This book is divided into the following chapters: basic concepts of decision-making in pest management; basic concepts of sampling for pest management; classifying pest density; distributions; sequential sampling for classification; enhancing and evaluating the usefulness of sampling plans; binomial counts; multiple sources of variation; resampling to evaluate the properties of sampling plans; sampling over time to classify or estimate a population growth curve; and monitoring pest populations through time.

Predaceous arthropods are frequently more abundant on plants with leaves that are pubescent or bear domatia than on plants with glabrous leaves. We explored the hypothesis that for some predatory mites this is because pubescence affords protection from intraguild predation. In laboratory experiments, we tested whether apple leaf pubescence protected Typhlodromus pyri eggs from predation by western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis. To investigate the effect of pubescence further, we added cotton fibers to trichome-free leaves. We also determined whether webbing produced by Tetranychus urticae protected Phytoseiulus persimilis eggs from predation by F. occidentalis. Predation by thrips on T. pyri eggs oviposited on field-collected pubescent "Erwin Bauer" apple leaves was significantly less than on glabrous "Crittenden" apple leaves. Phytoseiid eggs oviposited in the cotton fibers were preyed upon significantly less than those on the trichome-free bean disk. Increasing the cotton fiber density from 5 to 20 fibers only slightly further reduced predation by thrips on T. pyri eggs. Thrips fed upon significantly fewer P. persimilis eggs oviposited in Te. urticae webbing than eggs oviposited on a surface that differed only in the absence of Te. urticae web. We conclude that a complex leaf topography reduces intensity of intraguild predation in this system.

The common housefly, Musca domestica, is a considerable component of nutrient recycling in the environment. Use of housefly larvae to biodegrade manure presents an opportunity to reduce waste disposal while the rapidly assimilated insect biomass can also be used as a protein rich animal feed. In this study, we examine the biodegradation of dairy cattle manure using housefly larvae, and the nutritional value of the resulting larva meal as a feed ingredient. Our results demonstrated that dairy cattle manure presents a balanced substrate for larval growth, and the spent manure showed reductions in concentration of total nitrogen (24.9%) and phosphorus (6.2%) with an overall reduction in mass. Larva yield at an optimum density was approximately 2% of manure weight. Nutritional analysis of M. domestica larva meal showed values comparable to most high protein feed ingredients. Larva meal was 60% protein with a well-balanced amino acid profile, and 20% fat with 57% monounsaturated fatty acids, and 39% saturated fatty acids. Larva meal lacked any significant amount of omega-3 fatty acids. Evaluation of micronutrients in larva meal suggested that it is a good source of calcium and phosphorus (0.5% and 1.1% respectively). The nutritional value of larva meal closely matches that of fishmeal, making it a potentially attractive alternative for use as a protein-rich feed ingredient for livestock and aquaculture operations.

Of the major physical factors that influence insect seasonal ecology, moisture is least understood and least appreciated. It is our premise that experimental probing of insects from diverse zones and various habitats would reveal general patterns of insect responses to moisture that are as striking as those for photoperiod and temperature. Using the paradigms of photoperiod and temperature as ecophysiological determinants of insect seasonality, we hypothesize that moisture influences insect life cycles via one or more of three mechanisms-as a token stimulus for diapause, modulator of developmental or reproductive rates, or behavioral cue for vital seasonal events. For heuristic purposes, we offer each of these hypotheses in close association with approaches for testing their validity in insects that undergo dry-season dormancy. The approaches appear appropriate for examining the role of moisture in the life histories of terrestrial invertebrates other than insects, as well as plants and microbes that have a seasonal resting stage. Elucidating moisture's role in insect seasonal cycles is critical to the development of comprehensive phenological models, improved insect management systems, and identification of novel evolutionary mechanisms for adaptation to wet-dry seasons, especially in tropical, subtropical, and Mediterranean regions.KEY WORDS phenology, moisture, soil-inhabiting insects, dormancy, development, reproduction PHOTOPERIOD ANDTEMPERATURE are generally considered prime factors in the seasonal ecology of terrestrial invertebrates (Beck 1980, Tauber et aI.1986). In contrast, moisture is usually consigned a secondary or minor role. This subordinate ranking of moisture as a seasonal cue may be grossly misleading for 2 reasons: First, phenological studies are concentrated in the Temperate Zone where large seasonal changes in photoperiod and temperature typically occur. Consequently, investigators are heavily biased toward using photoperiod and temperature as variables, and data on moisture's function and significance are lacking. Second, the natural histories of a large proportion of earth's insects (e.g., those from tropical, Mediterranean, and other regions with conspicuous wet and dry seasons) are highly correlated with changes in moisture conditions (Essig 1926, Edney 1977, Wolda 1978, Shapiro 1979, Mooney et al. 1980, Labeyrie 1981, King 1984, Denlinger 1986, Paarmann 1986, Powell 1986, Brakefield 1987, Dobkin et a1.1987, Janzen 1987, Bradshaw and Holzapfel 1988, Clouds ley-Thompson 1991, Hadley 1994, Somme 1995. Indeed, it appears that cycles of rainfall and moisture in wet-dry regions may rival those of temperature in temperate regions, in both their seasonal predictability and their importance for survival and development of insects. Thus, we contend that moisture constitutes a greatly un-