What is biological pest control?

Biological control refers to the employment of living creatures to reduce the damage that pest populations might otherwise cause. All pests, including insects, vertebrates, plant pathogens, and weeds, can be controlled biologically, but the techniques and substances employed vary depending on the type of pest. The biological control of insects and similar creatures will be the main topic of this article.

For biological pest control, there are three main approaches: classical, which involves introducing a pest's natural enemy in the hopes of gaining control; inductive (augmentation), which consists in introducing a large population of natural enemies for prompt pest control; and inoculative (conservation), which involves taking steps to preserve natural enemies through routine reestablishment.

(I) Importation: For biological pest control, there are three main approaches: classical (importation), which involves introducing a pest's natural enemy in the hopes of gaining control; inductive (augmentation), which involves introducing a large population of natural enemies for prompt pest control; and inoculative (conservation), which involves taking steps to preserve natural enemies through routine reestablishment.

(ii) Augmentation: To increase the populations of naturally occurring organisms in a certain location, augmentation entails the additional release of local natural enemies. In an effort to establish longer-term control and keep the pest at a low level, which would constitute prevention rather than cure, small amounts of the control agents are introduced at regular intervals to allow them to multiply. In contrast, in an inundative release, a high number of pests are released in the hopes of quickly lowering a harmful pest population and resolving an issue that has already developed. Although it is not always successful, augmentation depends on the specifics of how each pest and control agent interact with one another.

(III) Conservation: The third approach to biological pest control is the preservation of already present natural enemies in an area. Natural enemies can be easily and cheaply conserved when nectar-producing crop plants are grown along the edges of rice fields since they are already adapted to the habitat and the target pest. These have been shown to be so successful at reducing pest densities by 10- or even 100-fold that farmers used 70% fewer insecticides while experiencing a 5% increase in yields. They also produce nectar to support parasitoids and predators of planthopper pests. [30] Similar evidence of aphid predators was identified in England's tussock grasses by field border hedges, but they propagated too slowly to reach the fields' interiors. Planting a fence increased control.

FAQs on What is biological pest control

Q. What is meant by biological pest control?

Ans. Biological control refers to the employment of living creatures to reduce the damage that pest populations might otherwise cause. The populations of potential pests are significantly reduced by natural enemies of insects. These predators, parasitoids, and diseases are examples of natural enemies.