PEST

MANAGEMENT
STRATEGIES
AND
TACTICS
 Pest management Strategy
• A pest management strategy is the overall plan put up to
eliminate or alleviate the problem of a perceived pest
• Each strategy is then effected using various methods and
techniques known as Tactics
• Various strategies can be put up depending on the
economics and pest status and characteristics
• Some of these include:
– Do-nothing strategy
– Reduce Number strategy
– Reduce Crop Susceptibility strategy
– Combined strategy
 Do-nothing strategy
• This strategy looks absurd but it is not out of place
• It is applied when the injury caused by the insect or the
damage is less than economic
• When the GEL is less than ET
• Hence pest density or number is less than ET
• This strategy is adopted to ensure that money spent on
management does not exceed damage incurred from
insect pest activity
• It is usually adopted with insects that cause indirect
damage
• As the name suggests the tactic to employ is to do nothing
this however does not preclude persistent monitoring
 Reduce Number strategy
• Most widely used strategy in pest management
• It entails reducing the number of the pest
• It is usually employed in a therapeutic manner
• Each time GEL rises up to ET it is applied to bring
the insect number below ET
• It could also be applied in a preventive manner
based on historical evidence
• It is usually applied to occasional, sporadic and
perennial pest situations
 Reduce Number strategy cont’d
• Generally with this strategy all peak GELs that are close to ET can be
dampened to ensure it does not get there during outbreaks
• Drastic actions are usually required with severe pests whose GEL lies
above ET perceptually. So a general and immediate lowering that is
maintained is required to ensure the highest peak does not get to ET
• These are often achieved by:
 Reducing the favorableness of the habitat: Tactics include –
introducing natural enemies, altering the abiotic situation,
mechanical trapping, etc
 Reducing the inherent reproductive and surviving potential of the
population: Tactics include - sterile insect technique, pheromones
and other chemicals to disrupt mating activities, use of insecticides,
etc
 Reduce Crop Susceptibility strategy
• This strategy seeks to reduce crop susceptibility to injury and
damage by the pest
• The interactions between hosts and pest is modified on the host
to make it less susceptible
• It does not modify the pest population
• Enhancing the survival potential of the crop or animal in any form
• It is one of the most environmentally friendly strategies
• Some of the popular tactics adopted here include:
• Raising of resistant plant or animal cultivars with improved pest
tolerance
• Cultural tactics
Use of fertilizers
Early and late planting dates
Plant rotation
 Combined strategy
• This pest management strategy combines all the
three earlier strategies
• It is a multifaceted approach to pest management
taking all the advantages of each of the earlier
approaches with little or no disadvantages
• It is the most desirable strategy as it produces
greater degree of consistency than can be
achieved by a single strategy
• Its principle informs the development of
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programmes
 Pest management Tactics
• These are what used to be known as pest control and
some crop enhancing methods
• Under pest management they are taken as pest
management tactics and are used to achieved a desired
strategy
• Each one of them has an impact on the pest with unique
efficiency, eco-friendliness and economic implications
• Quite a number of them are known
• No single one of them has a combination of being the
best in terms of efficiency, environmental friendliness
and cost
• They include the following:
 Physical tactic
• This involves the use of physical factors
• Such as temperature, moisture, light,
sound, etc
• The tactic is limited in efficiency as altering
these factors to levels that insects will be
affected is usually quite difficult
• So most often a controlled environment is
used, e.g. refrigerator, oven, humidifier, etc
 Mechanical tactics
• This entails the use of machines or equipments
• The advantage of the limitation of the insect in terms of ability
to withstand physical pressure is taken
• It is the unleashed as a machine, e.g. hand picking, use of the
nail, use of broom, use of screen net, mosquito net, sticky
substrates, floatation
• The major problem with the tactic is the lack of efficiency
• Some of the new modes of the tactic are now designed as
machines with one or two physical factors to enhance
functioning such as in traps, mosquito and housefly catchers
or burners, etc
• Thus such mechanical devises represent a combination of
physical and mechanical tactics
 Cultural tactics
• This tactic involves the alteration of the insect environment and making it
unsuitable for the insect
• These tactic stands out as the most economical and eco-friendly
• Examples of these include
– Sanitation: ensuring the elimination of weeds. dirt etc reduces insect numbers
especially those that dwell in the materials
– Tilling: deep ploughing buries insect pests on the surface end exposes those
buried therefore eliminating them
– Cultivating: same as above and exposes some to natural enemies
– Crop rotation: substitute a crop with an unfavorable one for the insect
– Planting dates: known to ensure avoidance of some insect pest problem by the
crop
– Harvesting dates: same as above
– Crop fertilization: his ensure the crop is more able to cope and withstand the
pressure of the pest
– Use of trap crops: planting of attractive alternatives to deceive the pest from
accessing the main crop or divert them away
 Legislative tactic
• Usually involves government actions of placing
quarantines or enacting laws that limits
movement of pest across localities
• Other indirect ones include those that enforce
the application of the tactic or reduces the use
of insecticides,
• Some enforce the adoption of a limit for each of
such chemicals in the environment or on food as
residues, e.g. FEPA and NAFDAC regulations
• The laws also prevent misbranding and
adulteration of insecticides
 Genetic tactic
• This usually involves genetic manipulation of the pest
or it mechanism of inheritance
• It could be used to produce highly tolerant or highly
resistant hosts or
• Lethal genes altering the development of an insect
may be introduced and acting as autocidal control
• Sterile male technique is also a known example of this
and it is achievable by radiation
• The sterile males are then introduced in inundating
numbers to compete with the normal males and
reduce the overall chances on progeny production
drastically
 Biological tactic
• The involves the use of living organism to destroy, suppress or regulate
pest species.
• It entails the use of natural interactive biotic interaction such as
predation parasitism, competition etc against unwanted insects
• It is about the oldest and most successful tactic
• The first noteworthy demonstration of the method was recorded in
1889 in California where the citrus industry was seriously threatened by
the Cottony cushion scale, Icerya purchasi (Homoptera: Megarodidae)
that was believed to have been imported from Australia or New
Zealand. Rhodolia cardinalis (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) that was the
native enemy was then imported, introduced and it was able to control
the pest within a year
• The most frequently used agents for efficiency reasons are parasites,
predator, parasitoids and pathogens
 Biological tactic cont’d
• The method usually involves movement of the agent
from a place where it had been established to a new
environment or niche.
• Hence they are usually exotic and to sustain them in the
new terrain the following protective measures are to be
observed:
1) Limited alternative host should be provided for them
2) Artificial food and shelter should be provided for them
initially
3) All harmful cultural practices to them should be avoided
4) They should be protected against pesticides
 Predator Parasite Parasitoid (PPP)
• In cases where a self sustaining population is
difficult to build augmenting, i.e. adding mass
reared or collected individuals to the new area
periodically is recommended
• Four properties such agents must possess are:
1. Ability to locate or find its host
2. Reproductive capability
3. High utilization rate
4. Must be aggressive
 Pathogen
• These are sometimes used against insects
• These include viruses, fungi, bacteria
• Their action could be systemic in which case they are
ingested or cutaneous
• They are usually applied by spraying or dusting
• E.g. Bacillus thurigiensis (BT)
• The drawback of this tactic include
a) High specificity in terms of host
b) often require a long incubation period that may run into
weeks
c) High susceptibility to weather conditions
 Merits and Demerits
• Advantages
No Residue accumulation
specific
Not safe
cheap
sustainable
Eco friendly

