre, Kshs 592,000 net returns/ acre for IPM adopters. The study established that gender type (5%), farm size (5%), labor (5%), and access to information (5%), and age of the farmers (5%) were statistically significant. Additionally, gender type resulted in an increase of adoption of IPM by 43%, farm size by 8%, labor by 11%, while access to information by 40%. The study concluded that different stakeholders should ensure a support system to various IPM practices to lower production costs and encourage adopting the techniques.

Assessment of management practices, awareness on safe use of pesticides and perception on integrated management of pests and diseases of chilli and tomato grown by small-scale farmers in selected districts of Sri Lanka.

In this study, we surveyed through a structured and pilot-tested questionnaire, the practices of pesticide usage by small-scale (< 1.25 ha) chilli and tomato farmers from four districts of Sri Lanka and their perceptions on the effectiveness of pesticides and willingness to adopt integrated pest management (IPM). We found significant (P < 0.05) variation among districts in farmer responses to 37 out of 59 survey questions. A majority of farmers were dependent on pesticides with only a minority practicing IPM. A majority perceived that their current pesticide usage was increasing, but was not excessive. A majority were aware of the negative impacts of pesticides on human health and environment. Farmer perception on the effectiveness of pesticides increased with age, but was not influenced by education level. Farmers having a higher opinion of pesticides made a greater number of applications during a cropping cycle. They also maintained a longer preharvest interval and did not use pesticide mixtures. A majority expressed willingness to initiate IPM, but identified lack of knowledge and technical knowhow on specific IPM practices for their crops as barriers to adoption and requested external support. Farmer willingness to adopt IPM is higher among older, more educated farmers and among full-time farmers who are currently totally-dependent on pesticides and whose major income source was farming. We conclude that a significant extension effort in terms of farmer education on IPM and external assistance to develop the technological knowhow, which is tailor-made to specific districts, is needed to facilitate adoption of IPM among these farmers.

Integrated Pest Management Practices Adopted by Mango Growers at Meherpur Region in Bangladesh

A study on integrated pest management (IPM) practices adopted by the mango growers was carried out at Mujibnagar Upazila under Meherpur district of Bangladesh during August-September 2018 using structured questionnaire. Randomly selected 112 mango growers were used for the study. Results indicated that 75.9% of the respondents were highly adopted with IPM practices during mango cultivation. According to IPM Practices Use Index (IPUI), harvesting at right stage was ranked 1st and use of sex pheromone trap was ranked 10th as commonly used IPM tactic by the growers. The use of logistic regression model in this study was identified as the significant factor of IPM adoption, explore several factors, including contact with IPM club, IFMC and Farmers Field School (FFS) and annual income from mango cultivation. SAARC J. Agric., 19(1): 125-138 (2021)

Species Identification of Wireworms (Agriotes spp.; Coleoptera: Elateridae) of Agricultural Importance in Europe: A New "Horizontal Identification Table".

Simple SummaryWireworms are soil-dwelling larvae that damage multiple arable crops. The most common wireworms found in European cultivated fields belong to the genus Agriotes. Large amounts of insecticides are applied on a prophylactic basis to control them; before any treatment can be applied, however, legislation imposes an assessment of whether pest population levels exceed a damage threshold above which a significant yield reduction is expected. Thresholds vary greatly among species, thus quick and reliable larval identification is needed. This will result in the implementation of the appropriate integrated pest management practices. Furthermore, research into non-chemical strategies involves carrying out tests with live wireworms identified to species. Wireworms were observed to identify live larvae rapidly on site to assess density and compared with species-specific thresholds before sowing, and for laboratory experiments to be performed. This work led to a “synoptic key” that reliably identifies most live larvae, while traditional keys consider only single characters step by step. The key considers several discriminating morphological characters in order of stability. Identification becomes reliable when at least two main discriminating characters are found and attributed to a single species.Wireworms are yellowish soil-dwelling larvae that damage a wide range of arable crops. The most common wireworms found in European cultivated fields (except for the Caucasus) belong to the genus Agriotes (Coleoptera: Elateridae). In several European countries, environment-impacting insecticides are applied on a prophylactic basis to control them. However, before any treatment can be applied, European legislation requires that an assessment is done when pest population levels exceed a damage threshold. The threshold substantially depends on wireworm species, thus quick reliable larval identification is needed to implement the appropriate integrated pest management practices. Furthermore, research into non-chemical strategies involves carrying out tests with live and identified wireworms. Thus, thousands of wireworms were observed in a bid to identify live larvae so that larval density could be assessed and compared with species-specific thresholds before sowing, and laboratory experiments were carried out. This work led to a horizontal identification table that allows for quick and accurate identification of live larvae. This key, unlike traditional dichotomous keys, simultaneously considers a set of multiple discriminating morphological characters in order of stability. The key can be reliably used by less experienced users and, once minimum familiarity is acquired, most larvae can be identified rapidly, with high precision.