This textbook presents theory and concepts in integrated pest management, complemented by two award-winning websites covering more practical aspects.

The dominance of insects in the world fauna has made them the humanity's greatest rival for the world's food resources, both directly by eating the plants cultivated for food and indirectly as vectors of pathogens attacking these plants. Agricultural scientists and especially entomologists have strived hard to develop a diversity of cultural, mechanical, biological and chemical weapons during the last more than two centuries to gain dominance over insects. However, there is evidence that insect pest problems have escalated with an increasing cropping intensity and with the use of agrochemicals inherent in modern agriculture. Consequently, Indian plant protection scientists have intensified research on the development of pest management tactics and effective pest management systems have been designed for all the important crops in the country. This book, consisting of 29 chapters, draws together the diverse literature on the subject of insect pest management in agriculture and contains contributions written by scientists having extensive experience with insect pest problems in Indian agriculture. The first half of the book is devoted to the principles and components of pest management including factors affecting pest populations, construction of life tables, coevolution of insects and plants, pest forecasting, pesticides, IGRs, botanicals, entomopathogenic nematodes and molecular approaches, etc. The different tactics for the management of major insect pests of principal agricultural crops of India, viz. rice, maize, wheat, forage crops, cotton, sugarcane, vegetables, fruits, oilseeds, pulse crops, jute, mesta and tobacco have been discussed in the second half of the book. The book contains a wealth of information on all aspects of insect pest management in agriculture under Indian conditions and would prove indispensable for students, teachers and researchers in agricultural entomology in India and other Asian countries.

Perspectives in integrated pest management: from an industrial to ecological model of pest management. Island biogeographic theory and integrated pest management. Population theory and understanding pest outbreaks. Trivial movement and foraging. Plant defense strategies and host-plant resistance. Plant defense-herbivore and biological control. Ecology of insect-pathogen and some possible applications. Plant-plant-pathogen-insect interactions.The Ecology of insecticides and the chemical control of insects. Agroecology and economics. Agroecosystems-structure, analysis, and modeling.

The book ‘Silent Spring’ written by Rachel Carson in 1962, is considered the la- mark in changing the attitude of the scientists and the general public regarding the complete reliance on the synthetic pesticides for controlling the ravages caused by the pests in agriculture crops. For about ve decades, the Integrated Pest Mana- ment (IPM) is the accepted strategy for managing crop pests. IPM was practiced in Canet ̃ e Valley, Peru in 1950s, even before the term IPM was coined. Integrated Pest management: Innovation-Development Process, Volume 1, focuses on the recog- tion of the dysfunctional consequences of the pesticide use in agriculture, through researchanddevelopmentoftheIntegratedPest Managementinnovations. Thebook aims to update the information on the global scenario of IPM with respect to the use of pesticides, its dysfunctional consequences, and the concepts and advan- ments made in IPM systems. This book is intended as a text as well as reference material for use in teaching the advancements made in IPM. The book provides an interdisciplinary perspective of IPM by the forty-three experts from the eld of entomology, plant pathology, plant breeding, plant physiology, biochemistry, and extension education. The introductory chapter (Chapter 1) gives an overview of IPM initiatives in the developed and developing countries from Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, Latin America and North America. IPM concepts, opportunities and challenges are d- cussed in Chapter 2.

Microbial Control of Insect and Mite Pests: From Theory to Practice is an important source of information on microbial control agents and their implementation in a variety of crops and their use against medical and veterinary vector insects, in urban homes and other structures, in turf and lawns, and in rangeland and forests. This comprehensive and enduring resource on entomopathogens and microbial control additionally functions as a supplementary text to courses in insect pathology, biological control, and integrated pest management. It gives regulators and producers up-to-date information to support their efforts to facilitate and adopt this sustainable method of pest management. Authors include an international cadre of experts from academia, government research agencies, technical representatives of companies that produce microbial pesticides, agricultural extension agents with hands on microbial control experience in agriculture and forestry, and other professionals working in public health and urban entomology. - Covers all pathogens, including nematodes - Addresses the rapidly progressing developments in insect pathology and microbial control, particularly with regard to molecular methods - Demonstrates practical use of entomopathogenic microorganisms for pest control, including tables describing which pathogens are available commercially - Highlights successful practices in microbial control of individual major pests in temperate, subtropical, and tropical zones - Features an international group of contributors, each of which is an expert in their fields of research related to insect pathology and microbial control

