Bird Boxes and Sparrow Traps: The Technological Regulation of Avian Life in the United States.

Only a few decades after its introduction to the United States in the mid-nineteenth century, the house sparrow was considered a pest that drove away native birds. Its downfall is representative of a story familiar to scholars of animals and technology who have studied the methods used to control or exclude unwanted species from both rural and urban areas. The case of the house sparrow, however, differs in a crucial respect: the birds made their homes in bird boxes, built technologies designed to attract avian species and bring them closer to humans. This article documents how bird boxes were used as tools to regulate avian life in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the United States and argues that they should be seen as a technology that mediates and regulates our relationship with nature by promoting or controlling certain aspects of living organisms.

Nowhere to run, rabbit: the cold-war calculus of disease ecology.

During the cold war, Frank Fenner (protégé of Macfarlane Burnet and René Dubos) and Francis Ratcliffe (associate of A. J. Nicholson and student of Charles Elton) studied mathematically the coevolution of host resistance and parasite virulence when myxomatosis was unleashed on Australia's rabbit population. Later, Robert May called Fenner the "real hero" of disease ecology for his mathematical modeling of the epidemic. While Ratcliffe came from a tradition of animal ecology, Fenner developed an ecological orientation in World War II through his work on malaria control (with Ratcliffe and Ian Mackerras, among others)-that is, through studies of tropical medicine. This makes Fenner at least a partial exception to other senior disease ecologists in the region, most of whom learned their ecology from examining responses to agricultural challenges and animal husbandry problems in settler colonial society. Here I consider the local ecologies of knowledge in southeastern Australia during this period, and describe the particular cold-war intellectual niche that Fenner and Ratcliffe inhabited.

A historical perspective on the effects of trapping and controlling the muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) in the Netherlands.

BACKGROUND: The muskrat is considered to be a pest species in the Netherlands, and a year-round control programme is in effect. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of this programme using historical data on catch and effort collected at a provincial scale. RESULTS: The development of the catch differed between provinces, depending on the year of colonisation by muskrat and the investment of effort (measured as field hours). The catch did not peak in the same year for the various provinces, and provinces that were colonised earlier in time took longer to attain the peak catch. Trapping resulted in declining populations, but only after a certain threshold of annual effort in trapping had been surpassed. On average, populations were observed to decline when the annual effort exceeded 1.4 field hours per km of waterway for several successive years. Having reached a phase of greater control, control organisations tended to reduce effort. CONCLUSION: We conclude that control measures can make muskrat populations decline, provided that the effort is commensurate with the population size. Our study emphasises that experimentation is needed to confirm the causality of the findings, to establish the relation with damage or safety risk and to derive an optimal control strategy. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

El Instituto Español de Entomología (CSIC) y la multitud molesta / The Spanish Institute of Entomology (CSIC) and the bothered crowd

En 1941 se creó el Instituto Español de Entomología (IEE), heredero directo de la antigua Sección de Entomología del Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales. Entre las labores encomendadas al nuevo establecimiento estaba la de aportar «a los Centros de aplicación los datos resultantes de los trabajos que en él se efectúen con los insectos, de interés económico y sanitario». Gonzalo Ceballos fue nombrado Director y sus propuestas, junto al trabajo de las instituciones encargadas de la gestión forestal, hicieron del IEE uno de los centros motores de muchas iniciativas en este campo. Su dirección supuso, además, una excelente oportunidad para cumplir los objetivos con los que fue concebido el Instituto. En este artículo se distinguen tres formas de participación respecto al estudio, gestión y control de plagas forestales. Por un lado, la implicación del IEE en la resolución de consultas de particulares, empresas e instituciones; en segundo lugar, el desarrollo de proyectos subvencionados por el Patronato Juan de la Cierva y, finalmente, las colaboraciones con diferentes cuerpos dependientes del Ministerio de Agricultura. Se constata que la falta de personal especializado en plagas adscrito al IEE supuso un grave inconveniente para que las iniciativas de Ceballos se desarrollaran más allá de su gestión (AU)

