Pest kill rate as aggregate evaluation criterion to rank biological control agents: a case study with Neotropical predators of <i>Tuta absoluta</i> on tomato

Lenteren, J.C. van; Bueno, Vanda Helena Paes; Burgio, Giovanni; Lanzoni, Alberto; Montes, Flavio C.; Silva, D B; Jong, Peter W. de; Hemerik, Lia

doi:10.1017/s0007485319000130

Cited by 19 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…In addition, zoophytophagous mirids may show more preference for the crop than the pest. Controlled evaluation is therefore prudent before releasing the agent into a cropping system [ 18 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

Roda

Castillo

Allen

et al. 2020

Insects

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Miridae (Hemiptera) of the tribe Dicyphini are important zoophytophagous predators use to control pest arthropods in vegetable crops. However, the risk that their herbivory may cause economic damage could hinder their application as useful biocontrol agents and may limit the likelihood they would meet regulatory requirements for importation. We conducted field cage studies to assess the predation capacity and tomato plant damage of three mirid species established in south USA, a known biocontrol agent (Nesidiocoris tenuis), and two native species (Macrolophus praeclarus and Engytatus modestus). All three species significantly reduced the number of whiteflies (Bemisia tabaci) on tomato plants compared to tomato plants without mirids. More damage, evaluated as the number of necrotic rings, was observed on tomato plants with E. modestus and N. tenuis compared to M. praeclarus. In our experiments that included sesame plants (Sesamum indicum) with tomato plants, mirid numbers increased despite a low number of prey, thus showing a benefit of the plant-feeding habit of these predators. USA’s established mirids may therefore prove to be immediately available biological agents for the management of present and future tomato pests.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

Roda

Castillo

Allen

et al. 2020

Insects

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“…Slow immature development, high mortality and low parasitism rates also make the parasitoids Dineulophus phthorimaeae de Santis (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) and, when not provided with alternative food, T. pretiosum unlikely successful candidates for control of the pest. The quick scan results in less than 20 species remaining on the list of potentially successful natural enemies 16 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The pest kill rate, k m , they found (0.121) is much higher than the intrinsic rate of population increase, r m , of B. nigricans (0.052). Van Lenteren et al 16 explained why the r m , of predators is not a useful criterion for comparison of their biocontrol capacity: it only provides information on how quickly a predator population can grow and does not tell how many prey items it can kill. In parasitoids, the r m can be used for comparison of species that do not kill hosts by nonreproductive activities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Life-table data were obtained for six species of mirid predators, four species of parasitoids that only kill hosts by parasitism and three species of parasitoids that both kill hosts by parasitism and nonreproductive host killing (Table 1 ). These species would not all emerge as potential candidates for control of T. absoluta in classical and augmentative control programmes when evaluated with the criteria discussed in van Lenteren et al 16 . However, by using the life-table data of these natural enemies it is possible to illustrate how the pest kill rate can be used in the future for comparison and ranking of the biological control capacity of predators and parasitoids.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The pest kill rate of thirteen natural enemies as aggregate evaluation criterion of their biological control potential of Tuta absoluta

Lenteren

Lanzoni

Hemerik

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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Ecologists study how populations are regulated, while scientists studying biological pest control apply population regulation processes to reduce numbers of harmful organisms: an organism (a natural enemy) is used to reduce the population density of another organism (a pest). Finding an effective biological control agent among the tens to hundreds of natural enemies of a pest is a daunting task. Evaluation criteria help in a first selection to remove clearly ineffective or risky species from the list of candidates. Next, we propose to use an aggregate evaluation criterion, the pest kill rate, to compare the pest population reduction capacity of species not eliminated during the first selection. The pest kill rate is the average daily lifetime killing of the pest by the natural enemy under consideration. Pest kill rates of six species of predators and seven species of parasitoids of Tuta absoluta were calculated and compared. Several natural enemies had pest kill rates that were too low to be able to theoretically reduce the pest population below crop damaging densities. Other species showed a high pest reduction capacity and their potential for practical application can now be tested under commercial crop production conditions.

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“…While the adoption of biological control is desirable, the successful implementation depends upon the comprehensive understanding of predator-prey interactions, owing to their fundamental role towards ecosystem functionality and food web stability 9 . Several methods can be applied to quantifying these interactions 10,11 , functional response 12 , numerical response 13 , kill rate 14 , and consumption rate 15 are typically employed when foraging interactions have to formalize 16 . Functional response describes how predation rate changes with resource density 17 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperature-Dependent Functional Response of Harmonia Axyridis Pallas (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) Preying on Acyrthosiphon Pisum (Harris) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) Nymphs

Islam

Shah

Rubing

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Functional response models are often used to understand the foraging interactions and determine the suitable biocontrol agents. We determined the functional response of Harmonia axyridis to nymph Acyrthosiphon pisum at different but constant temperatures (between 15 and 35 °C) and prey densities. Logistic regression and Roger’s random predator models were employed to determine the type and parameters of functional response. Harmonia axyridis larvae and adults exhibited Type II functional responses to different densities of A. pisum. Warming increased both the predation activity and host aphid control mortality. The 4th instar and female H. axyridis consumed the most aphids. Warming contributed markedly in accelerating the predator action. For fourth instar larvae and female H. axyridis adult, the successful attack rates were 0.234 ± 0.014 h−1 and 0.247 ± 0.015 h−1; the handling times were 0.132 ± 0.005 h and 0.156 ± 0.004 h; and the estimated maximum predation rates were 181.28 ± 14.54 and 153.85 ± 4.06, respectively. These findings accentuate the high performance of 4th instar and female H. axyridis and the role of temperature in their efficiency. Further studies exploring intraguild predation and mutual interference will be required to conclude the biocontrol potential of H. axyridis to A. pisum.

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Pest kill rate as aggregate evaluation criterion to rank biological control agents: a case study with Neotropical predators of Tuta absoluta on tomato

Cited by 19 publications

References 29 publications

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

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

The pest kill rate of thirteen natural enemies as aggregate evaluation criterion of their biological control potential of Tuta absoluta

Temperature-Dependent Functional Response of Harmonia Axyridis Pallas (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) Preying on Acyrthosiphon Pisum (Harris) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) Nymphs

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