Food security is a critical issue for many lowincome countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. Appropriately identifying and utilising local resources can provide sustainable solutions to food security problems. Insects, which are traditionally consumed in many regions of the world, represent one such resource. Insects can be nutritionally rich and therefore could be used to address issues of malnutrition. A first step towards utilising insects as a resource is identifying which ones are traditionally consumed. We present data collected between 2005 and 2012 on insects eaten by communities across Benin, West Africa. A combination of literature research, field collections, community focus groups and targeted interviews were employed. Data on four ethnic groups is presented: the Anii, Fon, Nagot and Waama. Twenty-nine arthropods species are eaten across Benin. The predominant orders are Orthoptera (48 %) and Coleoptera (41 %). New families of edible arthropods in West Africa include: Bradyporidae (Orthoptera), Coreidae (Hemiptera), Dytiscidae (Coleoptera), Ixodidae (Acari). Insect collection is an ancestral tradition in all the described communities: however, there are considerable differences in preferences and collection methods among ethnic groups. Currently there is little valorisation of insects as a food product in Benin, in contrast to neighbouring countries. In light of considerable malnutrition in Benin among young children, promoting this tradition and implementing small scale captive rearing of selected species could improve food security.
The fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) is native to the Americas and a major pest of corn and several other crops of economic importance. The species has characteristics that make it of particular concern as an invasive pest, including broad host range, long-distance migration behavior, and a propensity for field-evolved pesticide resistance. The discovery of fall armyworm in western Africa in 2016 was followed by what was apparently a remarkably rapid spread throughout sub-Saharan Africa by 2018, causing economic damage estimated in the tens of billions USD and threatening the food security of the continent. Understanding the history of the fall armyworm invasion of Africa and the genetic composition of the African populations is critical to assessing the risk posed to different crop types, the development of effective mitigation strategies, and to make Africa less vulnerable to future invasions of migratory moth pests. This paper tested and expanded on previous studies by combining data from 22 sub-Saharan nations during the period from 2016 to 2019. The results support initial descriptions of the fall armyworm invasion, including the near absence of the strain that prefers rice, millet, and pasture grasses, while providing additional evidence that the magnitude and extent of FAW natural migration on the continent is more limited than expected. The results also show that a second entry of fall armyworm likely occurred in western Africa from a source different than that of the original introduction. These findings indicate that western Africa continues to be at high risk of future introductions of FAW, which could complicate mitigation efforts.
Abstract. Arthropod assemblages were examined in Lama forest reserve, a protected area situated in the Dahomey gap, southern Benin, composed of plantations, degraded forest and remnants of natural forest. The objectives were to compare assemblages in relation to forest type and use, to elucidate the value of forest plantations for biodiversity conservation and to identify indicator species for specific forest habitats. Arthropods were collected over an 11-month period, using standardized sets of traps (pitfall, emergence, Malaise and flight intercept traps). Nine different habitats were studied, including natural and degraded forest, forest plantations (Tectona grandis and Senna siamea) of different age, and isolated forest fragments. Our analysis focused on detritivorous and xylophagous arthropods but also included ground beetles and heteropterans, totalling 393 species. We found no differences in species richness among natural and degraded forest habitats in the centre of the reserve (Noyau central). Outside of the Noyau central, species richness was highest in old teak plantations and isolated forest fragments and lowest in young teak and fuelwood plantations. Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) separated three main groups: (1) natural forest, (2) degraded forest and young plantations, and (3) old plantations and isolated forest fragments. Multiple regression of DCA scores of the first two axes on environmental variables identified one natural and three disturbance-related predictors of arthropod assemblages in Lama forest: soil type (texture), canopy height, naturalness (proportion of Guineo-Congolian plant species) and understorey vegetation cover. We identified 15 indicator species for six different forest habitats. The highest numbers were found in abandoned settlements and old teak plantations. b-diversity was similar among the three DCA ordination groups (degraded forest excluded). Values for b-diversity were relatively high, suggesting that all major forest habitats contribute significantly to regional species pools and should therefore be protected. To enhance arthropod diversity, we propose that management practices in Lama forest should aim to encourage the development of species-rich understorey vegetation of the Guineo-Congolian phytogeographical region.
Biological control constitutes one of the world’s prime ecosystems services, and can provide long-term and broad-scale suppression of invasive pests, weeds and pathogens in both natural and agricultural environments. Following (very few) widely-documented historic cases that led to sizeable environmental up-sets, the discipline of insect biological control has -over the past three decades- gone through much-needed reform. Now, by deliberately taking into account the ecological risks associated with insect biological control, immense environmental and societal benefits can be gained. In this study, we document and analyze a rare, successful case of biological control against the invasive mealybug, Phenacoccus manihoti (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) which invaded Southeast Asia in 2008, where it caused substantial crop losses and triggered 2- to 3-fold surges in agricultural commodity prices. In 2009, the host-specific parasitoid Anagyrus lopezi (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) was released in Thailand and subsequently introduced into neighboring Asian countries. Drawing upon continental-scale insect surveys, multi-year population studies and (field-level) experimental assays, we show how A. lopezi attained intermediate to high parasitism rates across diverse agro-ecological contexts. Driving mealybug populations below non-damaging levels at a continental scale, A. lopezi allowed yield recoveries up to 10.0 t/ha and provided biological control services worth several hundred dollars per ha (at local farm-gate prices) in Asia’s 4-million ha cassava crop. Our work provides lessons to invasion science and crop protection worldwide, heralds a new era for insect biological control, and highlights its potentially large socio-economic benefits to agricultural sustainability in the face of a debilitating invasive pest. In times of unrelenting insect invasions, surging pesticide use and accelerating (invertebrate) biodiversity loss across the globe, this study unequivocally demonstrates how biological control – as a pure public good – constitutes a powerful, cost-effective and environmentally-responsible solution for invasive species mitigation.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.