scholarly journals Occurrence of Social Wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in a Sugarcane Culture

Sociobiology ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruno Corrêa Barbosa ◽  
Newton José de Jesus Silva ◽  
José Cola Zanuncio ◽  
Fábio Prezoto

Predation of Lepidoptera caterpillars - including agricultural pest species - is one of the main ways through which social wasps gather proteinaceous resources. The presence of social wasps was sampled through active search and bait traps through a sugarcane culture cycle, totaling 12 months. Our aim was to record the presence of these insects during the sugarcane development cycle in order to obtain data to support alternative pest control strategies. A total of 1091 individuals in seven genera and 20 species of social wasps were collected, including the swarm-founding Agelaia vicina and Polybia sericea (Hymenoptera: Vespidae). Social wasp richness and abundance were not correlated with climatic variables (temperature, humidity and precipitation). However, richness was negatively correlated to the sugarcane plants’ height (r= -0.4360, p= 0.05). The presence of social wasps during the plant’s cycle shows their potential as predators in sugarcane culture pest management.

Author(s):  
A. A. Oso ◽  
G. O. Awe

Aim: Information on the influence of water availability during different seasons of rainfed or irrigated agriculture as it relates to insect pest population build-up in crops could assist in the development of integrated pest management. A study was therefore conducted to investigate effects of spacing, pest infestation and control on cucumber under rainfed and irrigated conditions. Place and Duration of Study: At the Teaching and Research Farm, Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti, Nigeria during the 2016/2017 rainy and dry seasons. Methodology: The experiment was laid out using randomized complete block design (RCBD) in a split-plot arrangement in five replications, with spacing (60 x 60 cm, 60 x 90 cm and 60 x 120 cm) as the main plot treatments and the sub-plot treatments were different pest control strategies. The pest control strategies include synthetic insecticide (Lambda-cyhalothrin), botanical insecticide (Anogeissus leiocarpus) and control. Growth parameters and yield attributes were recorded. Insect pest occurrence, their build-up and percentage infestation on cucumber and the efficacy of the management strategies were monitored. Results: The results showed that yield was enhanced in irrigated system with the widest spacing of 60 x 120 cm botanical treatment interaction. Bemisia tabaci was the most prominent insect pest attacking cucumber under irrigated system. Conclusion: Other cultural control practices such as the use of trap crops with little or no financial implication should also be added to botanical pesticides as an integrated pest management tactic for effective management and control of the pest.


Author(s):  
Marco Infusino ◽  
Nino Iannotta ◽  
Stefano Scalercio

One of the key-points in sustainable agriculture is to minimize the amount of pesticides inputs in agro-ecosystems increasing selectivity of active agents on target pests mainly. According to this perspective, control strategies utilising baits receive a growing interest. a spinosad-poisoned sugar-based bait, the so called GF-120 bait, utilised against diptera Tephritidae, recently appeared on the market. The toxicity of spinosad for non-target insects is demonstrated by several authors. However, the amount of pesticide applied is strongly reduced by using it with an attractive food-bait, even if field evidences on the selective attraction of this bait are missing. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the selectivity of GF-120 bait toward target and non-target insects under field conditions, focussing our attention on pollinators. Field trials were performed in a 20 years old olive orchard, where 12 baited and 12 unbaited traps were positioned for insect monitoring. The abundance of the most common orders of insects and target pest species Bactrocera oleae and Ceratitis capitata has been assessed. The main finding of this research is that many pollinators are not attracted by the bait, while target and non-target diptera are significantly attracted by the bait with the exception of Muscidae. The attraction toward a part of non-target diptera should be better explored in order to avoid negative impact on beneficial and non-target species. The need of pest control strategies safer for the environment and the wild populations of non-target organisms seems to be satisfied by the use of this bait.


2014 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 205-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
David William Hagstrum ◽  
Paul Whitney Flinn

Abstract Stored-product entomologists have a variety of new monitoring, decision-making, biological, chemical, and physical pest management tools available to them. Two types of stored-product insect populations are of interest: insects of immediate economic importance infesting commodities, and insects that live in food residues in equipment and facilities. The sampling and control methods change as grain and grain products move from field to consumer. There are also some changes in the major insect pest species to take into consideration. In this review, we list the primary insect pests at each point of the marketing system, and indicate which sampling methods and control strategies are most appropriate. Economic thresholds for insect infestation levels developed for raw commodity storage, processing plants, and retail business allow sampling-based pest management to be done before insect infestations cause economic injury. Taking enough samples to have a representative sample (20-30 samples) will generally provide enough information to classify a population as above or below an economic threshold.


