1. Fundamental Principles of Pest Control
Dr. Richard M. Houseman
Department of Entomology
University of Missouri-Columbia

2. Objectives Unit 1: pg. 1-39 “Applying Pesticides Correctly” Pests
Identification and Damage
Insects
Plant Diseases
Weeds
Vertebrates
Pest Management
Pesticides
Mode of Action

3. Core Manual ‘Learning Objectives’ ‘Terms to Know’
Clues to what is important
‘Terms to Know’
Definitions of common words
‘Test Your Knowledge’
Example test questions

4. Pest Management (pg.5) Objectives
Prevention = keep from becoming a problem
Suppression = reducing to an acceptable level
Eradication = destroying an entire pest population

5. Management Strategies
Mechanical
Exclusion/removal
Heat/cold
Biological
Natural enemies, microbials
Pheromones/hormones
Cultural
Tilling, burning, mowing, flooding
Crop rotation, trap crops
Planting/harvest timing

6. Management Strategies
Sanitation
Eliminate breeding sites
Remove pathogens/sources
Disinfect equipment/tools
Host Resistance
Using disease-resistant varieties
Genetics
Manipulate host resistance
Sterility in pest

7. Management Strategies
Chemical
The use of natural or synthetic substances that directly cause the death, repulsion, or attraction of pests.
Considerations
Mode of Action
Persistence
Non-target effects
Resistance

8. Mode of Action Mode of Action The way a chemical kills a pest.
Examples:
Repellents, poisons, eradicants, systemics

9. Persistence Persistence
The length of time a chemical is active after being applied.
Categories:
Non-Persistent
Kills the pest, breaks down in a relatively short period of time
Persistent
Residues remain active for period of time after application

10. Non-Target Effects Non-Target Effects
Pesticide effects on non-pest organisms.
Potential risks:
May kill beneficial organisms
May create new pests
Ex.-Killing natural enemies of a non-pest.

11. Resistance Resistance
Lessening of the effectiveness of a pesticide for reducing the pest population
Principles:
Chemicals kill only susceptible pests
Survivors pass traits for survival to their offspring
Resistance develops over generations

12. Resistance To promote: To limit: Use same pesticide repeatedly
Use over large areas
Use highly residual chemicals
To limit:
Rotate pesticides
Target applications
Use persistent chemicals wisely

13. Pests (pg.3) A Pest is any unwanted organism
Based on what organism does, not on what they are.
Compete for food or water
Cause injury, disease, or annoyance

14. Pests (pg.3) Types of Pests Continuous = nearly always present
Sporadic = occasionally present; migratory/cyclical
Potential = not normally pests, require control only in certain situations

15. Pest Identification (pg.3)
How to Identify?
Physical features
Damage or Symptoms
Why Identify?
Pests differ in their habitats, behavior, life cycles, and susceptibility to control methods.

16. Insect & Insect-like Pests (pg.6)
Physical Features
Segmented bodies
Jointed appendages
Exoskeleton made of chitin
Bilateral symmetry

17. Insects Three body regions (pg.6) Head Thorax Abdomen
1 Pair of antennae
Various mouthparts
Thorax
3 pairs of legs
2 pairs of wings
Abdomen
Body systems

18. Insects Life Cycle (pg.7) Metamorphosis None Gradual Incomplete
Only change is size
Gradual
Egg, nymph, adult
Incomplete
Egg, nymph, adult (H2O)
Complete
Egg, larva, pupa, adult

19. Insect-like Groups (pg.8)
Arachnids
Spiders, mites, ticks
2 regions, 8 legs
Crustaceans
Pillbugs
3 regions, >8 legs
Chilopods
Centipedes
Many regions & legs
Diplopods
Millipedes

20. Insect-like Groups Nematodes Mollusks Look like insect larvae
Microscopic roundworms
Mollusks
Slugs, snails
Look like insect larvae
Non-segmented
No metamorphosis

21. Insect Pests of Plants (pg.10)
Types of damage
Leaf eating
Plant-sucking
Internal feeding
Stem boring
Root feeding

22. Pests of Animals (pg.11) Types of damage Stinging Biting Blood sucking
Toxin injecting

23. Insecticides (pg.15) Modes of Action Repellents Disrupters Poisons
Keep insects away from an area or host
Disrupters
Interfere mechanically with body function
Poisons
Deactivate biological systems in the body
Stomach = must be eaten
Contact = must be touched

24. Plant Pathogens (pg.16) Plant Disease
Any condition that causes a plant to function or appear different from normal

25. Plant Diseases (pg.16) Plant Responses to Disease Agents
Overdeveloped tissues
ie. galls, leaf curls, swelling
Underdeveloped tissues
ie. stunting, lack of chlorophyll
Death of Tissues
ie. leaf spot, wilting, blight, cankers

26. Plant Diseases
Pathogens include:
Fungi
Bacteria
Viruses
Mycoplasmas

27. Fungi (pg.16) Feed on other organisms Reproduce by spores
Most are beneficial
Decomposers
A few parasites
Feed on living plant tissues
Reproduce by spores
Microscopic, resistant stage

28. Fungi Symptoms Soft rot of fruit Rusts, smuts
Curling, powdery mildew of leaves
Spots on leaves

29. Bacteria (pg.17) Microscopic Symptoms Reproduce by cell division
Blights, spots , rots
Reproduce by cell division

30. Viruses (pg.17) Sub-microscopic Symptoms Reproduce inside host cell
Abnormal growth, mosaics
Reproduce inside host cell
Vector transfer

31. Mycoplasmas (pg.17) Smallest living things Symptoms
Plant-feeders
Symptoms
Yellow, stunting
Reproduce independently
Insects, mites, grafting

32. Fungicides & Bactericides
Modes of Action (pg.20)
Protectants
Applied before or during initial infection
Eradicants
Applied after infection
Systemics
Internal transport to all tissues of plant

33. Weeds (pg.21) A weed is any plant growing where it is not wanted.
Effects:
Compete for resources
Contaminate harvest
Harbor pests or release toxins
Look ‘bad’

34. Weeds Development (pg.21) Seedling Vegetative Reproductive Maturity
Producing leaves, stems, roots
Reproductive
Producing flowers, seeds
Maturity

35. Weeds Life Cycles (pg.21) Annuals = one year Biennials = two years
Perennials = more that two years

36. Weed Identification (pg.22)
Grasses
Narrow, parallel veins, round stems
Sedges
Narrow, parallel veins, triangular stems
Broadleaves
Fan-like, branching veins

37. Herbicides (pg.25) Modes of Action or or Contact Translocated
kills parts of plant the chemical touches
Translocated
absorbed and distributed throughout the plant
Selective
kills only undesireable plants
Non-selective
kills all plants in an area or or

38. Herbicides

39. Herbicides (pg.26) Modes of Action (cont’) or Foliar Soil Example:
Applied to leaves of the weed (foliage)
Soil
Applied to the ground around the weed
Example:
2,4-D is a foliar-translocated-nonpersistent-selective or

40. Vertebrates (pg.29) Have backbones Many potential pests
Various situations and impacts.
Eat crops, kill livestock, transmit disease, contamination, etc.

41. Poisons (pg.30) Few pesticides available
Rodenticides: most commonly-used
Piscicides
Avicides
Usually highly toxic to humans

42. Summary
Identification of the pest and an understanding of its biology is important.
The best pest management programs combine all of the available control tactics.
When using chemicals, it is important to understand their mode of action, persistence, risk of resistance, and their effect on non-target organisms.