The Spanish Institute of Entomology (IEE) was founded in 1941, direct heir of the former Entomology Section of the National Museum of Natural Science. Among the tasks assigned to the new Institute was to provide "to the interested centers the data resulting from the work that he made with insects with economic and public health significance". Gonzalo Ceballos was appointed Director; his proposals, alongside the work of the institutions responsible for forest management, turned up the IEE into one of the driving forces of many initiatives in this field. His management also provided an excellent opportunity to meet the objectives for which the Institute was conceived. Three forms of participation were distinguished on the study, management and control of forest pests. On one hand, the involvement of the IEE in resolving queries from individuals, companies and institutions; second, the development of scientific projects supported by the Juan de la Cierva Board of Trustees and, finally, collaborations with different departments belonging of the Ministry of Agriculture. It is stated that, the lack of specialized personnel assigned to the IEE pests' management was a serious drawback to continue the initiatives of Ceballos be developed beyond management (AU)

Trinta anos do bicudo-do-algodoeiro no Brasil / Thirty years of cotton boll weevil in Brazil

Este texto é uma revisáo bibliográfica que abrange 30 anos de ocorrência do bicudo-do-algodoeiro, Anthonomus grandis Boheman, 1843 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), no Brasil. O bicudo é considerado uma das pragas mais prejudiciais à agricultura pelos danos que causa e pelas dificuldades de seu controle. Originário do México, esse inseto foi constatado pela primeira vez no Brasil em 1983 e duas safras após seu surgimento já estava disseminado nas principais áreas produtoras de algodão no país, onde se mantém até a atualidade. Quando não controlado, esse inseto pode destruir completamente a produção de um algodoal, já quando controlado os prejuízos variam de 3 a 75% da produtividade esperada. Os principais danos causados pelo bicudo são resultantes de orifícios promovidos nas estruturas reprodutivas da planta durante a alimentação e oviposição dos adultos, sendo os botões florais as estruturas preferencialmente atacadas pelo inseto. O período de ataque do bicudo às plantas de algodoeiro se inicia por volta dos 30 dias após a emergência, no estabelecimento vegetativo da cultura, passando pelo florescimento e frutificação e chegando até a fase de maturação, sendo que durante esse período vários métodos podem ser adotados visando ao seu controle. Para controle de A. grandis, no Brasil, são citados métodos de controle comportamental, controle cultural, resistência de plantas, controle biológico (predadores, parasitoides e patógenos), produtos naturais, controle legislativo e manejo integrado, além de iniciativas de programas de supressão populacional do inseto. O controle químico não é discutido neste artigo.(AU)

This paper is a literature review that covers 30 years of occurrence of the boll weevil, Anthonomus grandis Boheman, 1843 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), in Brazil. The boll weevil is considered one of the most destructive pests in the agricultural system; the damage that it causes and the difficulties of its control in cotton is enormous. Originally from Mexico, this insect was first found in Brazil in 1983 and two seasons after the detection it was widespread in major cotton producing areas where it remains until today. When boll weevil is not controlled, it can completely destroy the economic cotton production; the losses range can vary from 3 to 75% of the expected productivity. The main damage caused by the boll weevil in cotton is promoted in the reproductive structures of the plant during feeding and oviposition of adult insects; the flower buds are preferentially attacked by the insect. The period of the weevil attack on cotton plants begins around 30 days after emergence, but it starts at the vegetative period; damage occurs at the flowering and fruiting period and reaches the maturation phase. During these periods several methods can be adopted aiming its control. To control A. grandis in Brazil the following methods are cited: behavioral control, cultural control, host plant resistance, biological control (predators, parasitoids, and pathogens), natural products, legislative control and integrated pest management, and program initiatives for suppression of the insect population. Chemical control is not discussed in this article.(AU)

History and contemporary perspectives of the integrated pest management of soybean in Brazil.

