Enhancing Quality of Commercial Biocontrol Agents

In the fast changing agriculture scenario in the current WTO (World Trade Organization) regime, avoiding chemical pesticide residues in agricultural produce and enhancing environmental protection and sustainability of crop production have gained importance to be competitive in global trade. The value of biocontrol agents in bringing down population densities of major crop pests has been recognized since the 1870s. Nevertheless, natural enemies are available commercially only for control of a limited number of crop pests and that too mainly in Europe and North America. The situation is paradoxical considering the fact that mass production of insect biocontrol agents for augmentative releases is not a new concept in developing countries, particularly India. Thus, establishment of parasitoid breeding laboratories there in 1926 for control of coconut black headed caterpillar (Opisina arenosella) can be considered as one the earliest organized attempts for the biological control of an insect pest. Similarly Trichogramma spp. are used extensively to control sugarcane borers in India, and several sugar factories either produce or procure the egg parasitoids from commercial producers. Nevertheless, only a handful of natural enemies are available commercially in India, in spite of the fact that the first commercial biological control laboratory in the country was established in the year 1981. On the other hand, about 125 species of natural enemies are available commercially in Europe and North America.

Among the bottlenecks limiting the progress of biological control, the absence of standardized methods of production and quality control is the most important. Unless this problem is solved and natural enemies of reliable quality are made as readily available as chemical pesticides, biological control is likely to be treated only as a matter of academic interest. Adoption of standardized production techniques for superior quality natural enemies is crucial for both the practice of biological control and also for convincing the users that biological control is a dependable pest management tool. The need for maintaining quality of mass produced biocontrol agents has been an area of concern for many years and has often been the topic of discussion in many conferences worldwide. Nevertheless, standardized protocols for production and quality testing have neither been formulated nor available, especially to commercial producers in the developing countries. The quality control guidelines outlined in this excellent book*, the first comprehensive publication on this topic, specifically for biocontrol agents, will be of immense value to students, scientists and commercial producers involved in the mass production of biocontrol agents throughout the world, and fulfils a long felt need.

The book consists of 20 chapters, divided into six convenient sections, starting with the need for quality control to the actual quality control tests for 30 parasitoids and predators. The sections in between provide background information and insights into mass production of natural enemies including sources of variation in behaviour, suggested methods of coping with these variations, an overview of species of mass produced natural enemies and the developments that resulted in evolving guidelines for quality control in Europe and North America.

Mass production of natural enemies is an essential prerequisite for the adoption of biological control in pest management. Many of the units engaged in mass production of biocontrol agents are unaware of the sources of variability of natural enemy behaviour and methods to prevent their genetic deterioration. It is important that the condition of individual units of a natural enemy production system be understood for effective implementation of a total quality control system, which consists of management, research, methods development, material, production, utilization, personnel and quality control. Such a system, the procedure for implementation of which is succinctly elucidated in the book, will help in increasing production efficiency and cost-effectiveness, besides assisting in the identification of the causes of the problems encountered during the rearing process. This in turn will ensure that these organisms are utilized effectively in the field, in addition to providing the information required for the use of biocontrol agents in pest management.

Crop protection technology is tantalizingly poised at the crossroads today, awaiting the right kind of inputs from the industry. The editor of this book has estimated that the worldwide turnover for the sale of biocontrol agents in 2000 was US$50 million with a predicted annual growth of 15-20%. Nevertheless, consumption of biorational products and biocontrol agents together account for less than 1% of the pesticide consumption in India, as compared to 12% globally. Information is now available in the literature on the field efficacy of a large number of parasitoids, predators and pathogens, in addition to standardized laboratory multiplication methods for many of them. It is hoped that this book will kindle the interests of biological control workers all over the world to develop protocols for mass production and quality control of additional natural enemies and at the same time improve upon the ones described in this book, so that biocontrol agents can be utilized on a larger scale to control more and more crop pests. Availability of standardized products of assured quality will create additional demand for such products and will not only enthuse the existing units to strengthen their facilities but also encourage entrepreneurs to come forward to set up commercial production units. Therein lies the future of biological control, considering the fact that sustained mass production cannot be achieved without establishing professionally managed, fully equipped, specialized facilities exclusively for this purpose.

