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Biocontrol - Pest glossary Category: Animals and Nature > Biological Control Date & country: 24/11/2013, USA Words: 137

Trap crop
A small area of a crop used to divert pests from a larger area of the same or another crop. The pests, once diverted to the trap crop, may be treated with an insecticide.

Univoltine
Having only one brood or generation per season.

Vector
An organism capable of carrying and transmitting a disease-causing agent from one host to another.

Virus
Any of various submicroscopic pathogens which can only replicate inside a living cell.

Stomach poison
An insecticide that is lethal only after it has been ingested by an insect, entering the insect body through the gut.

Systemic insecticide
An insecticide that is absorbed into plant sap and is lethal to insects feeding on or within the treated plant.

Thorax
The insect body region behind the head which bears the legs and wings.

Tolerance (host-plant resistance)
The ability of a plant to withstand injury by pests.

Transformed (Bt-transformed)
Transfer and expression of a gene (e.g., for Bt toxin) into another organism.

Spiracles
The external openings of the insect breathing (tracheal) system, found along the abdomen.

Spore
A reproductive structure developing in certain bacteria and fungi which is strongly resistant to environmental influences but which will become active under suitable conditions.

Stage (life stage)
A distinct period in the development of an organism (e.g., for some insects, egg, larval, pupal, and adult stages).

Sampling
Estimating the density of organisms (pests or natural enemies) or damage by examining a defined portion of the crop.

Scouting, Scout
see Sampling.

Septicemia
Blood poisoning caused by pathogenic organisms.

Specialist
A pest or natural enemy that utilizes a narrow range of species for its host or prey.

Species
A group of individuals similar in structure and capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. They are different in structure from other such groups and do not interbreed with them.

Pupa, Pupae (pl.)
The nonfeeding stage between the larva and adult in insects with complete metamorphosis.

Puparium, Puparia (pl.)
A case formed by the hardening of the last larval skin, in which the pupa is formed; usually of flies.

Pupate
To transform to a pupa.

Resistance (plant)
see Host plant resistance.

Resurgence (pest)
The development of large populations of pests that had previously been suppressed.

Predator
An animal that attacks and feeds on other animals, normally killing several individuals during its life cycle.

Pronotum
The upper, often shield-like, hardened body-wall plate, located just behind the head of an insect.

Protozoan
A microscopic, single-celled organism that is largely aquatic and includes many parasitic forms.

Predaceous
Preying upon other organisms, predatory.

Polyembryonic (eggs)
A single egg that divides to form two or more (often hundreds) identical embryos.

Polyembryony
Having several embryos.

Population
A group of individuals of the same species within a given space and time.

Physical Control
Control of pests by physical means such as heat, cold, sound waves, etc.

Phenology
The seasonal life history of an insect population.

Pheromone
A substance, such as a sex attractant, that is given off by one individual and causes a specific reaction in other individuals of the same species.

Phylum, Phyla (pl.)
One of the major divisions of the animal kingdom.

Pest-resistant crops
Crops that possess attributes which minimize damage by pests.

Pesticide
A substance that is used to kill, debilitate, or repel a pest.

Parasitoid
An animal that feeds in or on another living animal, consuming all or most of its tissues and eventually killing it.

Parthenogenesis
Development of an insect, from egg to adult, without fertilization.

Pathogen
A disease-causing organism.

Pest
An organism that interferes with human activities, property, or health, or is objectionable.

Pest management
see Integrated pest management.

Palp (palpus)
Sensory organ attached to insect mouthparts that is used to test the quality of food.

Parasite
An organism that lives in or on another organism (the host) during some portion of its life cycle.

Ovipositor
The egg-laying apparatus of a female insect.

Ocelli
Simple eyes on some adult and larval insects. Typically there are three, which form an inverted triangle dorsally, the function of which is obscure.

Order
A taxonomic subdivision that contains groups of related families or superfamilies; usually ending in -ptera in insects.

Overwinter
A period of rest or hibernation by which insects survive the winter.

Oviposition
The laying or depositing of eggs.

Nymph
The immature stage, following hatching from the egg, of an insect that does not have a pupal stage.

Nematode
An elongated, cylindrical worm parasitic in animals, insects, or plants, or free-living in soil or water.

NPV
Nuclear polyhedrosis virus.

Nectar
The sugary liquid secreted by many flowers.

Mycelium, Mycelia (pl.)
A mass of interwoven filamentous 'threads' that make up the vegetative part of a fungus.