The integrated pest management (IPM) of soybean developed and implemented in Brazil was one of the most successful programs of pest management in the world. Established during the 1970s, it showed a tremendous level of adoption by growers, decreasing the amount of insecticide use by over 50%. It included outstanding approaches of field scouting and decision making, considering the economic injury levels (EILs) for the major pests. Two main biological control programs were highly important to support the soybean IPM program in Brazil, i.e., the use of a NPVAg to control the major defoliator, the velvet bean caterpillar, Anticarsia gemmatalis Hübner, and the use of egg parasitoids against the seed-sucking stink bugs, in particular, the southern green stink bug, Nezara viridula (L.). These two biological control programs plus pests scouting, and the use of more selective insecticides considering the EILs supported the IPM program through the 1980s and 1990s. With the change in the landscape, with the adoption of the no-tillage cultivation system and the introduction of more intense multiple cropping, and with the lower input to divulge and adapt the IPM program to this new reality, the program started to decline during the years 2000s. Nowadays, soybean IPM is almost a forgotten control technology. In this mini-review article, suggestions are made to possibly revive and adapt the soybean IPM to contemporary time.

Before and after Silent Spring: from chemical pesticides to biological control and integrated pest management--Britain, 1945-1980.

The use of chemical pesticides increased considerably after World War II, and ecological damage was noticeable by the late 1940s. This paper outlines some ecological problems experienced during the post-war period in the UK, and in parts of what is now Malaysia. Also discussed is the government's response. Although Rachel Carson's book, Silent Spring (1962), was important in bringing the problems to a wider public, she was not alone in sounding the alarm. Pressure from the public and from British scientists led, among other things, to the founding of the Natural Environment Research Council in 1965. By the 1970s, environmentalism was an important movement, and funding for ecological and environmental research was forthcoming even during the economic recession. Some of the recipients were ecologists working at Imperial College London. Moved by the political climate, and by the evidence of ecological damage, they carried out research on the biological control of insect pests.

Creating an agricultural world order: regional plant protection problems and international phytopathology, 1878-1939.

Beginning in 1878 with the International Phylloxera Convention of Berne, international conventions have sought to relieve national agricultural industries from two specific burdens. First, by defining phytosanitary practices to be enforced by national plant protection services, these conventions attempted to prevent the introduction of plant diseases and pests into national territories from which they were previously absent. Second, by standardizing these practices - especially through the design of a unique certificate of inspection - the conventions attempted to eliminate barriers such as quarantines affection international agricultural trade. The succession of phytopathological conventions seemed to epitomize the coalescence of an international community against agricultural pests. What actually coalesced was bio-geopolitics wherein plant pathologists and economic entomologists from North America and the British Empire questioned the so-called internationality of the environmental and economic specificities of continental European agriculture, embodied in "international" conventions. Although an international phenomenon, the dissemination of agricultural pests provided opportunities for cooperation on a strictly regional albeit transnational basis that pitted bio-geopolitical spaces against each other. This article retraces the formation of these spaces by analyzing the deliberations of committees and congresses that gathered to define an international agricultural order based on the means to prevent the spread of plant diseases and pests.

Fifty years of the integrated control concept: moving the model and implementation forward in Arizona.

Fifty years ago, Stern, Smith, van den Bosch and Hagen outlined a simple but sophisticated idea of pest control predicated on the complementary action of chemical and biological control. This integrated control concept has since been a driving force and conceptual foundation for all integrated pest management (IPM) programs. The four basic elements include thresholds for determining the need for control, sampling to determine critical densities, understanding and conserving the biological control capacity in the system and the use of selective insecticides or selective application methods, when needed, to augment biological control. Here we detail the development, evolution, validation and implementation of an integrated control (IC) program for whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Genn.), in the Arizona cotton system that provides a rare example of the vision of Stern and his colleagues. Economic thresholds derived from research-based economic injury levels were developed and integrated with rapid and accurate sampling plans into validated decision tools widely adopted by consultants and growers. Extensive research that measured the interplay among pest population dynamics, biological control by indigenous natural enemies and selective insecticides using community ordination methods, predator:prey ratios, predator exclusion and demography validated the critical complementary roles played by chemical and biological control. The term 'bioresidual' was coined to describe the extended environmental resistance from biological control and other forces possible when selective insecticides are deployed. The tangible benefits have been a 70% reduction in foliar insecticides, a >$200 million saving in control costs and yield, along with enhanced utilization of ecosystem services over the last 14 years.

