Lecture Notes

Course : Principles and Practices of Insect Pest Management

Code : ENT211
Topic : Biological control
To :Students of 3rd semester (MAU)
By :Prem Chaudhary(Entomologist)
Gmail :[email protected]
 Biological control

• Biological control was first used by H.S. Smith in 1919

to signify the use of natural enemies to control insect
pests.
• The utilization of predators, parasitoids and pathogens
for the regulation of host population density is called as
biological control.

• In applied sense, It may defined as the utilization of

natural enemies to reduce the damage caused by noxious
organisms to tolerable levels (DeBach & Rosen, 1991)
• Biological control has been successfully applied in many
parts of the world for controlling various insect pests,
pathogens and weeds that affect agriculture, forestry, and
human health.
 Predators

Predator is a free living

organism, it kills its prey,
is usually larger than its
prey and require more than
one prey to complete its
life cycle.
• They often use visual or
chemical cues to locate
their prey or its host plant.
 Parasitoids
• Parasitoid is an organism which is usually
much smaller than its host and complete
their entire life cycle within a single host by
extracting nutrition from it, through this
process they kill the host.
• They are classified based on their host
stages,
• Egg parasitoids – Trichogramma chilonis, T.
japonicum
• Egg-larval parasitoids – Chelonus
blackburni
• Larval parasitoid – Bracon brevicornis,
goniosus nephantidis
• Larval pupal parasitoid – Carcelia illota
• Pupal parasitoid – Tetrastichus israeli,
Xanthopimpla emaculata.
• Adult parasitpids – Blaesoziphae kellyi
A parasite is an organism that lives on or in another organism, the host, and gets
its food from or at the expense of its host.

A parasitoid is an organism that has young that develop on or within another organism (the
host), eventually killing it. Parasitoids have characteristics of both predators and parasites.
In general, parasitoids share the following features:
• Parasitoids are usually smaller than their selected host.
• Parasitoids are very selective and only attack a particular life stage of one or several
closely related species.
• Adult parasitoids are generally either nectar feeders or predators.
• Only female parasitoids are involved in finding and using the host.
• Generally the host does not die until the young are fully grown and ready to become
adults.
• Parasitoids can sometimes prevent larval hosts (e.g. caterpillars) from developing, until
the parasitoid is fully developed.
Why are parasitoids important?
• Pest management with parasitoids costs nothing!
• At low pest densities, parasitoids can suppress helicoverpa infestations to below
economic thresholds.
• Parasitoids reduce the number of helicoverpa surviving to the next generation.
• Parasitoids are compatible with other biological control agents (diseases and
predators).
• Some parasitoids can spread helicoverpa diseases, for example, Microplitis and
Heteropelma transmit ascovirus.
• Parasitoids are host specific — the parasitoids in this brochure only target
helicoverpa and some related caterpillar pests.
• Some parasitoid species can affect caterpillar behaviour — a caterpillar parasitised
by Microplitis eats less food than a healthy caterpillar.
• Parasitoids are efficient host searchers — they can find hosts when pest densities
are low.
Conserving parasitoids
The following points are important if you want to encourage parasitoids in your
crop.
• Know what parasitoids look like and which pests (and which pest lifestages) they
attack.
• Avoid killing them with broad-spectrum insecticides (e.g. synthetic pyrethroids).
See the annual Cotton pest management guide for more detailed information on
the impact of particular insecticides on wasp and fly parasitoids.
• Look for trends in crop scouting data. Lower than expected numbers of medium
larvae coming through from eggs/small larvae indicates parasitoid and/or predator
activity. Only parasitoids that kill eggs and small larvae (Trichogramma,
Telenomus and Microplitis) can reduce crop damage immediately.
• Monitor parasitism levels by collecting pest eggs, larvae and pupae. Observing
levels of parasitism can increase confidence in using parasitoids.
 Pathogens

• Pathogens are microorganisms including

certain bacteria, fungi, nematodes,
protozoa, and viruses that can infect and
kill the host.
• Bacteria – Bacillus thuringiensis
• Fungi – Metarrhizium anisopliae,
Beauvaria bessiana
• Viruses – HaNPV, SlNPV
• Nematodes- Heterorhabditis
bacteriophora, Steinernema carpocapsae
 Techniques in Biological Control

• There are 3 basics techniques in biological control of pests, viz;

• Introduction/classical
• Augmentation
• Conservation

Integrated Biological Control

Gurr and Wratten (1999) proposed the term ‘Integrated biological
control’ , which may be described as combination of separate approaches
(i.e. classical/augmentative/conservation) in biological control.
 Introduction

Introduction is the importation of pests’ natural enemies from other countries/state of

origin, to a new locale where they do not occur naturally.

