Land-Use Effect on Olive Groves Pest Prays oleae and on Its Potential Biocontrol Agent Chrysoperla carnea

Abstract

Olive growing has been intensified through the simplification of agricultural landscapes. In order to rethink the environmental drawbacks of these practices, conservation biological control techniques have been examined. In this work, Prays oleae and its natural enemy Chrysoperla carnea were monitored to account for the effects of the amount and diversity of different land-uses. We found that C. carnea showed an attraction to areas with high abundances of P. oleae but this predator did not display any affection by the different land-uses. Inversely, P. oleae abundance was lower in diverse landscapes and higher in simplified ones. Importantly, higher abundances of C. carnea were related to lower infestation levels of P. oleae in the late part of the season. These results corroborate the attraction of C. carnea to the olive moth, highlighting the potential of C. carnea as a biological control agent of this pest, assert that the promotion of land-use diversity can reduce P. oleae and confirm that landscapes dominated by olive groves can promote this pest. The present study aims at contributing to the discussion about the management of agricultural ecosystems by providing farmers with sustainable alternatives that do not have harmful effects on the environment and public health.

Landscape composition and configuration affect bees in the olive agroecosystem

“…Landscape structure affected bees in the sampled olive grove area. This has been shown not only for pollinators but also for other arthropods important in the olive agroecosystem, both phytophagous and natural enemies, and in other olive-growing areas (Alves et al, 2021;Boccaccio & Petacchi, 2009;Gkisakis et al, 2018;Lantero et al, 2019;Martinez-Nunez et al, 2021;Ortega & Pascual, 2014;Picchi et al, 2016;Santoiemma et al, 2019;Scalercio et al, 2012;Tscheulin et al, 2011;Villa et al, 2020). In our study, landscape indices affecting bees were the scrubland area (CAMME), the olive grove area (CAO) and the mean shape index (MSI).…”

“…However, some published works indicate that landscape complexity affects this important group of insects in olive groves (Martínez-Núñez et al, 2019;Neokosmidis et al, 2018;Tscheulin et al, 2011). Landscape structure in the olive agroecosystem affects other insects, such as pests and natural enemies of pest (Alves et al, 2021;Boccaccio & Petacchi, 2009;Lantero et al, 2019;Ortega & Pascual, 2014;Santoiemma et al, 2019;Villa et al, 2020).…”

A complex landscape favours the abundance and species richness of syrphids (Diptera: Syrphidae) in olive groves

“…On the other hand, simple landscapes, with olive grove predominance, were associated to higher richness of hymenopteran parasitoid families (Pascual, Rescia, et al, 2022) and higher abundance of the ground beetle Pterostichus globosus (Fabricius, 1792) (Lantero et al, 2019). The attack of P. oleae on olives was also positively related with the area of olive groves (Pascual, Ortega, & Villa, 2022), and in other study areas the abundance of P. oleae increased for higher percentages of surrounding olive groves (Alves et al, 2021). High CAO was associated also with higher abundance of the olive fruit fly, Bactrocera oleae (Rossi, 1790), in this (Ortega et al, 2022) and other study areas (Ortega, Pascual, & Rescia, 2016;Paredes et al, 2022).…”

“…In the olive agroecosystem, syrphid larvae are predators of the olive psyllids, Euphyllura olivina (Costa, 1839) and Euphyllura straminea Loginova, 1973 (Hemiptera), the green moth, Palpita vitrealis (Rossi, 1794) and the olive moth, Prays oleae (Bernard, 1788) (Lepidoptera) (Rojo, Gilbert, Marcos‐García, Nieto, & Mier, 2003), contributing to biological control of these insect pests. The study of the effect of landscape structure on different trophic guilds and processes in the olive agroecosystem has received attention in the last 20 years, showing in general a beneficial effect of complex landscapes (Alves, Mendes, Alves da Silva, Sousa, & Paredes, 2021; Boccaccio & Petacchi, 2009; Costa et al, 2020; Lantero et al, 2019; Martínez‐Nuñez et al, 2020; Ortega, Moreno, Fernández, & Pascual, 2022; Ortega, Sanchez‐Ramos, González‐Nuñez, & Pascual, 2018; Paredes et al, 2022; Pascual, 2022; Picchi, Bocci, Petacchi, & Ending, 2016; Scalercio, Brandmayr, Iannotta, Petacchi, & Boccaccio, 2012; Villa, Santos, Pascual, & Pereira, 2021). We hypothesize that landscape complexity favours syrphid community in the olive agroecosystem.…”

Methodological approach to spatial analysis of agricultural pest dispersal in olive landscapes

“…The possible relevance of the presence of natural or semi-natural vegetation covers near olive groves or other woody crops to improve conservation biological control and other ecosystem services has been studied by several authors (Alves et al, 2021 ; Paredes et al, 2019 ; Villa et al, 2020 ; Wu et al, 2019 ). In olive groves, Paredes et al, ( 2019 ) suggest that the maintenance of surrounding natural and semi-natural habitats may be a promising practice to promote the presence of natural enemies to control P. oleae infestations.…”