Biological control of the cassava mealybug,Phenacoccus manihotiby the exotic parasitoidEpidinocarsis lopeziin Africa

Abstract

Since its accidental introduction into Africa, the cassava mealybug (CM) has spread to about 25 countries. The specific parasitoid Epidinocarsis lopezi , introduced from South America, its area of origin, into Nigeria in 1981, has since been released in more than 50 sites. By the end of 1986 it was established in 16 countries and more than 750 000 km 2 . In southwestern Nigeria, CM populations declined after two initial releases, and have since remained low. During the same period, populations of indigenous predators of CM , mainly coccinellids, have declined, as have indigenous hyperparasitoids on E. lopezi , because of scarcer hosts. Results from laboratory bionomic studies were incorporated into a simulation model. The model, field studies on population dynamics, and experiments excluding E. lopezi by physical or chemical means demonstrate its efficiency, despite its low reproductive potential.

Sustained biological control of the cassava mealybugPhenacoccus manihoti [Hom.: Pseudococcidae] byEpidinocarsis lopezi [Hym.: Encyrtidae] in Nigeria

“…(Horn. : Pseudococcidae) for the 1 st time in soutwestern Nigeria in 1981 and 1982 (Herren & Lema, 1982 ;Lema et aL, 1984 ; Lema & Herren, 1985; Herren etal., 1987; Neuenschwanfler & Herren, 1988). The effectiveness of the newly established parasitoid was demonstrated in exclusion experiments (Neuensehwander et al, 1986) and by means of a tritrophic computer simulation model (Gutierrez et al, 1988a, b).…”

Parasitoides larva-pupa de Hylesia metabus Cramer (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) en la región nororiental de Venezuela: un caso de control Biológico Natural

“…Por otra parte, Semielacher petiolatus Girault (Eulophidae) fue introducido a Tunisia para controlar Phyllocnistis citrella Stainton (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) (Braham et al 2006). La avispa Apoanagyrus lopezi De Santis (Encyrtidae) ha logrado establecerse en más de 25 países africanos donde mantiene bajo control la cochinilla de la yuca ó mandioca Phenacoccus manihoti MatileFerrero, una plaga importante de este cultivo (Homoptera: Pseudococcidae) (Neuenschwander et al 1988). En Cuba, Lixophaga diatraea Towns (Tachinidae) es empleado para combatir el barrenador de la caña de azúcar Diatraea saccharalis Fabricius (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) (Aleman et al 1998).…”

Analytical methods for detecting pesticide switches with evolution of pesticide resistance

“…Recently, many mathematical models with impulsive chemical control tactics and releases of natural enemies have been proposed to model an IPM strategy such as spraying of pesticides [25,[28][29][30][31][32][33] or releases of natural enemies at critical times [27,[34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41]. Those studies mainly focused on the effects of chemical control and biological control on the permanence or extinction of pest populations, and did not consider the effects of pesticide resistance.…”

“…Indeed, a key component of an IPM strategy is often biological control [24,25], which is defined as the reduction of pest populations by natural enemies. It typically involves impulsive perturbations, such as the release of natural enemies at a critical time of the season when insufficient reproduction of the natural enemies already present is likely to occur and pest control will be achieved exclusively by the released individuals themselves (augmentation) [26,27].…”