Skip to main content
ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Wapato, Washington » Temperate Tree Fruit and Vegetable Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #402008
Research Project: Integrated Approach to Manage the Pest Complex on Temperate Tree Fruits

Location: Temperate Tree Fruit and Vegetable Research

Title: Nontarget pesticide impacts on pest natural enemies: Progress and gaps in current knowledge

Author
item Schmidt, Rebecca

Submitted to: Current Opinion in Insect Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/16/2023
Publication Date: 6/8/2023
Citation: Schmidt-Jeffris, R.A. 2023. Nontarget pesticide impacts on pest natural enemies: Progress and gaps in current knowledge. Current Opinion in Insect Science. 58. Article 101056. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cois.2023.101056.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cois.2023.101056

Interpretive Summary: Avoiding pesticide non-target effects on natural enemies is a cornerstone of conservation biological control. Recent advances in this field have included increased examination of nuanced sublethal effects, including microbiome changes. There is an interest in lifetable-based approaches, while also simplifying results to reduce the amount of information a grower needs to interpret to make a judicious application decision. Newer pesticides are showing promise for selectivity to both natural enemies and humans. Major research gaps still remain, with few published studies on ground-dwelling natural enemies, herbicides, adjuvants, or pesticide mixes. Translating the results of laboratory assays to field-level effects remains a major challenge. Field studies examining entire management programs and meta-analyses of laboratory studies may begin to address this issue.

Technical Abstract: Avoiding pesticide non-target effects on natural enemies is a cornerstone of conservation biological control. Recent advances in this field have included increased examination of nuanced sublethal effects, including microbiome changes. There is an interest in lifetable-based approaches, while also simplifying results to reduce the amount of information a grower needs to interpret to make a judicious application decision. Newer pesticides are showing promise for selectivity to both natural enemies and humans. Major research gaps still remain, with few published studies on ground-dwelling natural enemies, herbicides, adjuvants, or pesticide mixes. Translating the results of laboratory assays to field-level effects remains a major challenge. Field studies examining entire management programs and meta-analyses of laboratory studies may begin to address this issue.