Pestinfo

@pestinfo@ecoevo.social
148 Followers
156 Following
249 Posts
The International Society for Pest Information (ISPI) - news/info on #Pests, #PlantDiseases and #Weeds
websitehttps://www.pestinfo.org/ISPIdata/public/home
The introduction of #invasive #alien species is a major driver of #biodiversity loss and action is urgently needed. Now published: "Thematic Assessment Report on Invasive Alien Species and Their Control" by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Summary of the report by Helen E. Roy, @Anibalpauchard and many others like @HannoSeebens, @VVandvik, @franckcourchamp, @inadehnen, @cabbageleek, @lenzner, @Ecoinvasions - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-024-02412-w
The #potato cyst #nematodes #Globodera rostochiensis and G. pallida are serious threats to potato production world-wide. Detailed review of research directed at finding marketable potato cultivars that are resistant against these #pests. - Article in the journal Crop Science by Pia Spychalla and Walter S. De Jong - https://doi.org/10.1002/csc2.21244
Farmers in Africa promote the biological control of the #papaya #mealybug, Paracoccus marginatus, with "natural enemies field reservoirs" using locally available cheap materials. - Article in the journal Biological Control by Stephen T.O. Othim and others - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2024.105528
The invasion of #insect #pests often requires the introduction and release of host-specific exotic natural enemies. "Proactive biological control" is proposed as a new approach to reduce the long time required for identifying and screening suitable natural enemies for such introductions - article in the journal BioControl by Mark S. Hoddle - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-023-10206-5
A new  paradigm: proactive biological control of invasive insect pests - BioControl

Invasive insect pests are a significant and accelerating threat to agricultural productivity, they degrade wilderness areas, and reduce quality of life in urban zones. Introduction biological control, the introduction, release, and establishment of host-specific efficacious natural enemies, is an effective management tool for permanently suppressing invasive pest populations over vast areas, often to levels that may no longer cause economic or environmental damage. However, introduction biological control programs are reactive: they are only initiated after an invasive pest has established, spread, and is causing damage that requires mitigation. Host specificity and host range testing of natural enemies for use in an introduction biological control program against an invasive pest can take years to complete. During this time, the target pest population continues to increase, invades new areas, and inflicts damage. Proactive biological control research programs identify prior to their establishment pest species that have high invasion potential and are likely to cause economic or environmental damage once established. Natural enemies are selected, screened, and if sufficiently host-specific, approved for release in advance of the anticipated establishment of the target pest. Following detection of the target pest and determination that incipient populations cannot be eradicated, natural enemies already approved for release are liberated into infested areas. This proactive approach to introduction biological control could significantly reduce project development time post-invasion, thereby lessening opportunities for pest populations to build, spread, and cause damage.

SpringerLink
#Drosophila species like D. melanogaster and D. suzuki are important #pests of fruits and several viruses reduce their offspring number and lifespan. A new approach to study the biology, transmission and impact of these viruses described in the Proceedings of the Royal Society (Biological Sciences) by Megan A. Wallace and @DarrenObbard - https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2024.0518
The #coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei, is native to Africa, but has invaded all coffee-producing regions around the world, causing yield losses of over 500 million US$ per year. Review in the journal "BioControl" of managing this #pest with emphasis on potential biological control methods by Natalia Moreno-Ramirez and others - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-024-10253-6
Ecology and management of the coffee berry borer (Hypothenemus hampei): the potential of biological control - BioControl

Coffee is an important commodity in Latin America that is grown by smallholder farmers and large-scale coffee producers. The coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei Ferrari (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) is a major pest of coffee that originates from West Africa and has invaded all coffee-producing regions. With climate change, the problems that this beetle poses to coffee production are expected to increase. Controlling this pest is a true challenge and chemical insecticides still are one of the main tools used, despite the environmental and human-health issues associated with this approach. To find sustainable alternatives for chemical control of the coffee berry borer, classical biological control, augmentative biological control, and integrated pest management have received extensive attention. Parasitoids, predators, entomopathogenic fungi, and nematodes have been identified and studied for their potential to manage the infestations of this major coffee pest. Conservation biological control has recently gained more attention, but its development is still in its infancy. In this review, we examine strategies for the control of the coffee berry borer in Latin America. We identify knowledge gaps for developing sustainable biological control programs, including conservation biological control within the context of farming systems, land use in the surrounding landscape, as well as the vision of coffee growers.

SpringerLink
The attraction, retention, and persistence of natural enemies within cropping systems are key factors for the success and effectiveness of biological control of #herbivores. The resistance against herbivores improves the biological control by natural enemies like #carnivores and #parasitoids - Review in Biological Control by Victoria M. Pocius and Mônica F. Kersch-Becker - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2024.105515
In Europe, the aim is to half the use of #pesticides by 2030. #Glyphosate is the most commonly used broad-spectrum #herbicide for #weed control. What are the current uses of glyphosate and what are the possible alternatives? Review of a workshop in the journal Weed Research by Paul Neve and others like @lenaulber - https://doi.org/10.1111/wre.12624
In the Mediterranean Basin, #alien #plants threaten the biodiversity of the region. Analysis of their current and likely future distribution shows that alien plants are currently mainly found along the coastlines, but are likely to spread in the future. Article in the journal "Ecography" by Luigi Cao Pinna and others - https://doi.org/10.1111/ecog.07085
No recommendations exist for the #biocontrol of #aphids in winter high tunnel #crops like #spinach and #strawberry. Three commercially available #predators (insidious flower bug, two-spotted lady beetle and the common green lacewing) in combination with 3 #biorational products were tested against aphids like the potato aphid (Macrosiphum euphorbiae) - article in the journal Biocontrol by Samantha A. Willden and others - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2024.105511