Chapter 18_Insect Pest Control

8/3/2019 Chapter 18_Insect Pest Control

1/8

Chapter18:Insect Pest Control

Edited byDr. Mir F. Ali 1

Chapter18InsectPestControl

Pest control refers to the regulation or management of aspeciesdefined as apest, usuallybecause it is perceived to be detrimental to a personshealth, theecologyor theeconomy.

Here are somefacts about insects: Over 1 million species of insects inhabit the world,more than the total number of species of all other animals and plants combined.Fortunately, for humankind the vast majority of these insects are either beneficial orharmless. The relatively few species, 15 000 or less, that are detrimental result in losses of15-20 percent of the worlds agricultural (plant and animal) production. Ironically, thesefigures represent the 1980s and according to a recentestimates, published by, theInternational Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), puts losses of food production in the rangeof 25-35 percent, even with use of pesticides. These losses are from direct damage to

plants and animals, as well as from diseases of plants and animals transmitted by insects.Additionally, insects caused losses that are more significant during storage of agriculturalproducts. Other important losses occur from human diseases, such as malaria, yellowfever, dengue, and onchocerciasis that are transmitted by insects.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pest_(organism)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pest_(organism)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pest_(organism)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economicshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economicshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economicshttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economicshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pest_(organism)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Species


2/8

2

Chapter18I

nsectPestControl

The reality is that insect pets are another serious threat to productivity as well ashumanity and losses of food caused by insects creates a profound challenge for the world,

which is faced with the food insecurity for the existing global population that is expectedto grow to eight billions in 2020. When animals or plants are produced in concentratedareas (monocultures) they provide a culinary feast for insects and result in a greatincrease in insect pest numbers. Food must be produced in this manner to feed thenumber of people in the world; thus agricultural products, both during production andstorage, must be protected from insect attack (along with other pests, such as diseases,weeds, nematodes, rats, and birds).

Modern insecticideswere rapidly developed after World War II and provided plant andanimal producers with an extremely powerful tool for use against insects. Insecticides

provide the primary method of insect control; however, they are not completelysatisfactory. Moreover, there are concerns that reliance on pesticides to maintain yieldsnot only has negative impacts on the environment, but may also lead to the insectsdeveloping resistance to the pesticides themselves. However, Sterile Insect Techniques(SIT) offer alternative means of suppressing and, in some cases, even eradicating insects,such as fruit flies, tsetse flies, moths and malaria carrying mosquitoes.
http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdf


3/8

3

Chapter18I

nsectPestControl

Through its Insect and Pest Control programme, the IAEA is using nuclear science todevelop environmentally friendly alternatives for pest control. One of the most successfultechniques developed to date is the SIT.
http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdf


4/8

4

Chapter18I

nsectPestControl

The discovery that X-raysor gamma radiation could cause sufficient genetic damage toinsect reproductive systems to induce sterility resulted from work conducted by H.J.Muller starting in the 1920s. Muller won a Nobel Prize for his work on the genetic effectsof irradiation in insects. The sterilizing effect of radiation was noted by scientists of theUS Department of Agriculture who had been seeking a method to sterilize insects for

many years. These scientists had theorized that if large numbers of the target insectspecies were reared, sterilized, and released into the field, the sterile insects would matewith the wild insects. These mating would result in no offspring and thus a decline in thepopulation would be obtained. They calculated that if sufficient numbers of sterile insectswere released, the reproductive rate for the wild population would rapidly decline andreach zero. In simple language, birth control of insects. Radiation sterilization was theanswer.

The first demonstration of this nuclear technology was the eradication of the screwwormfrom the Dutch island of Curacao in 1954. The programme was conducted by scientists ofthe US Department of Agriculture in cooperation with the Dutch Government. Thus, theinitial SIT project was international, and to a large extent, operational SIT projects sincethen have remained international in scope.

The SIT has been successfullyused to eradicate several insect pests of agriculturalsignificance. One of the most significant is the Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly), a serious
http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/The%2520SIT%2520has%2520been%2520successfully%2520used%2520to%2520eradicate%2520several%2520insect%2520pests%2520of%2520agricultural%2520significance.%2520%2520One%2520of%2520the%2520most%2520significant%2520is%2520the%2520Mediterranean%2520fruit%2520fly%2520(Medfly),%2520a%2520serious%2520threat%2520to%2520more%252http://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/The%2520SIT%2520has%2520been%2520successfully%2520used%2520to%2520eradicate%2520several%2520insect%2520pests%2520of%2520agricultural%2520significance.%2520%2520One%2520of%2520the%2520most%2520significant%2520is%2520the%2520Mediterranean%2520fruit%2520fly%2520(Medfly),%2520a%2520serious%2520threat%2520to%2520more%252http://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/The%2520SIT%2520has%2520been%2520successfully%2520used%2520to%2520eradicate%2520several%2520insect%2520pests%2520of%2520agricultural%2520significance.%2520%2520One%2520of%2520the%2520most%2520significant%2520is%2520the%2520Mediterranean%2520fruit%2520fly%2520(Medfly),%2520a%2520serious%2520threat%2520to%2520more%252http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdf


