Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
SUSTAINABLE PEST MANAGEMENT IN DATE PALM: CURRENT STATUS AND EMERGING CHALLENGES, ss.205-235, 2015 (SCI-Expanded)
Nitidulid beetles have a worldwide occurrence, on a variety of plants with fruits containing a significant level of carbohydrates. They are mostly found in rotting and fermenting fruits and thus are regarded as secondary pests of date palms. However, in Australia, they are the primary pests of stone fruits. Depending on the climate, sap beetles overwinter as pupae and/or adults in mass accumulations. Adults are strong fliers capable of long distance flights. Eggs are laid in single small clusters in or on the fruits. Larvae feed on the flesh of the fruits for about 11/2 weeks. Mature larvae fall onto the ground and pupate inside the soil. Five to eight generations are produced per year under optimal conditions. Hygiene and other cultural practices such as removing fallen fruits and early harvest are important measures to reduce the beetles number. Chemical pesticides applied against other primary pests in date palms also incidentally control sap beetles. In stone fruits, mass trapping by means of aggregation pheromone combined with fermenting food baits has been shown to be very effective. Covering the fruit bunches with plastic netting is an important physical control option. Attempts for biological control by means of parasitoids, predators, nematodes and other microbial agents so far have been neither successful nor economical. Detailed knowledge of the ecology of natural enemy complexes is needed. Developments in production techniques of beneficials would improve their value in terms of both economy and effectiveness, within sustainable IPM systems.