Biological control agents
This involves the use of natural enemies (bred specificly for this purpose) to fight pests and diseases. The natural enemies do this as follows:
- They suck the plague organism empty , such as the larva of the lacewing and the gall midge and the predatory mite
- They lay an egg in the plague organism, such as the parasitic wasp.
- They eat the pest organism, such as the larvae of the ladybug and the predatory bug
- They secrete toxic compounds into the plague or pest organism to make it ill in one or another way, such as nematodes and bacteria
| Pest | Natural enemy |
| aphid | parasitic wasp, ladybird, gall midge |
| Agromyzidae | Ichneumonidae |
| Thrips | predatory mite, assassin bug |
| whitefly | parasitic wasp, assassin bug, fungus |
| spider mite | predatory mite, gall midge |
| caterpillar | parasitic wasp, bacteria |
| Sciaridae | predatory mites, nematodes |
| mealybugs | parasitic wasp, predatory beetle |
| vine weevil | nematodes |
External links
Literature
- Plant-provided Food for Carnivorous Insects: A Protective Mutualism and its Applications by Felix L. Wäckers
- Manage Insects on Your Farm: A Guide to Ecological Strategies - Freely downloadable book (PDF-file)
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