OR
Also called classical biological control : It is the deliberate introduction &
establishment of natural enemies to a new locality, where they did not occur or
originate originally, when natural enemies are successfully established, it usually
continue to control the pest population.
 Augmentation
Biological Control
• It is the rearing & releasing of natural enemies to supplement the number of naturally occurring
natural enemies, & having two Approach
• Considered as the last resort of biological control.
• It is defined as the efforts to increase populations of natural enemies by propogation and release.
• There are two general approaches to augmentation: inundative releases and inoculative releases

• Inoculative release – here the control is expected from the progeny and subsequent generations,
not from the release itself. The releases are made infrequently as once a year to re - establish a
species of NE(Natural Enemies) which is periodically killed by unfavourable conditions during
last year. Once in a crop season.
• Inundative releases – involves mass culture and periodic release of NE to supress the pest
population,when pest population approach damaging level.
• Eg. Releases of Trichogramma japonicum Eggs released 50,000/Ha, 4 to 6 releases in 10 days
interval in rice and sugarcane for control of stem borers.
Conservation : Conservation is defined as the actions to preserve and release
of natural enemies by environmental manipulations or alter production practices
to protect natural enemies that are already present in an area or non use of those
pest control measures that destroy natural enemies

Important Conservation Measures are

o Use selective insecticides which is safe to natural enemies.
o Avoidance of cultural practices which are harmful to natural enemies & use
favourable cultural practices.
o Cultivation of verities that favour colonization of natural enemies.
o Provide alternate host for natural enemies
o Preservation of inactive stage of natural enemies
o Provide pollen & nectar for adult natural enemies
 Potential in IPM

• Highly economical
• Selective with no side effects
• Self propagating and self perpetuating
• Pest resistant to NE is virtually unknown
• Harmless to humans, livestock and other organisms
• Posses ability to search for prey
• Compatible with most of IPM tactics except broad spectrum insecticides
Limitations

• Do not eradicate the pest, i.e. leave small part of pest population in the field
• Limits the subsequent use of pesticides
• Slower control than pesticides
• Need trained man power
• Biocontrol can be prohibitively expensive, especially in case of inundative releases
• Difficult to maintain quality mass cultures
• Few field studies have been done about genetic changes in the host pest under intensive pressure
of natural enemy. Larch sawfly developed resistance to parasitoid Mesoleius tenthredinis few years
after introduction.
• Quarantine escape of hyper parasitoids can occur during introduction.
 Development of an IPM
Approach
• Nectar plants have been shown to increase parasitism by Trichogramma spp. of stem borer eggs
• Alternate wetting and drying (AWD) can reduce the incidence of pests while also conserving water and
reducing greenhouse gas emissions
• Split fertilizer applications
• Harvesting rice plants at ground level
• Growing flowering plants such as sesame or soybean on the rice bunds, avoiding insecticide
applications during the first 40 d after transplanting
• Application of Trichogramma spp. biocontrol agents (4-6 releases at 100,000 wasps per ha.
• Insecticides may be used in IPM only as a last resort.
• The insecticides resulted in >90% mortality of T. chilonis adults, but the effects were much less
pronounced on the larval and prepupal stages developing inside striped stem borer eggs. Therefore, it
was recommended that insecticide treatments should be avoided a week before and after the application
of Trichogramma spp. wasps
 Factors to be kept in mind

• Choice of biocontrol agent is based on the pest and its susceptible stage
• Use of other IPM components should be compatible with natural enemies
• Use of selective pesticides only when necessary
• Planning of agro ecosystem is utmost important
• Release of natural enemies at their appropriate stage is important
• As entomopathogens are sensitive to environmental factors, their application time should not coincide with hot
sun light and use of proper stickers and UV protectants is recommended.
• Chemical control should not coincide during active period of natural enemies.