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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Albany, California » Western Regional Research Center » Invasive Species and Pollinator Health » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #147156
Title: ARE MONO-SPECIFIC AGENTS NECESSARILY SAFE? THE NEED FOR PRE-RELEASE ASSESSMENT OF PROBABLE IMPACT OF CANDIDATE BIOCONTROL AGENTS, WITH SOME SAMPLES.

Author
item Balciunas, Joseph

Submitted to: XI Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/1/2002
Publication Date: 4/1/2003
Citation: BALCIUNAS, J.K. ARE MONO-SPECIFIC AGENTS NECESSARILY SAFE? THE NEED FOR PRE-RELEASE ASSESSMENT OF PROBABLE IMPACT OF CANDIDATE BIOCONTROL AGENTS, WITH SOME SAMPLES.. XI SYMPOSIUM ON BIOLOGICAL CONTROL OF WEEDS. 2003. p. 38.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Historically, weed biocontrol practitioners have predicted the safety of candidate agents from the results of host-specificity assessments. However, even a highly specific agent can disrupt ecosystem pathways in unpredictable ways, especially if it becomes abundant on its target, but fails to reduce the weed's populations. I argue that we should strive to release agents that are not only narrowly host specific, but that have also demonstrated their ability to damage the target weed. Usually, these pre-release assessments of a candidate agents potential impact can be conducted most easily under field conditions in the native range of the weed. I discuss the results of two 'insecticidal exclusion trials' that I conducted in Australia, the native home of melaleuca trees. But these impact assessments can also be performed under containment conditions in a quarantine. I also discuss the results of two 'dosage' trials with a gall-making fly that is being considered as a biological control agent for Cape ivy.