Tag Archives: biological control

Grape Agro-ecosystem Analysis-Glassy winged sharpshooter

The invasiveness of the polyphagous glassy-winged sharpshooter (Homalodisca vitripennis (Germar), GWSS) using the PBDM approach. GWSS is indigenous to the southeastern United States and northeastern Mexico, and extended its range into California USA in 1989. GWSS is a vector of the pathogenic bacterium, Xylella fastidiosa (Wells et al. 1987), which causes Pierce’s disease (PD) in … Continue reading Grape Agro-ecosystem Analysis-Glassy winged sharpshooter →

Alfalfa Agro-ecosystem Analysis

The control of insect pests and other taxa may be a result of many factors that are difficult to separate and quantify. Introduced parasitoids, host plant resistance, pathogens and native predators led to the successful control of the spotted alfalfa aphid (SAA; Therioaphis maculata Monell) in California and elsewhere, although the relative contribution of each … Continue reading Alfalfa Agro-ecosystem Analysis →

Analysis of the Biological Control of Noxious Weeds: Yellow starthistle

The invasive weed yellow starthistle (YST) (Centaurea solstitialis) and its interactions with annual grasses and herbivorous biological control agents is used to demonstrate the utility of the PBDM approach for analyzing complex invasive species problems. The PBDM model accurately predicts the distribution and relative abundance of YST across the western USA, and the results are … Continue reading Analysis of the Biological Control of Noxious Weeds: Yellow starthistle →

Analysis of the Biological Control of Cassava Pests In SubSaharan Africa (with IITA Nigeria)

Models for cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) growth, development and yields as modified by weather, soil water and nitrogen, and natural enemies were developed. Rainfall-induced mortality and plant carbohydrate stress were the major determinants of P. manihoti population patterns prior to the introduction of exotic natural enemies. The cassava model was the basis for examining  the … Continue reading Analysis of the Biological Control of Cassava Pests In SubSaharan Africa (with IITA Nigeria) →