Native (insect or plant)
Of local origin, not intentionally or accidentally introduced.

Natural control
The suppression of pest populations by naturally occurring biological and environmental agents.

Natural enemies
Living organisms found in nature that kill, weaken, or reduce the reproductive potential of other organisms.

Morphology
Form or structure of an organism.

Multivoltine
Having more than one brood or generation per season.

Mite
Any of several minute invertebrates belonging to the phylum Arthropoda, class Arachnida.

Metamorphosis
A change in body form during development of an insect.

Microbial
A microscopic organism; a germ.

Microbial insecticide
A preparation of microorganisms (e.g., viruses or bacteria) or their products used to suppress insect pest populations.

Microsporidia
Single-celled life forms, related to Protozoa.

Metabolism, Metabolic
Chemical changes that occur in living cells to provide energy for vital activities and to assimilate new material.

Mechanical control
Control of pests by physical means such as the use of screens or row covers.

Leafy greens
Lettuces and other leaf vegetables.

Least toxic
Having a minimal toxic effect upon non-target organisms.

Life Cycle
The sequence of events that occurs during the lifetime of an individual organism.

Maggot
The immature form (larva) of a fly or wasp, lacking legs and a well-developed head.

Mass-reared
Produced in large numbers, as in natural enemies produced for release programs.

Larva, Larvae (pl.)
The immature stage between the egg and pupa of insects having complete metamorphosis where the immature differs radically from the adult (e.g., caterpillars, grubs).

Inundative release
The release of relatively large numbers of natural enemies to suppress pest populations, without the expectation that the natural enemies will colonize and spread throughout the area.

Integument
The outer covering of the insect body that includes the cuticle and the epidermis.

Insecticide resistance
Genetically inherited ability to withstand doses of pesticide which would kill individuals from strains whose ancestors had not been exposed to the pesticide.

Instar
The stage of an insect's life between successive molts, for example the first instar is between hatching from the egg and the first molt.

Integrated pest management (IPM)
An approach to the management of pests in which all available control options, including physical, chemical, and biological controls, are evaluated and integrated into a unified program.

Insect resistant (plants)
Tolerant of, or resistant to, insect attack (as in plants). individuals from strains whose ancestors had not been exposed to the pesticide.

Insect growth regulator (IGR)
A substance, natural or synthetic, that controls or modifies insect growth processes.

Indigenous
Native to an area.

Inoculative release
The release of relatively small numbers of natural enemies that are expected to colonize, reproduce, and spread naturally throughout an area.

Hindwings
The second pair of wings of an insect.

Honeydew
The sugary liquid discharge from the anus of certain insects (Homoptera) such as aphids and scales.

Host
The organism in or on which a parasitoid lives; a plant on which an insect feeds.

Host plant resistance
The relative amount of heritable qualities possessed by a plant that reduces the degree of damage to the plant by a pest or pests.

Hyperparasite
A parasite whose host is another parasite.

GV
Granulosis virus.

Habitat manipulation
Manipulation of agricultural areas and surrounding environment with the aim of conserving or augmenting populations of natural enemies (e.g., the planting of a refuge for natural enemies).

Head
The anterior region of an insect, which bears the mouthparts, eyes, antennae and houses the brain.

Herbicide
A substance used to kill or control weeds.

Hermaphroditic
Having both male and female sex organs in one individual.

Gradual metamorphosis
A type of insect development in which there is no prolonged resting stage (pupa). The three stages are

Generalist
A pest or natural enemy that can utilize a wide range of species as host or prey.

Generation
Period from any given stage in the life cycle to the same life stage in the offspring. Typically from egg to egg.

Genetic engineering
The manipulation of the genetic material of an organism in order to achieve desirable characteristics.

Genus, Genera (pl.)
A group of evolutionarily related species, sharing one or a number of characteristics.

Fumigant
A substance which produces a gas, vapor, fume, or smoke intended to kill a pest.

Fungicide
Any substance that kills or inhibits the growth of a fungus.

Fungus, Fungi (pl.)
Any of numerous plants lacking chlorophyll, ranging in form from a single cell to a body of branched filaments. Includes the yeasts, molds, smuts, and mushrooms.

Funicle
The portion of the flagellum of the antenna closest to the club.

Gene
A biochemical unit of hereditary, often coding for an entire protein.

Epizootic
A disease outbreak within an insect population.