Sublethal effects of pesticides on arthropod biological control agents

Abstract

The increased public awareness of the potential risks of synthetic pesticides has led to a growing interest for Conservation Biological Control (CBC). In CBC different measures are taken to improve the conditions for natural enemies of crop pests already existing in the target area in order to make them more efficient as pest regulators. Since pesticides may cause the death of natural enemies (lethal effects) or change several other traits of their biology (either physiological or behavioral) without killing the individuals (sublethal effects), the success of CBC programs depends, in part, on the optimal use of selective pesticides that do not reduce natural enemy effectiveness. In this paper we discuss the importance of assessing the risk of pesticides to arthropod biological agents, in integrated pest management systems, and we analyze the use of new approaches to further our understanding of the potential impacts that they might have on these beneficials.