Pest control is an important factor on farms, although it costs a lot of money, and the haphazardness of overdoing it on pesticides that can disturb nearby ecosystems is always present. A new report states simple actions farmers can take to increase biodiversity and foster interactions between insect species to help keep pests under control. Reports show that it wasn’t just species diversity that contributed to pest control, but also the interactions between insects. Similarly, farms had the fewest pests when insect species had about the same number of links to each other.
This article connects with environmental science because it discusses topics about biodiversity, which is a topic that branches from environmental science. Not only that, but it describes the connections between insects and pests. This article proved a detailed way on how using insects, farmers can eliminate pests faster.
COLLINS, N. (2015, July 31). Controlling Your Pest Problem With … Bugs. Retrieved August 3, 2015, from http://www.psmag.com/health-and-behavior/to-control-pests-foster-a-community-of-insects
Often times the use of insecticides in agriculture is hazardous to the environment and human health, that is why the recommendation of increasing biodiversity and fostering interactions between insect species is a more beneficial alternative. If you had to infer, why do you think increasing biodiversity of insects helps manage pest control?
In my opinion, increasing biodiversity of insects helps manage pest control because it enhances resilience to unpredictable and extreme events
such as drought, heavy rainfall, pest infestations. Would you like me to go in depth?
That’s interesting that the article describes the biodiversity in insects. What would be a safer way of getting rid of harmful insects?
I’m a big advocate for organic goods/ products, and I’ve done some research and the proposition of how to get rid of harmful insects organically. Natural insecticides are generally botanical, meaning they are derived from plants that have insecticidal properties. Compared to chemical pesticides, Natural insecticides wield less toxic effects and break down much more quickly in the environment. Some examples that I found are: Neem, Nicotine Sulfate, Pyrethrum, Rotenone, Ryania, and Sabadilla. They all have their own individual tagets. I recommend looking into how people are using organic means instead of chemical pesticides. What do you think about the usage of organic methods/ Natural insecticides .