Rearing beneficial insects for biological control purposes in resource poor areas of africa

Biological control of insect pest and weeds using beneficial insects in resource poor areas is not very well supported. Poor funding has affected in particular the importation of classical biological control agents, quarantine, rearing, research facilities, and the research programmes. Donor agencies, commercial and semi-commercial enterprises in a number of African countries have, however, been able to contribute to biological control efforts using beneficial insects by providing some of the resources needed. This has led to biological control becoming a real possibility to control insect pests and weeds in several resource poor countries. Examples are provided of the “spin-offs” of such programmes for resource poor areas in South Africa, Zambia, Kenya, Malawi, Benin and Nigeria. Conventional insect rearing, insect conservation and habitat management as an aid to biological control programmes are discussed.     

Challenges to planted forest health in developing economies

A number of strategies have been proposed to manage the increasing threat of insect pests to non-native plantation forests, but the implementation of these strategies can be especially challenging in developing economies, such as in countries of sub-Saharan Africa. As in other parts of the world, invasions of non-native insect pests in this region are increasing due to increased trade as well as inadequate quarantine regulations and implementation. Some of these invasions result in substantial socio-economic and environmental losses. In addition, new host associations of native insects on the non-native tree hosts continue to occur. Identification of these insect pests is becoming increasingly difficult due to declining taxonomic expertise, and a lack of resources and research capacity hinders the widespread and effective deployment of resistant trees and biological control agents. The necessity to engage with an extremely diverse stakeholder community also complicates implementing management strategies. We propose that a regional strategy is needed for developing regions such as sub-Saharan Africa, where limited resources can be optimized and shared risks managed collectively. This strategy should look beyond the standard recommendations and include the development of an inter-regional phytosanitary agency, exploiting new technologies to identify insect pests, and the use of “citizen science” projects. Local capacity is also needed to develop and test trees for pest tolerance and to deploy biological control agents. Ideally, research and capacity development should, at least initially, be concentrated in centres of excellence to reduce costs and optimize efforts.     

培菌昆虫相关放线菌的次级代谢产物研究进展

昆虫共生微生物是一种特殊的微生物资源,其中放线菌在昆虫肠道、体表和巢穴中广泛分布。近年来,人们从培菌昆虫来源的放线菌中分离得到多种新型化合物,可以选择性抑制菌圃的致病真菌,部分还对植物致病真菌、昆虫致病真菌、人类病原菌和癌细胞有抑制活性。因此,研究培菌昆虫相关微生物不仅有助于了解宿主与微生物的共生机制,还能发掘新的活性物质,用于生物农药、生物医药的开发。本文对培菌昆虫来源放线菌次级代谢产物的研究进展进行了综述。     

Evolution of biological control agents following introduction to new environments

The introduction of biological control agents (BCAs) creates the potential for adaptive evolution in translocated organisms. BCAs are confronted with new environments that can promote adaptation to exploit novel resources, even within short ecological time frames. In particular, insect BCAs are amenable to rapid evolution due to their short generation times and relatively large population sizes. These factors hypothetically increase the likelihood that, when exposed to novel habitats, environmental selection could cause BCAs to extend their range to non-target host species. Alternatively, insects may simply extend their range as their generalist or polyphagous habits are fully realized. In this review, we consider recent literature that addresses these topics. Adaptations to environmental conditions have been demonstrated in a number of BCAs. Mechanisms of adaptation include founder effects, hybridization, and endosymbiosis. Yet, there is little evidence of adaptive host range expansions among insect and weed biological control agents to non-target species, albeit existing examples are from limited numbers of studies. Important future directions and current developments in the field incorporate next generation sequencing technology that can promote better resolution of population divergence, possible mechanisms involved in adaptation to novel resources, and insect hybridization. Future studies should also include a careful consideration of the influence of microbes on BCA efficacy and environmental adaptation.     