*van Lenteren, J. C. (ed) (2003) Quality control and production of biological control agents. Theory and testing procedures. Wallingford, UK; CABI Publishing, 352 pp. Hbk. UK£65.00 / US$120.00. ISBN 0851996884.

By: Dr K.P. Jayanth, Bio-Control Research Laboratories, A division of Pest Control (India) Pvt. Ltd.

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Aiming for Better Agent Selection

This publication* is a collection of papers presented at a workshop organized by the CRC (Cooperative Research Centre) for Australian Weed Management, aimed at improving the efficacy and evaluation of biocontrol as well as reducing the chances of any adverse impacts. The ten papers contained in this 99-page volume discuss many of the things that concern modern weed biocontrol practitioners including agent prioritization, host specificity and non-target effects, and suitable evaluation of the outcomes be they measured in ecological or economic terms.

D. T. Briese and co-authors introduce the volume by considering where and how improvements in selection, testing and evaluation of agents might be made. R. McFadyen discusses whether the use of ecology can improve (and improve economically) on the success rates achieved by traditional agent selection methods. A. W. Sheppard deals with the debate on the relevance of using ecological principles to prioritize agents and reviews current methods for predicting efficacy. D. T. Briese examines the rationale behind the centrifugal phylogenetic method (CPM) of test plant selection and discusses how it can be modernized. A. J. Willis and co-authors draw on the results of a study of past releases of agents with known potential to attack native plant species in Australia to discuss the predictability and acceptability of such potential non-target effects. K. Dhileepan and A. E. Swirepik & M. J. Smyth consider ways of evaluating the effectiveness of weed biocontrol on local and regional scales, respectively. D. J. Criticos discusses the role of various types of ecological models in the evaluation of projects and agents. T. L. Nordblum considers ways to improve economic assessments of biocontrol by using realistic assumptions about biological factors in an appropriate socioeconomic setting. Finally, A. W. Sheppard and co-authors summarize the debates and conclusions from the various sessions to present the workshop's views of what is needed to improve selecting, testing and evaluation of weed biological control agents.

Who better than the Australian researchers to draw on their considerable experience in weed biocontrol to pull together these highly important issues in one volume whose contents should influence all workers in the field? Many of the issues raised in this meeting were reiterated at the subsequent 11th International Symposium on the Biological Control of Weeds held in Canberra in April this year, reinforcing the importance of these topics to a worldwide audience. It is valuable to have the diverse but intrinsically-linked themes so well presented in one volume and I am sure all practitioners will benefit from accessing it.

*Spafford Jacob, H.; Briese, D.T. (2003) Improving the selection, testing and evaluation of weed biological control agents. Proceedings, CRC for Australian Weed Management Biological Control of Weeds Symposium and Workshop, Perth, Western Australia, 13 September 2002. CRC for Australian Weed Management Technical Series No. 7, 99 pp.

Obtainable from:
CRC for Australian Weed Management, Waite Campus, University of Adelaide, PMB 1, Glen Osmond, SA 5064, Australia.
Email: crcweeds@adelaide.edu.au
Fax: +61 8 8303 6590
Web: www.weeds.crc.org.au

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Another Testing Book Re-available

A new print run means another host testing publication from the Australasian region is again available*. This, the second printing of the book, publishes papers that were contributed to a workshop sponsored by the Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Pest Management. Australian and New Zealand scientists summarize and discuss the pros and cons of the common assays used for assessing host specificity for weed and insect biocontrol agents. Recommendations are given on the most appropriate assays to use for host specificity testing, and how we might integrate a range of methods to maximize our ability to interpret insect behaviour accurately.

The book has chapters by some well-known authorities from the region in the field of host specificity testing. For instance, in the weed biocontrol field there are chapters that thoroughly review the methods and best uses for no choice trials (Richard Hill), choice trials (Penny Edwards), open field host specificity tests (David Briese) and overviews on the use of cut foliage in assays (Bill Palmer) and approaches to assay design (Andy Sheppard). This book is not just for weed biocontrol, however, with two chapters that give thoughtful insights into parasitoid host specificity testing (by Barbara Barratt & co-authors and Michael Keller).