History of IPM in California pears--50 years of pesticide use and the transition to biologically intensive IPM.

During the 1960s, the California pear industry, on a per acre basis, was among the heaviest users of pesticides. Each season, multiple sprays of up to 14 active ingredients (chlorinated hydrocarbons, organophosphates and carbamates) were typically applied for control of insects and mites. The cost of control escalated while damage from arthropod pests increased owing to greater pest resistance and more pest resurgence. The pear industry suffered classic symptoms of the 'pesticide treadmill'. By the late 1960s, key pear industry leaders demanded action. Simultaneously, newly emerging concepts of IPM were being developed and funded. With public awareness and environmental activism on the rise in the wake of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, the stage was set for change. This paper elucidates how pear growers, university researchers and extension agents, environmentalists, government regulators, private consultants, farm chemical suppliers and others contributed to the reduction in insecticide use in California pear orchards. Today, arthropod IPM in pears is characterized as relatively low input, biologically intensive and very successful. For example, in 2008 many pear growers only applied between three and five active ingredients (mainly organically certified) per season for control of arthropods.

The integrated control concept and its relevance to current integrated pest management in California fresh market grapes.

The foundation of an integrated pest management program involves valid treatment thresholds, accurate and simple monitoring methods, effective natural controls, selective pesticides and trained individuals who can implement the concept. The Integrated Control Concept written by Stern, Smith, van den Bosch and Hagen elucidated each of these points in an alfalfa ecosystem. Alfalfa hay (Medicago sativa L.) has a low per acre value, requires little hand labor and is primarily marketed in the USA. In contrast, fresh market table grape (Vitis vinifera L.) has a high per acre value, requires frequent hand labor operations, suffers unacceptable cosmetic damage and is marketed throughout both the USA and the world. Each of the components of a working IPM program is present in table grape production. Marketing grapes to foreign countries presents special problems with pests considered invasive and where residue tolerances for some selective insecticides are lacking. However, fresh market grape farmers are still able to deal with these special problems and utilize an IPM program that has resulted in a 42% reduction in broad-spectrum insecticide use from 1995 to 2007.

A campanha contra a broca-do-café em São Paulo (1924-1927) / The campaign against the coffee borer in São Paulo (1924-1927)

Quando o café constituía a principal riqueza brasileira e São Paulo detinha a liderança absoluta na sua produção e comércio, uma praga veio colocar sob ameaça toda aquela pujança econômica. Conhecida como broca-do-café, era causada por um minúsculo inseto aparecido em fazendas de Campinas. De lá partiu a notificação ao governo paulista, em maio de 1924. A gravidade da situação levou o governo estadual a compor uma comissão científica chefiada por Arthur Neiva, responsável por levar a cabo o plano de combate. A campanha contra a broca combinou a implementação de um vigoroso aparato de pesquisa e fiscalização com amplo trabalho de divulgação científica, que lançou mão de estratégias vanguardistas de difusão, como o cinema. Em fins de 1927, a Comissão foi formalmente extinta após a criação de uma instituição permanente de pesquisa agrícola: o Instituto Biológico de Defesa Agrícola e Animal.

When coffee was Brazil's chief source of wealth and São Paulo was the absolute leader in its production and trade, a plague suddenly came to threaten this mighty economic asset. The cause was a tiny insect called the coffee borer, which began showing up on plantations in the Campinas area. The São Paulo state government learned of the pest in May 1924 via news from Campinas. The situation was so serious that the state government formed a scientific commission, headed by Arthur Neiva, who was to lead the battle against the borer. The ensuing campaign put in place a sound system of research and surveillance, complemented by broad-reaching scientific education that relied on such vanguard tools as cinema. In late 1927, the Commission was officially dissolved, following creation of a permanent agricultural research center: the Instituto Biológico de Defesa Agrícola e Animal (Biological Institute for Agricultural and Animal Defense).