中国农业生态系统昆虫授粉功能量与服务价值评估

所有开花植物中大约有80%的物种需要动物作为授粉媒介。系统介绍了中国重要栽培作物花的结构和类型,授粉过程、媒介和方式,作物对昆虫授粉的依赖程度,昆虫授粉功能与服务的概念,以及昆虫授粉功能量与服务价值量的评估方法;同时评估了我国各省农业生态系统中昆虫对重要作物的授粉功能量与服务价值量。结果表明:粮食作物、水果作物、蔬菜作物和经济作物不同程度的依赖昆虫授粉。根据2015年主要农作物产量、作物产品价格、昆虫授粉依赖程度等数据,计算得出昆虫对我国22类主要农作物的授粉功能量为1.8亿吨农产品产量和授粉服务价值为8860.5亿元(占当年GDP的1.3%),具有巨大的经济价值。2015年昆虫对主要栽培作物的授粉功能量和服务价值排在前五名的都是山东、河南、河北、陕西和新疆,年授粉服务价值均大于500亿元,反映出这5个省的主要农作物对昆虫授粉依赖程度较高。昆虫对作物的授粉功能量评价有助于了解昆虫对作物生物量或产量的生物学和生态学效应以及作物对昆虫授粉的需求。昆虫对作物的授粉服务价值评估有助于掌握昆虫授粉为人类所带来的经济效应或经济价值,并帮助决策维持或增强授粉昆虫多样性和种群数量的人力、物力和财力投入。     

试论拓宽生物防治范围，发展虫害可持续治理

该文针对我国生物防治资源极其丰富和农民经济实力薄弱的特点,结合我国微孢子虫治蝗和苹果园植被多样化持续治理虫害的成果,论述了应如何发展和拓宽具有我国特色的害虫生物防治,进一步提高综合防治水平,促进农业可持续发展。     

昆虫体色多型的分子调控机制

体色多型普遍存在于各昆虫类群,体色多型不仅是生物多样性的体现,而且多样的着色模式对于昆虫本身具有重要的生物学意义.研究体色多型对探讨昆虫遗传多态性、适应机制及生物进化等具有重要的意义.本文主要从昆虫体色多型的分子调控机制进行综述,以期为今后探讨昆虫多态性、适应机制及生物进化提供参考.     

Does natural vegetation from olive groves benefit the olive moth,Prays oleae?

Conservation biological control aims to enhance the efficacy of biological control agents, such as predators and parasitoids, by providing them access to key requisites, for example floral or other alternative food resources. However, the occurrence of floral resources in agricultural systems may have positive effects not only on natural enemies but also on the pests themselves. For this reason, we have studied in laboratory common Mediterranean plants as potential food resources for an important lepidopteran olive pest, the olive moth, Prays oleae. The effects of 15 wild flowering plants from olive grove ecosystems, and four sugars present in floral nectars, on key biological parameters of P. oleae (i.e. longevity, pre-oviposition and oviposition periods, fertility and fecundity) were evaluated. The three pest generations were analysed. Only few of the plants tested increased some reproductive parameters of the insect individuals compared to the water-fed controls, while sugars generally improved them. This could be due to a higher concentration of sugars provided by individual sugars than by flower nectar. These results indicate that, in general, P. oleae will not benefit from the availability of the floral resources tested.     

中国昆虫资源研究开发现状

昆虫具有种类多、数量大等特点,是一类非常丰富的可再生资源,昆虫体内含有丰富的蛋白质、油脂和人体所需要的游离氨基酸以及一些具有药用价值的活性物质,因此具有较高的开发和利用价值。此文综述了近几年对昆虫资源的研究以及开发利用现状。     

堵河源自然保护区昆虫资源调查初报

通过对堵河源自然保护区昆虫资源调查,共采集昆虫标本12 600余号,经初步鉴定有1 456种,分别隶属于23目192科.其中,鳞翅目昆虫种数最多,31科502种,鞘翅目昆虫次之,42科436种.通过对保护区昆虫资源调查的结果分析,初步了解了该自然保护区昆虫的区系和群落分布.并与七姊妹山、后湖两个自然保护区的昆虫资源分别进行了比较.     

