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Biological control or biocontrol is a method of controlling pests, whether pest animals such as insects and mites, weeds, or pathogens affecting animals or plants by using other organisms. [1] It relies on predation , parasitism , herbivory , or other natural mechanisms, but typically also involves an active human management role.
Biological pest control is a rapidly expanding field of agriculture, where natural agents, primarily parasitoids and predators are used to control a pest organism that has been causing economic harm to human interests.
Non-native species can provide ecosystem services, functioning as biocontrol agents to limit the effects of invasive agricultural pests. [131] Asian oysters , for example, filter water pollutants better than native oysters in Chesapeake Bay . [ 136 ]
While the understanding and incorporation of tritrophic interactions in pest control offers a promising control option, the sustainable biological control of pests requires a dynamic approach that involves diversity in all of the species present, richness in natural enemies, and limited adverse activity (i.e., minimal pesticide use).
Plant quarantine and 'cultural techniques' such as crop sanitation are next, e.g., removal of diseased plants, and cleaning pruning shears to prevent spread of infections. Beneficial fungi and bacteria are added to the potting media of horticultural crops vulnerable to root diseases, greatly reducing the need for fungicides. [citation needed]
Encarsia formosa, an endoparasitic wasp, was one of the first biological control agents developed. Some species of bee are beneficial as pollinators, although generally only efficient at pollinating plants from the same area of origin, facilitating propagation and fruit production for many plants. This group includes not only honeybees, but ...
Antagonism plays a critical role in agriculture, particularly in the development of biological control agent (BCAs) to manage phytopathogens and reduce reliance on synthetic pesticides. [16] Numerous microbial antagonists, including yeasts and bacteria , are isolated from diverse environments such as soil, plants, compost, and oceans for their ...
A Biopesticide is a biological substance or organism that damages, kills, or repels organisms seens as pests. Biological pest management intervention involves predatory, parasitic, or chemical relationships.