2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (53) ◽  
pp. 6582-6592
Author(s):  
SC Eze ◽  
◽  
BC Echezona

Agricultural pest management control strategies are primarily concerned with food security and safety. Popular pest control methods include application of synthetic pesticides, biopesticides (plant extracts), non-chemical pest management and integrated pest management (IPM). The resistance of some of the pests to the chemical pesticides, coupled with potential health hazards on the environment gave birth to a search for botanicals as alternatives to synthetic pesticides. Botanicals as biopesticides were, though effective but their shelf lives and specific actions on the target organisms have not been determined. Non-chemical pest control methods involve common cultural practices which include crop rotation, tillage, and varying time of planting or harvesting, trap cropping which appear to be the best in terms of food safety and quality but the ability of this approach to reduce pest population may be minimal. Because no single pest control method can guarantee food security and safety, integrated pest management (IPM) approach appears to hold promise. The IPM is an ecologically based approach that combines all the available pest control methods to manage pest damage by the most economical means, with the fewest possible hazards to life, property and environment. However, this review shows that the impact of integrated pest management in the rural farm communities is low. In an era of growing consumer awareness and sophistication, food quality is being emphasized. Food safety means that the agro-products should be free from pesticide residues:- therefore, aspects of farm management such as sources of seeds and seedlings, pests and weed elimination, pesticide application dates, dates and amount of fertilization, harvesting or post harvest treatments and basic information regarding the individual farmer or marketing agents activities should be certified before consuming agricultural products. Federal governments especially in developing countries are advised to mount regulating Agencies that will be responsible for a number of activities that contribute to food security and safety, water quality and pesticide applicator training as practiced in the United States of America, India and Indonesia. The agencies will ensure that the public is protected from potential health risks posed by pesticide treated foods.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabrina Simon ◽  
Thijmen Breeschoten ◽  
Hans J Jansen ◽  
Ron P Dirks ◽  
M. Eric Schranz ◽  
...  

Background: The genus Spodoptera (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) includes some of the most infamous insect pests of cultivated plants including Spodoptera frugiperda, Spodoptera litura and Spodoptera exigua. To effectively develop targeted pest control strategies for diverse Spodoptera species, genomic resources are highly desired. To this aim, we provide the genome assembly and developmental transcriptome comprising all major life stages of S. exigua, the beet armyworm. Spodoptera exigua is a polyphagous herbivore that can feed from > 130 host plants including several economically important crops. Results: The 419 Mb beet armyworm genome was sequenced from a female S. exigua pupa. Using a hybrid genome sequencing approach (Nanopore long read data and Illumina short read), a high-quality genome assembly was achieved (N50=1.1 Mb). An official gene set (OGS, 18,477 transcripts) was generated by automatic annotation and by using transcriptomic RNA-seq data sets of 18 S. exigua samples as supporting evidence. In-depth analyses of developmental stage-specific expression in combination with gene tree analyses of identified homologous genes across Lepidoptera genomes revealed potential Spodoptera-specific genes of interest such as mg7 and REPAT46 upregulated during 1st and 3rd instar larval stages for targeted pest-outbreak management. Conclusions: The beet armyworm genome sequence and developmental transcriptome covering all major developmental stages provides critical insights into the biology of this devastating polyphagous insect pest species with a worldwide distribution. In addition, comparative genomic analyses across Lepidoptera significantly advance our knowledge to further control other invasive Spodoptera species and reveals potential lineage-specific target genes for pest control strategies.


Author(s):  
Gerasimos GRAMMENOS ◽  
Varvara KOUNELI ◽  
Antonios MAVROEIDIS ◽  
Ioannis ROUSSIS ◽  
Ioanna KAKABOUKI ◽  
...  

A greenhouse cannabis cultivation took place in Agriculture university of Athens in order to quantify the efficiency of beneficial insects as a main method of pest management. Cannabis plants grown in two greenhouses and beneficial insects were released only in one greenhouse as a means to investigate the efficacy against pests by the comparison with the control greenhouse. Measurements included the visual estimation of infestation, the recording of pest species and populations, and the comparison of infestations and yields amongst greenhouses. Our results indicate that beneficial insects could control pest populations up to 100%. Even though the environmental conditions were not optimal and consecutive pest infestations were observed throughout the duration of our study, the beneficial insects successfully managed the pest populations. In conclusion, biological control with beneficial insects is a very effective method for pest management in greenhouse cannabis production.


1978 ◽  
pp. 215-234
Author(s):  
William Olkowski ◽  
Helga Olkowski ◽  
T. Drlik ◽  
N. Heidler ◽  
M. Minter ◽  
...  

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Joseph Páez Chávez ◽  
Dirk Jungmann ◽  
Stefan Siegmund

The paper is concerned with the development and numerical analysis of mathematical models used to describe complex biological systems in the framework of Integrated Pest Management (IPM). Established in the late 1950s, IPM is a pest management paradigm that involves the combination of different pest control methods in ways that complement one another, so as to reduce excessive use of pesticides and minimize environmental impact. Since the introduction of the IPM concept, a rich set of mathematical models has emerged, and the present work discusses the development in this area in recent years. Furthermore, a comprehensive parametric study of an IPM-based impulsive control scheme is carried out via path-following techniques. The analysis addresses practical questions, such as how to determine the parameter values of the system yielding an optimal pest control, in terms of operation costs and environmental damage. The numerical study concludes with an exploration of the dynamical features of the impulsive model, which reveals the presence of codimension-1 bifurcations of limit cycles, hysteretic effects, and period-doubling cascades, which is a precursor to the onset of chaos.


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