5/8

5

Chapter18I

nsectPestControl

threat to more than 250 species of fruit and vegetables. Thanks to successfulimplementation of SIT, the Medfly has now been eradicated from Mexico and Chile, andfrom parts of Guatemala and the United States. The programme is now being expandedinto Argentina, Southern Peru, and the Middle East.

The tsetse fly, which spreads the parasite trypanosome that causes African sleepingsickness and the cattle disease Nagana, has turned several fertile African landscapes intouninhabited green areas. Because of the risks of the tsetse, a large fraction of Africas bestland particularly in river valleys and moist areas where the potential for mixed farmingis good lies uncultivated. Affecting as many as 500 000 people, the tsetse fly isresponsible for economic losses estimated at more than $4 billion per year. As a result ofthe successful combination of SIT with conventional pest control methods, Zanzibar wasdeclared tsetse-free in 1997. Building on this success, in 2001, the Organization ofAfrican Unity established the Pan African Tsetse and Trypanosomosis EradicationCampaign (PATTEC) to combat the tsetse in the 37-Sub-Saharan African countries with

support from the World Health Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization ofthe United States (FAO), and the IAEA.

The use of the SITcontinues to rely on the application of ionizing radiation as a means toeffectively sterilize insects without affecting the ability of the males to function in thefield and successfully mate with wild female insects. Ionizing radiation is the soletechnology that can be used to achieve these twin goals of sterility induction coupledwith effective field performance. This method is integrated with a whole suite ofcomplementary measures that ensure success in reducing or eliminating insect pestpopulations. This complementarity is achieved through collaboration with otherspecialized organizations and, where necessary, using in-house R&D.

The SIT technologyhas been traditionally associated with programmes aimed at theeradication, i. e. the complete elimination of all individuals of pest populations; indeed itis one of the strengths of the nuclear technology that it is able to do this. However, sterileinsects can also be deployed in AW-IPM programmes in other control strategies. Sterileinsects can be released in a containment strategy to prevent an established pest invadinga nearby area still free of the pest. An example of this is the release of sterile screwwormsas a barrier in Panama to avoid re-invasion of Central America from where this pest hasbeen eradicated. The majority of sterile flies, which are continuously being released aspart of this programme, come from the El Pino facility in Guatemala, where the genetic

sexing strain (allowing male-only production) developed by the IAEA is being mass-reared. A fourth deployment strategy, which is considerably gaining in importance andencouraging the involvement of the private sector, is to use sterile insects as a biologicalinsecticide to continuously suppress a pest population below a level which causeseconomic damage without any intention of eradication of the pest population.
http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdf


6/8

6

Chapter18I

nsectPestControl

AW-IPM programmesare logistically complex and management intensive; theirimplementation requires flexible procedures and non-bureaucratic management

structures. In general, the scientists who have been closely involved with developing thetechnology should not be responsible for programme implementation, as other skills areneeded. Also research activities should not be part of an operational programme; instead,a separate unit (but associated with the programme) is needed for problem-solving andcontinuous improvement of procedures; technology can always be improved. The basiccomponents in the use of the SIT mass-rearing and release of sterile insects arehardly likely to change. However, as new technologies come on line and new scientificdiscoveries are made, R&D will continue to play a major role in improving the overalleffectiveness and efficiency of the technique. The topics highlighted below could be someexciting new R&D components of future SIT programmes.

The continued expansionof the technique will also be facilitated if commercialcompanies can become involved and governments may decide to subcontract privatecompanies to operate a whole programme or just individual components of a programme.The diversification described above in the use of sterile insects will help to developcommercialization. However, commercialization of the SIT has been a difficult concept topromote and establish, despite the fact that there is currently no shortage of customerswho would purchase sterile insects if they were available. The use of sterile insects only
http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdf


7/8

7

Chapter18I

nsectPestControl

for eradication of pest populations was not an attractive proposition forcommercialization, but the widespread use of sterile insects for suppression,containment, and prevention programmes provides some continuity in the need forsterile insects. Commercialization will require a regulatory framework to facilitate theproduction, trade, shipment, and release of sterile insects.

