After a pest develops resistance to a pesticide, switching between different unrelated pesticides is a common management option, but this raises the following questions: (1) What is the optimal frequency of pesticide use? (2) How do the frequencies of pesticide applications affect the evolution of pesticide resistance? (3) How can the time when the pest population reaches the economic injury le...

As growers switch to transgenic crops and selective insecticides that are less toxic to natural enemies, natural enemies can become more important in agricultural pest management. Current decision-making guides are generally based on pest abundance and do not address pest and natural enemy toxicity differences among insecticides or the impact of natural enemies on pest survival. A refined appro...

World wide crop losses without the use of pesticides and other non-chemical control strategies is estimated to be about 70% of crop production, amounting to U.S. $ 400 billion. Many insect pest families are known which cause serious damage to agriculture crops. Insect pest menace is one of the major factors that destabilize crop productivity in agricultural ecosystems. They are responsible for ...

Aedes albopictus is a major nuisance pest and also a public health concern because of the role it plays in the transmission of arboviruses. There is a continuing demand for effective surveillance tools for this species. The first generation of Biogents Sentinel (BGS1) traps have proven to be an effective tool for surveillance of Ae. albopictus throughout its range, however, some defects in cons...

Invasive species are a major threat to biodiversity, cost the world economy billions of dollars annually, and are often difficult, if not impossible, to control using current approaches. Recombinant technologies could revolutionize management of such pests but would be subject to a range of genetic, behavioral, and ecological factors that could limit their efficacy or applicability. We use a re...

Pyrethroids are a class of plant-derived insecticides and their man-made analogues that are increasingly applied in Canada as first choice for pest control in many agricultural and residential settings. Their popularity is partly due to their alleged safety compared to the older organochlorine and organophosphate insecticides. Application of pyrethroids is expanding because of recent increases ...