About 15 years ago, we asked ourselves why the methods developed by the research institutions for the management of pests were almost not used by small landholder farmers. It seemed obvious to us that conventional pest control –called “Integrated Pest Management”– was based on a reductionist approach. In reviewing the literature on the subject, we found that our concern was not new or unique. The agreement of some authors with our ideas reinforced our efforts to find a holistic approach to pest management. We took two central ideas to develop the holistic approach: First, pest management actions must put the farmer at the center of the system. Second, pest management must consider not only both pests but the other important components of the system in question. This approach based on the farmers and the systems in which they are immersed, is called “Holistic Pest Management” or HPM. In this book, I present the philosophy and practice of HPM, a new paradigm of pest management.

This volume reviews current developments in integrated pest management (IPM), focussing on insect pests. It discusses advances in understanding species and landscape ecology on which IPM is founded, as well as advances in cultural, physical and biological methods of control. The first part of the book reviews current developments in understanding insect species, community and agroecosystems ecology. This understanding provides the foundation for developing effective IPM programmes which work with ecosystems to keep pests from reaching damaging levels. Parts 2 and 3 then review advances in cultural, physical and, in particular, biological methods of control. Chapters cover developments in classical, conservation and augmentative biological control as well as the use of entomopathogenic fungi, viruses, nematodes and semiochemicals. The final parts of the book summarise current research on monitoring pesticide use as well as emerging classes of biopesticides. Edited by pioneers in IPM techniques, and including contributions from some of most eminent experts in the field, this will be a standard reference for the IPM research community, crop scientists, entomologists, companies involved in pesticides and crop pest management as well as government agencies monitoring and regulating pest management in agriculture.

Providing a critical evaluation of the management strategies involved in ecologically-based pest management, this book presents a balanced overview of environmentally safe and ecologically sound approaches. Topics covered include biological control with fungi and viruses, conservation of natural predators, use of botanicals and how effective pest management can help promote food security. In the broader context of agriculture, sustainability and environmental protection, the book provides a multidisciplinary and multinational perspective on integrated pest management useful to researchers in entomology, crop protection, environmental sciences and pest management.

The Theory and Practice of Biological Control covers conventional biological control achievement in the major crop types and in public health problems. Composed of five sections encompassing 28 chapters, this book discusses the basic information concerning developments in other biologically based alternatives to chemical pesticides. The first two sections discuss the philosophy, theory, scope, history, and the biological and ecological bases of biological control. These sections also deal with the impact of predators and the host relationships of parasitoids and pathogens. The following section presents the methodological aspects of biological control. Discussions on the variability of natural enemies as encountered in biological control work; the fitness of individuals and populations; the ways fitness is being or can be influenced by importation procedures; and the ability of imported natural enemies to adapt to the new environment are included. The fourth section outlines the accomplishments of conventional biological control in various types of crops, forests, and public health areas. Lastly, the various components of integrated pest control other than conventional biological control that forms the essential ways used in the integrated control approach are covered in the last section of the book. This book is an ideal source for plant pathologists and researchers, microbiologists, parasitologists, and public health professionals.

"This book brings up to date a range of topics concerning the disinfestation of soils of plant pathogens and pests, innovations in the implementation of integrated pest management practices, and the importance of these technologies in view of changes in the kinds and uses of soil fumigants. It summarizes new postplant treatments for controlling plant pests and pathogens and the technology of soil disinfestation in various cropping systems. The main focus of this book is the solar heating of soils, now known as soil solarization, a procedure for soil disinfestation ..."--Foreword.