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Sustainable control of olive pests: enchancement of natural enemies' activity through the establishement of native floral vegetation


Reference: PTDC/AGR-AAM/102908/2008
Project Type: Nacional / Público
Financial Program: FCT - PTDC - Projectos em todos os domínios científicos
Global Funding Value: 139457.00 €
IPB Funding Value: 103344.00 €
Type of project: Research Project
Principal Investigator: Albino António Bento
Start: 2010-04-01
End: 2013-09-30
Description: Olive fruit fly, Bactrocera oleae, olive moth, Prays oleae, and black scale, Saissetia oleae, are the main olive pests in Europe. In Portugal, where olive is one the most important crops in the Northeast region, these three pests are widely distributed and coexist locally causing important damages. Despite extensive efforts over the last decades to biologically control these pests, current control measures are based on standard insecticide treatments that are overtly toxic. Increasing vegetation diversity in agroecosystems can lead to greater herbivore suppression by natural enemies. In particular, establishing floral vegetation can provide adult natural enemies much-needed dietary sugar for energy and physiological maintenance. Consequently, natural enemies may increase parasitism and predation levels and maintain pest under control in the presence of floral resources in the field. This methodology, however, has never been used and, more importantly, tested on olive groves.