From Evolutionary Aspects of Zoophytophagy to Biological Control

Abstract

Zoophytophagy (true omnivory) is a ubiquitous behavior. It allows plant-feeding predators to maximize their development by finding essential nutrients, and to survive when animal resources are scarce. In agroecosystems, some zoophytophagous predators are highly efficient biological control agents. However, when feeding on plants, they can generate crop damage that reduce grower's interest in these predators. Artificial selection on behavioral traits of candidate zoophytophagous predators could improve the ecosystem services they provide. Thus, a zoophytophagous species considered as noxious may become an adequate biocontrol agent, following a selection process. Numerous theoretical and applied aspects should be considered during the selection process for the breeding of desired individuals. This review focuses on the potential of the evolutionary approach to optimize the biological control services provided by plant-feeding predators-or zoophytophagous predators-and discuss some ecological and biological control consequences as well as the limitations of the approach.

Genetic Variation in the Feeding Behavior of Isofemale Lines of Nesidiocoris tenuis

“…Conversely, the larger variation observed in zoophagy represents a positive output for biocontrol improvement. The existence of isofemale lines showing higher predation rates could favor a decrease in the predator—prey ratio currently used in crops [ 10 ]. Hence, the use of fewer individuals of these “zoophagous” isofemale lines would allow a successful pest control, while reducing the exposure of crops to phytophagy and potential damage.…”

“…The importance of zoophytophagous species to suppress pests in agroecosystems has increased over the last decades [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]. However, the assessment of genetic variation on traits of biocontrol interest in these species is rather recent [ 9 , 10 ]. Dumont et al [ 9 ] tested the hypothesis that zoophytophagous populations consist of a mix of specialized genotypes (i.e., zoophagous, phytophagous, and generalists) instead of only one highly plastic genotype.…”

“…However, its status as a biocontrol agent is sometimes controversial because of the damage it can inflict in plant tissues when the prey levels decrease [ 6 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ]. The exploitation of the genetic variation in the feeding behavior of N. tenuis was suggested as a means to improve its predatory efficiency, while mitigating the detrimental effects derived from its phytophagy [ 10 ].…”

Biological Control Potential and Drawbacks of Three Zoophytophagous Mirid Predators against Bemisia tabaci in the United States

“…Omnivore predators display a range of carnivorous and herbivorous feeding behavior. Some arthropods are opportunistic omnivores, and they reside on a continuum between phytozoophagy (prey-taking herbivores) and zoophytophagy (plant-feeding predators) [ 7 , 8 ]. For biocontrol, an optimal agent would actively seek the pest as prey and feed minimally on the crop plant [ 9 ].…”

Tomato Inoculation With a Non-pathogenic Strain of Fusarium oxysporum Enhances Pest Control by Changing the Feeding Preference of an Omnivorous Predator

“…Plant-feeding generalist predators, a specific group of true omnivores, have become important biological control agents in various cropping systems (Coll and Guershon, 2002;Dumont et al, 2018) and particularly in greenhouse crops (Messelink et al, 2012). Plant-feeding generalist predators of the family Miridae, also called zoophytophagous predators, are among the most important predatory bugs used for biocontrol.…”