*Withers, T.M.; Barton Browne, L.; Stanley, J. (1999) Host specificity testing in Australasia: towards improved assays for biological control. Australia; State of Queensland, Department of Natural Resources and Mines, 98 pp. Reprinted (2003) with permission by Forest Research, Rotorua, New Zealand. NZ$30.

Contact: Publications, Forest Research,
Private Bag 3020, Rotorua, New Zealand. Email: publications@forestresearch.co.nz
Fax: +64 7 343 5897
Web: www.forestresearch.co.nz

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US Weed Biocontrol Publications

New and updated publications on weed biological control in the USA are available from the Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team in Morgantown, Virginia.

`Biological control of invasive plants in the eastern United States'1 provides a reference guide for field workers and land managers concerning the historical and current status of the biological control of invasive plant species in the eastern USA. Weeds associated with lakes, ponds and rivers, wetlands, prairies and grasslands, old fields and pastures, and forests are dealt with in separate sections. Each section synthesises knowledge from published articles, unpublished reports and the personal experiences of the authors, who are each leaders in the biological control of the weeds they are discussing. The book thus provides the most up-to-date and accurate status report of weed biocontrol in the region currently available. A concluding section discusses a series of cross-cutting issues pertaining to what will define an appropriate target weed for biological control in the future.

New editions of two practical manuals provide an overview of the biology and biocontrol of weeds in the genus Centaurea in the USA.

The first manual2 covers six knapweed species: squarrose knapweed (C. virgata ssp. squarrosa), diffuse knapweed (C. diffusa), spotted knapweed (C. soebi), black knapweed (C. nigra), meadow knapweed (C. pratensis) and brown knapweed (C. jacea). Descriptions are provided for each species together with a key to separate them. Detailed descriptions of 13 knapweed biocontrol insects (eight seedhead feeders and five root borers) include information on identification and lifecycles designed to help identify them in the field.

The second manual3 is devoted to yellow starthistle (C. solstitialis), and provides guidelines on how to establish and manage a biocontrol programme. A description of the weed is followed by detailed descriptions of each of the six insect agents released against it in the USA, again targeted at use for identification the field.

Both manuals also cover, in practical detail, the different elements of a biocontrol programme (planning, implementing and evaluating). They deal with: developing work schedules for field activities; selecting and preparing a release or nursery site; collecting, handling releases of, transporting and shipping agents; and monitoring agents and vegetation at the release sites (with guidelines for each agent). Glossaries of terms ensure clarity, and there are selected references for those wanting to know more. Appendices include useful release and monitoring forms, plus a troubleshooting guide.

Also see the Proceedings section, this issue, for details of the Proceedings of the 1st International Symposium on Biological Control of Arthropods (ISBCA) which was held in Honolulu, Hawaii on 14-18 July 2002. Printed and CD versions of these proceedings are also available from Richard Reardon.

1 Van Driesche, R.; Lyon, S.; Blossey, B.; Hoddle, M; Reardon, R. (2002) Biological control of invasive plants in the United States. Morgantown, WV, USA; USDA Forest Service, Publication FHTET-2002-04, 413 pp.

2 Wilson, L.M.; Randall, C.A. (2003) Biology and biological control of knapweed. Morgantown, WV, USA; USDA Forest Service, Publication FHTET-2001-07, 2nd ed, April 2003, 100 pp.

3 Wilson, L.M.; Jette, C.; Connett, J.; McCaffrey, J. (2003) Biology and biological control of yellow starthistle. Morgantown, WV, USA; USDA Forest Service, Publication FHTET-1998-17, 2nd ed, July 2003, 76 pp.

1, 2, 3 Obtainable from: Richard Reardon,
FHTET, USDA Forest Service,
180 Canfield Street,
Morgantown, WV 26505, USA.
Email: rreardon@fs.fed.us
Fax: + 1 304 285 1564

2, 3 Can also be obtained from:
Carol Bell Randall, USDA Forest Service, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, USA.
Email: crandall@fs.fed.us

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