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ARS Home » Plains Area » Kerrville, Texas » Knipling-Bushland U.S. Livestock Insects Research Laboratory » LAPRU » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #363345
Research Project: Cattle Fever Tick Control and Eradication

Location: Livestock Arthropod Pests Research

Title: Grasses as suitable targets for classical weed biological control

Author
item SUTTON, GUY - Rhodes University
item CANAVAN, KIM - Rhodes University
item DAY, MICHAEL - Department Of Agriculture - Australia
item DEN, BREEYEN - Stellenbosch University
item Goolsby, John
item CRISTOFARO, MASSIMO - Bbca-Onlus, Italy
item MCCONNACHIE, ANDREW - Department Of Primary Industries
item PATTERSON, IAIN - Rhodes University

Submitted to: BioControl
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/12/2019
Publication Date: 9/4/2019
Citation: Sutton, G., Canavan, K., Day, M., Den, B., Goolsby, J., Cristofaro, M., McConnachie, A., Patterson, I. 2019. Grasses as suitable targets for classical weed biological control. Biocontrol. 64:605-622. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-019-09968-8.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-019-09968-8

Interpretive Summary: Grassy weeds are some of the most abundant and environmentally-damaging invasive species worldwide. Biological control using specialist insects (only feed on and damage target invasive species) from the weed plant's native range is frequently used as a sustainable and cost-effective weed management strategy, but until recently not used as a strategy for control of grassy weeds. Grasses have not been actively pursued as targets for biological control due to a perceived lack of specialist insects and concerns of damage to economic crop grasses. In this paper, we review the literature and demonstrate that not only do grasses have specialist insects, but that these biological control agents may be sufficiently damaging to provide effective control. The risk of grass biological control is no greater than for other weedy grasses if practitioners follow a protocol of best-practice.

Technical Abstract: Grasses are amongst the most abundant and environmentally-damaging invasive weeds worldwide. Biological control is frequently employed as a sustainable and cost-effective weed management strategy. However, grasses have not been actively pursued as targets for classical weed biological control due to a perceived lack of sufficiently large, specialised and damaging assemblages of natural enemies. There are also concerns that the risk posed to economically important crop/pasture species and closely-related native species is too great to consider implementing biological control for invasive grasses. In this paper, we review the literature and demonstrate that not only do grasses possess a suitably large and specialised natural enemy assemblage, but that these candidate agents may be sufficiently damaging to provide effective control. The risk of grass biological control is no greater than for other weedy taxa if practitioners follow a protocol of best-practice.