中国南方主要害虫和杂草传统生物防治的前景(英文)

中国很重视害虫生物防治,但与欧美国家相比,对更经济有效的传统生物防治重视较少。对那些源于外国、特别是最近从国外侵入的害虫来说,传统生物防治更是一本万利。本文列举了174种中国南方的有害节肢动物及它们在外国的分布和可能的发源地。还举出了分布于中国南方的6种害虫及5种杂草在外国传统生防成功的情况。     

芽胞杆菌防治烟草病虫害的研究进展

烟草病虫害严重影响烟草产业的可持续发展,更为安全的生物防治方法已成为烟草病虫害防治研究的热点领域。芽胞杆菌属(Bacillus)是一类比较理想的生防微生物,在植病生物防治领域显示出了广阔的应用前景。本文论述了芽胞杆菌属细菌的生物学特性及其在烟草黑胫病、赤星病、青枯病、炭疽病、根黑腐病、花叶病、白粉病、烟草斜纹夜蛾和甲虫等烟草病虫害防治中的应用。     

PROSPECTS FOR THE CLASSICAL BIOLOGICAL CONTROL OF MAJOR INSECT PESTS AND WEEDS IN SOUTHERN CHINA

Abstract  This paper deals with the prospects for the classical biological control of major insect pests and weeds in southern China. One hundred and seventy-four species of insect pests in southern China are nominated and their broad distribution and origin or possibly origin in other countries are discussed. An attempt is made to draw together information relevant to where a search might be made for natural enemies if an arthropod pest is being considered as the target for classical biological control. The success of classical biological control of the six insect pests and five weeds elsewhere in the world has been indicated. It is recommended to take urgent measures to strengthen and expand projects in classical biological control in China.     

Spatiotemporal dynamics of an insect population in response to chemical substances

Insect pests represent a serious problem for the agriculture. The most popular control technic is the application of insecticide. This method, however, presents serious risks to the human healthy and to the environment so that new approaches, such as the applications of natural repellent, biological control and push–pull strategies, have been attempted. In this paper, we consider a spatially-discrete system described by Coupled Map Lattices to analyze the dynamics of an insect population when some chemical – insecticide or repellent – is spread over the population. The habitat is supposed to have plenty of resources so that insect individuals only move (flee) in response to the chemical concentration. The chemical substance, in turn, spreads by diffusion and by the wind. We show that the escape behavior of the insects and the wind can reduce the effectiveness of the chemical. Furthermore, we present the corresponding continuous equations that describe the system in the macroscopic scale.     

Reprint of: Biological control of rice insect pests in China

Rice is one of the most important food crops in the world. China has the second largest area of the rice growing in the world and the highest yield of rice produced. Infestation by insect pests, especially rice planthoppers, stem borers and leaf folders, is always a serious challenge to rice production in China. Current methods for controlling insect pests in China mainly include good farming practices, biological control, breeding and growing resistant varieties, and the use of chemical insecticides. However, for farmers, the favorite method for insect pest control is still the application of chemical insecticide, which not only causes severe environmental pollution and the resurgence of herbivores but also reduces populations of the natural enemies of herbivores. To control insect pests safely, effectively and sustainably, strategies encouraging biological control are currently demanded. Here we review the progress that has been made in the development and implementation of biological controls for rice in China since the 1970s. Such progress includes the species identification of the natural enemies of rice insect pests, the characterization of their biology, and the integration of biological controls in integrated pest management. To develop effective ecological engineering programs whose aim is to implement conservation biological controls, further research, including the evaluation of the roles of plants in non-crop habitats in conservation biological controls, volatiles in enhancing efficiency of natural enemies and natural enemies in manipulating insect pests, and education to increase farmers’ knowledge of biological controls, is proposed.     

