These issues have caused concerns in governments and the general public; as,
efforts to combat pests on crops, while maintaining farm profitability and actual crop
production levels, is moving toward sustainable agriculture (Kelly and Guo 2007).
An eco-friendly strategy in managing pests is Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
which provides a healthy offer of agricultural products for consumers. Based on
Jacobsen (1997) definition, IPM is a sustainable approach for managing pests by
combining biological, cultural, physical, and chemical tools in a way that minimizes
economic, health and environmental risks. One important candidate in IPM strategy
is control of the pest population using natural enemies, including predators, parasitoids and insect pathogens. Entomopathogens, mostly including viruses, bacteria,
fungi, and nematodes, often play an important role in the regulation of insect
populations in natural ecosystems.as an alternative method of chemical pesticides,
microbial control follows three strategies against a wide variety of insect pests,
including classical biological control, augmentation, and conservation.
In Iran, agriculture is pesticide dependent and pests control is often done using
chemical products. This huge pesticide use, bring concerns about possible links
between the growing levels of cancer incidence and chemical pesticides exposure
inside the country, which leads to increased market demand for organic products. on
the other hand, sometimes chemical control of certain pests is inefficient. Therefore,
there is a tendency within Iranian farmers for using IPM approach by an emphasis on
biological control application and insect sex pheromones in recent years. Biological
control against agrarian pests in the country is a practice that has initiated in the
1930s (Abivardi 2001), and as a historical point, it has been rise and fall in its own
way. Among biocontrol agents, most of the studies have done on predators and
parasitoids, and between insect pathogens, Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner, 1915
(Bacillaceae) has received more attention than pathogenic fungi and
entomopathogenic nematodes, EPNs. While the history of studies on insect pathogenic fungi in the country is much longer, work on EPNs started in the late 1990s,
when first attempts were done for isolation and identification of them. Herein, we
provide a short overview of IPM programs in Iran and biological control agents with
an emphasis on entomopathogenic and entomoparasitic nematodes. We choose
selected literature about Iranian entomopathogenic and entomoparasitic nematodes
fauna and their possible contribution, challenges, and opportunity, to the biological
control of insect pests in IPM programs in the country.
12.2 Application of Biological Control Agents in IPM
Programs in Iran
From a historical perspective, the attention to biological control in Iran dates back to
the Middle Ages, which in literature is mentioned to the benefits of stork and hoopoe
in controlling noxious animals and termites. In 1932, however, the first recorded
experience in biological control in the country was done through the introduction of
Rodolia cardinalis Mulsant, 1850 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) from France by
482
J. Karimi and M. Hassani-Kakhki
efforts to combat pests on crops, while maintaining farm profitability and actual crop
production levels, is moving toward sustainable agriculture (Kelly and Guo 2007).
An eco-friendly strategy in managing pests is Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
which provides a healthy offer of agricultural products for consumers. Based on
Jacobsen (1997) definition, IPM is a sustainable approach for managing pests by
combining biological, cultural, physical, and chemical tools in a way that minimizes
economic, health and environmental risks. One important candidate in IPM strategy
is control of the pest population using natural enemies, including predators, parasitoids and insect pathogens. Entomopathogens, mostly including viruses, bacteria,
fungi, and nematodes, often play an important role in the regulation of insect
populations in natural ecosystems.as an alternative method of chemical pesticides,
microbial control follows three strategies against a wide variety of insect pests,
including classical biological control, augmentation, and conservation.
In Iran, agriculture is pesticide dependent and pests control is often done using
chemical products. This huge pesticide use, bring concerns about possible links
between the growing levels of cancer incidence and chemical pesticides exposure
inside the country, which leads to increased market demand for organic products. on
the other hand, sometimes chemical control of certain pests is inefficient. Therefore,
there is a tendency within Iranian farmers for using IPM approach by an emphasis on
biological control application and insect sex pheromones in recent years. Biological
control against agrarian pests in the country is a practice that has initiated in the
1930s (Abivardi 2001), and as a historical point, it has been rise and fall in its own
way. Among biocontrol agents, most of the studies have done on predators and
parasitoids, and between insect pathogens, Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner, 1915
(Bacillaceae) has received more attention than pathogenic fungi and
entomopathogenic nematodes, EPNs. While the history of studies on insect pathogenic fungi in the country is much longer, work on EPNs started in the late 1990s,
when first attempts were done for isolation and identification of them. Herein, we
provide a short overview of IPM programs in Iran and biological control agents with
an emphasis on entomopathogenic and entomoparasitic nematodes. We choose
selected literature about Iranian entomopathogenic and entomoparasitic nematodes
fauna and their possible contribution, challenges, and opportunity, to the biological
control of insect pests in IPM programs in the country.
12.2 Application of Biological Control Agents in IPM
Programs in Iran
From a historical perspective, the attention to biological control in Iran dates back to
the Middle Ages, which in literature is mentioned to the benefits of stork and hoopoe
in controlling noxious animals and termites. In 1932, however, the first recorded
experience in biological control in the country was done through the introduction of
Rodolia cardinalis Mulsant, 1850 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) from France by
482
J. Karimi and M. Hassani-Kakhki