Nevertheless, more use of the SIT will result from increased efficacy and improvement ineconomics. This continues to show that when applied against an appropriate insect orinsects, the technique is more cost efficient than other technologies. Additional factorsfavouring its use include the growing problem of insect populations that become resistantto insecticides, and concerns about environmental damage caused by continuous annualuse of insecticides to control the same insect species.

Here is another success story about SIT:

Sterile insectsare mass-reared, in this case in Guatemala, which has the largest sterileinsect production facility in the world. Some 3 000 sterile males are needed per hectare tosuppress these pests in heavily farmed areas, such as coffee plantations. As a comparison,for IAEA field work in Croatia, in locations where there are fewer fruit and vegetabletypes grown, only some 500 to 1 000 sterile flies are needed on average per hectare.

If you want to export, and also avoid the application of costly post-harvest treatmentsthat can reduce produce quality, you have to get rid of both the Mediterranean and nativefruit flies, says Jesus Reyes Flores, an entomologist of the FAO/IAEA Division of NuclearTechniques in Food and Agriculture. Sterile insect technology consists of rearing massivequantities of the same pest, sterilizing it by irradiation through a simple radiation device

that otherwise causes no harm to the insect. The male insects are fed and latersystematically freed in the fields, where they then mate with the pest insects present inthe field, producing no progeny so that after the continuous release over several years thepest disappears.

The IAEA, in collaboration with the FAO, helped deploy SIT, a nuclear application, toassist in curbing Guatemalas fruit fly population, thereby providing a host of new jobsand at least doubling, over four years, export earnings from non-traditional agriculturalexport crops of tomatoes, bell peppers and papaya.

While prices slumpedover the past decade for Guatemalas traditional exports of coffee,banana and sugar cane, sales of tomatoes quadrupled to $10 million in 2010 from $2.5million in 2007, with export income from bell peppers roughly tripling to $3.2 million in2010, and papaya doubling, also to $3.2 million. These increases vaulted Guatemala intofirst place as the largest Central American supplier to its nearest major internationalmarket, the USA, and created hundreds of rural jobs, typically for men in field pestcontrol and for women in the packing and transportation services industries.
http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.html


8/8

8

Chapter18I

nsectPestControl

Finally, in addition to SIT, there are nuclear applications which deployisotopesandradiation in order to control insect. Isotopes are used as tags or markers, for instance, ofchemical molecules, insects, or plants. For example, with these tags one can follow thefate of insecticides within insects and the environment; the incorporation of nutrientsinto the insect; and the movements of insects under field conditions. They also can mark

plants on which insects feed so that the quantity of consumed food can be measured anddirectly correlated with plant resistance. They can be used as well to follow parasites andpredators of insects for example, their movements, numbers, and ability to helpcontrol insect pests.

In a SIT operation, radiation is used to sexually sterilize insects. The SIT is the largest partof the programme of the Insect and Pest Control Section of the Joint FAO/IAEA Division.Radiation is also used in insect studies including genetics, genetic engineering, microbialcontrol, quarantine treatments of agricultural commodities, and induction of mutants inplants to breed resistant varieties.

This chapter was published on Inuitech Intuitech Technologies for Sustainability onFebruary 13, 2012:http://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/

Resources:

1. Insects, Isotopes, and Radiation:http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdf

2. Improving Productivity in Agriculture:http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdf

3. Sterile Insect Technology Research and Development:http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdf

4. Battling Bugs:http://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.html5. Nuclear Technology Review 2010:

http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC54/GC54InfDocuments/English/gc54inf-3_en.pdf
http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotopehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotopehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotopehttp://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/http://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/http://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/http://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/http://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC54/GC54InfDocuments/English/gc54inf-3_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC54/GC54InfDocuments/English/gc54inf-3_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC54/GC54InfDocuments/English/gc54inf-3_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC54/GC54InfDocuments/English/gc54inf-3_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC54/GC54InfDocuments/English/gc54inf-3_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/newscenter/news/2011/battlingbugs.htmlhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/GC50InfDocuments/English/gc50inf-3-att4_en.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Factsheets/English/agriculture.pdfhttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdfhttp://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/http://intuitech.biz/chapter-18-nuclear-energy-applications-food-agriculture-insect-pest-control-edited-dr-mir-f-ali/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotopehttp://www.iaea.org/Publications/Magazines/Bulletin/Bull292/29205580912.pdf