Avoiding conflicts between insect and weed biological control: selection of non-target species to assess host specificity of cabbage seedpod weevil parasitoids

Abstract:  Classical biological control of insect pests and weeds may lead to potential conflicts, where insect pests are closely related to weed biological control agents. Such a conflict may occur in the classical biological control of the cabbage seedpod weevil, Ceutorhynchus obstrictus (Marsham) in North America, which belongs to the same subfamily, Ceutorhynchinae, as a number of agents introduced or proposed for introduction against non-indigenous invasive weed species. We propose a step-by-step procedure to select non-target species and thereby to develop a non-target species test list for screening candidate entomophagous biological control agents of a herbivore pest insect in a way that would simultaneously evaluate non-target potential on weed biological control agents and other non-target species. Using these recommendations, we developed a non-target test list for host specificity evaluations in the area of origin (Europe) and the area of introduction (North America) for cabbage seedpod weevil parasitoids. Scientifically based predictions on expected host–parasitoid interactions and ecological information about the ecological host range in the area of origin can help avoid conflicts, while still allowing the introduction of safe and effective agents against both insect pests and weeds.     

植物种质资源引进风险分析方法概述

种质资源作为生物资源的重要组成部分,是培育作物优质、高产、抗病（虫）、抗逆新品种的物质基础。近年来,为满足我国种业飞速发展的需要,我国不断从国外引入大量的种质资源,种质资源相比其他植物产品携带有害生物的风险更高。种质资源引进过程中不可避免地携带有害生物,可能会带来严重危害。目前,美国、澳大利亚等国家已制定了关于种质资源的风险分析方法,但我国缺少针对种质资源有害生物统一的风险分析方法。本文分析了国际植物检疫措施标准、主要的贸易国家及我国有害生物风险分析标准方法的主要内容,针对引进种质资源过程中亟需解决的有害生物风险分析问题开展讨论,并对种质资源有害生物风险分析系统其未来展开工作提出以下建议：设置符合种质资源风险分析特性的指标;采用半定量风险评估方法对种质资源进行风险分析;根据不断的学习和实际工作的需要,对风险评估指标体系进行验证和适当修改。     

昆虫共生微生物在病虫害和疾病控制上的应用前景

昆虫与微生物之间的互利共生关系是自然界中一种常见的互作形式。昆虫的种类丰富多样并且在自然界中分布广泛,在一定程度上得益于共生微生物的帮助。随着生物技术的不断发展,越来越多的共生微生物和互利共生模式得以发现并深入研究。微生物不仅能够为昆虫的生长发育提供营养,还能合成很多生物活性物质、调节宿主的免疫、对抗捕食者和抵御病原微生物感染,成为宿主昆虫健康和适应的守护者。鉴于共生微生物与昆虫生理生态的密切联系,以及昆虫对人类经济与健康的重要影响,利用共生微生物对昆虫及虫媒病进行生物控制已经成为一个热点研究方向,并展现了良好的应用前景。本文对昆虫共生微生物的多样性、生物学功能、与宿主相互作用机制及其在病虫害和虫媒病防治中的研究进展进行综述和展望。     

昆虫病原线虫的耐寒性

昆虫病原线虫可开发成生物农药,广泛应用于多种地下及钻蛀害虫的安全防治。但昆虫病原线虫货架期较短,对寒冷等极端环境的耐受性较差,影响了其在生物防治方面的商业开发。本文介绍了寒区的昆虫病原线虫资源,总结了昆虫病原线虫耐寒性的测定方法及增强方法、耐寒性差异的研究进展,并对其耐寒的生理生化机制及分子机理进行了综述。研究昆虫病原线虫的耐寒性,对于解释种群动态,指导昆虫病原线虫的低温保存,以及拓展其在生物防治方面的应用具有重要意义。