• Disadvantages
 Not Prompt
Not easily applicable
Need a lot of conditions to hold
 Chemical tactic
• This tactic involves the use of chemicals to deter
insect pests
• These chemicals often kill and hence they are
described as insecticides
• The tactic is quite efficient, easy to apply and
trustworthy. It is however more costly and leaves
the environment compromised for residual
reasons
• It is therefore the most popular tactic and quite a
array of products show up for use in the tactic
 Properties of a good insecticide
• It should be
Very efficient
Specific
Non toxic to to non pest
Cheap
Readily available
Be biodegradable
safe
Non toxic
Long shelf life
Non corrosive
Have good smell
Be perceivable
 Insecticide classification
• Based on entry mode
1) Contact: Absorbed through the body wall after touching the insect.
Frequently used for large, superficially placed and sucking insects
2) Stomach: Ingested and will kill when assimilated into the tissue.
Frequently used for chewing insects
3) Fumigant: absorbed through spiracular openings into the tracheal
system. They are usually in the gaseous form and used in an
enclosure especially against stored product pests
4) Systemic: special insecticides applied and absorbed by host and
delivered intact to insect pests that attack the host. They are
costlier as they offer permanent protection to the host without
destroying it
 Insecticide classification
• Based on chemical nature
• Two major types are known
1. Organic which could further be classified on the basis of its substrate or origin into four:
i. Hydrocarbons: these are usually petroleum products are employed as solvents or
carriers for the insecticide. They are usually phytotoxic and are frequently diluted with
water and presented as emulsions. They have good spreading qualities
ii. Botanicals: primarily sourced from plants. Could actas attractants repellents and
toxicants e.g. nicotine pyrethrium etc
iii. Microbials: this is essentially a biological tactic but some chemocals are used in its
packaging before delivery hence nay be considered as a chemical package
iv. Synthetics: these are synthesized but organic, e.g. DDT, clordane lindane etc

2. Inorganic: these are include the non hydrocarbon types such as sulphur, lead arsenate,
sodium flouride, etc
 Insecticide classification
• Based on mode of action as poisons
• Physical: those that act by affecting the insect structure through
abrasion etc e.g. activated clay, diatomatious earth,
• Protoplasmic: that affects nature of protoplasm especially
proteins, e.g. arsenicals
• Chitinous: affects exoskeletal structure by inhibiting chitin
synthesis, e.g. Diflubenzunon or removig the wax, e.g. Kerosene
• Nervous: affects impulse transmission and coordination, e.g.
Malathion
• Respiratory: affects energy synthesis and the enzymes
concerned, e.g. Hydrogen Cyanide
 Insecticide formulations
• Generally insecticides are
 Easy to prepare and apply
 rarely used in their full strength
 Consist of active ingredients and an inert portion
 Inert portions being necessary to enhance coverage, delivery, safe use and
effectiveness

Formulation describes the forms of insecticides presentations available in the market

These include:
• Dust: dry powdered form with particle size of less than 100 microns. Consist of active
ingredients admixed with carrier agents that are pulverised minerals such as talc.
Cheap easy to apply with a good reach out but inefficient as a result of low
concentration and drifting possibility
• Grannules: this a dry formulation with larger particles. The often liquid insecticides
are impregnated or mixed with coarse particles. The drifting limitations of dusts are
taken care of here and are therefore safer to us but other apply
 Insecticide formulations Cont’d
• Wettable powder (WP): this is a solid formulation applied in form of liquids. The
ingredient and inert material are mixed with surfactants that allow it water to wet
it and it is applied . It allows higher concentration delivery but require frequent
agitation to discourage precipitation
• Soluble powder (SP): this is another dry formulation applied as a liquid. Here the
insecticide dissolves in the water to form solution and it is alplied. It is better than
wettable powder because it does not require agitation and it does not clog the
nozzle of the equipment
• Emusifiable Concentrate (EC): consist of the oily active ingredient (toxicant)
solvent for it and an emulsifyer that allow it disperse in water and reduces the
surface tension of the formula allowing it to disperse better. Iit is the most
common and most useful insecticide formulation
• Flowable powder (FP): this is a suspension of fnely divided particles in oilor
water.it is a compromise formulationto allow advantages of EC cand WP
• Solutions(S): the toxicant is usually dissolved in an organic solvent (not water)
and applied directly. It is usually phytotoxic and hence rarely used on plants but
widely used on livestock and water surfaces for control of mosquitoes
 Insecticide formulations Cont’d
• Fumigants: theses are in form of poisonous gases and kills when inhaled. They
are usually in form of liquids but are sometimes available as solids capsules
• Aerosol: These are made available in very tiny liquid droplets. The toxicant is
suspended as a minute particle in air for a little while as fog or mist. It consist
of a toxicant, suspending or vaporizing agent and propellants. It must however
be kept and applied under a pressurized arrangement and hence slightly costly
• Poison Baits (PB): this a situation where the toxicant is mixed with an
attractant usually food and applied onto the insect
• Paints and polish: where the toxicant is mixed with paint or polish that is
applied to a surface. This is targeted at insects that lands on the surface
therefore preventing ;landing
• Burning coils: these are made available in forms that will burn and release
fumes consistently for a period of time
 Use of insecticides
• They are toxic and their application therefore is hazardous and
risky as it can cause injury or Death
• Its degree of insecticide hazard is a factor of the following:
Concentration
Rate of application
Method of application
Persistence after application
Penetrating ability of the toxicant
Inherent toxicity of the active ingredient
Size of the organism
Length of time of exposure
Intensity of exposure
 Safety rules
• Store under lock and key
• Keep tightly closed in original container
• Read and follow manufacturers instructions religiously
• Avoid spillage on the skin
• Wash hands face and cloth and change cloth immediately after use
• Cover food and water container during application
• Avoid talking and use nose mask
• Dispose the empty containers in a way tat humans animals and
plants are not exposed to it
• Always clean and flush a sprayer immediately after use
• Observe the safety interval prescription by the manufacturer
religiously
• Be alert to symptoms of illness that manifests immediately after
use and report same to your doctor promptly
 Emergency Treatments
• Remove victim into fresh air
• Apply artificial respiration if breathing is
irregular
• Loosen victims clothing
• Keep victim quiet until transported to the
hospital
• Call a doctor and give full details
 Merits and demerits of the tactic
• Advantages
Prompt
Easily applicable
Reliable

• Disadvantages
Residue accumulation
Not specific
Not safe
Costly
Not sustainable
Compromises environment